Obscure Players That You Remember

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He's not obscure yet, but considering how brightly he started his international career as a 19 year old, Umar Akmal really has underperformed thus far. I don't know whether to admire his stubbornness or cringe at his delusions:

Akmal was of the opinion that his batting style was suited to the way Test cricket is played presently. "I still wonder what I did wrong and where I went wrong to be dropped from Test side," Akmal said in Dubai, where he is playing for Lahore Qalandars in the PSL. "They only dropped me saying that I am not suitable for Test cricket because I don't hold back, which is required in Tests.
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Need to average more than 35 mate! Whilst Pakistan have their down moments, they've got some pretty solid competition for batting spots.

"I am not careless, just playing my natural game," Akmal said. "If I am asked to score ten per over then what you expect from me? Should I play for myself, score at five, and let the run rate mount on my team? No, I rather go out, play big, and try to achieve my team's requirement. And we all know where I play [in the batting order], at which number. People often compare me with other batsmen but why don't people realise that the number I bat at is critical and there is the burden of extra responsibility.
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Ah the old "playing my natural game". There's too many examples of good batsmen who can regulate themselves and adapt to almost any situation these days.

Another issue is Akmal not satisfying the PCB's standards of fitness, on which there has been greater emphasis over the last three years. At his previous assessment, Akmal was weighed at 91kg and his fat-level reading was 115.6 - anything over 100 is considered high. Akmal, however, defended his fitness levels.

"So what exactly do you expect from me? To be smart and thin, why? I can quote you many examples in which those players are theoretically fit but cannot even clear the circle. I have a natural body and if I try to reduce it I may lose my strength for power hitting."
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Nice try.

http://www.espncricinfo.com/pakistan/content/story/1082235.html

Tremendous talent, but sadly on his current trajectory is unlikely to be fulfilled.
 
Hellgood said:
He's not obscure yet, but considering how brightly he started his international career as a 19 year old, Umar Akmal really has underperformed thus far. I don't know whether to admire his stubbornness or cringe at his delusions:



Need to average more than 35 mate! Whilst Pakistan have their down moments, they've got some pretty solid competition for batting spots.



Ah the old "playing my natural game". There's too many examples of good batsmen who can regulate themselves and adapt to almost any situation these days.



Nice try.

http://www.espncricinfo.com/pakistan/content/story/1082235.html

Tremendous talent, but sadly on his current trajectory is unlikely to be fulfilled.
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He's a c***
 

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Gough said:
It was the 2000 series in England when Ambrose, and Walsh retired, and all of a sudden they had to scratch about for twenty wickets that WI cricket really started to suffer.
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Can't believe they haven't been able to find another dude over 6" 5 who can bowl.. Wonder what happens to em? They all playing basketball and sprinting instead??
 
Carl Hooper said:
Can't believe they haven't been able to find another dude over 6" 5 who can bowl.. Wonder what happens to em? They all playing basketball and sprinting instead??
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They had a couple. Merv Dillon had the build for it and to some degree, the control. He had no tricks at all though, no scare factor. Reon King was another one who had a bit of potential but just fell off the radar and wasn't really looked after by the selectors. He was genuinely fast too. Add Franklin Rose to that list but he finished his own Test life around the same time as Ambrose and he was only 27 at the time or thereabouts.

If Jason Holder could add maybe 5km of pace, get to say 138-139, his height and accuracy would make him a genuine handful.
The lack of tall quicks is why they've been so lenient on Shannon Gabriel. He is genuinely quick, high 140s, barrel chested and tall. He's been getting picked on those attributes for 2 years, and finally in the UAE this year he delivered and was probably our best bowler.

A huge problem they've had isn't the fabled 'everyone wants to play basketball' issue but rather every tall kid ends up playing it. They still have plenty of quick bowlers but they're all under 6 feet. Guys like Taylor and Edwards were genuine test wicket takers, but being very short, in between toe crushers and skiddy bouncers, their stock deliveries were fodder for most good front foot players.
 
t_94 said:
Jermaine Lawson bowled genuine wheels and got 8 in an innings vs Australia iirc but had troubles with the legality of his action.
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Yep. He ended up in America from memory. They had a few little rays of hope - Edwards got picked to play tests basically through an impressive effort as a local net bowler and took a bagful on debut or very early on. None had all the tools though. The quick ones had no discipline or extra grunt, the accurate ones like Collymore or Pedro Collins had no speed or height.
 
PhatBoy said:
They had a couple. Merv Dillon had the build for it and to some degree, the control. He had no tricks at all though, no scare factor. Reon King was another one who had a bit of potential but just fell off the radar and wasn't really looked after by the selectors. He was genuinely fast too. Add Franklin Rose to that list but he finished his own Test life around the same time as Ambrose and he was only 27 at the time or thereabouts.

If Jason Holder could add maybe 5km of pace, get to say 138-139, his height and accuracy would make him a genuine handful.
The lack of tall quicks is why they've been so lenient on Shannon Gabriel. He is genuinely quick, high 140s, barrel chested and tall. He's been getting picked on those attributes for 2 years, and finally in the UAE this year he delivered and was probably our best bowler.

A huge problem they've had isn't the fabled 'everyone wants to play basketball' issue but rather every tall kid ends up playing it. They still have plenty of quick bowlers but they're all under 6 feet. Guys like Taylor and Edwards were genuine test wicket takers, but being very short, in between toe crushers and skiddy bouncers, their stock deliveries were fodder for most good front foot players.
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Don't think it is all about the bowlers. Haven't had a 1000+ run year from any WI batsmen in over a decade. Shiv Chanderpaul the closest and Darren Bravo had one stellar year (950 in 2012) but apart from that, mediocre across the board.
 
Yoda_ said:
Don't think it is all about the bowlers. Haven't had a 1000+ run year from any WI batsmen in over a decade. Shiv Chanderpaul the closest and Darren Bravo had one stellar year (950 in 2012) but apart from that, mediocre across the board.
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Certainly they've battled hard with the bat but they've found a few - Bravo, Braithwaite (his record isn't brilliant but for a player his age with so little support he's actually been very good), Kirk Edwards for a time averaged over 40, others here and there, Sarwan averaged 40 and realistically should still be in the side even now.

It is a lone source of pride for me that the West Indies are the only side in test cricket not to be dismissed below 100 in the last decade. It's happened to
Australia something like 6 times.

Small comforts.
 
PhatBoy said:
See if it was someone with a history of actually being factually correct about anything, this could quantify as fishing.

When it is someone who refuses to acknowledge facts and records, it's hard to tell when they are being serious or not so I like to err on the side of caution and assume that they are.
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I'm still laughing..........
 
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