"I want my story to be remembered as one of a simple, patriotic man" : Misbah-ul-Haq

[Abdullah719]

Pakistan buried the ghosts of their infamous 2010 tour by drawing 2-2 with England in 2016 under the inspirational leadership of Misbah-ul-Haq. Ahead of this week's series, the former captain reflects on that journey and gives Saj Sadiq his verdict on the current squad…

Misbah-ul-Haq celebrates scoring a century in his first Test at Lord's, in 2016

Will part of you wish that you were still leading the team when Pakistan step out at Lord's on Thursday?

Misbah: "Yes, it will always be like that wherever the Pakistan team is playing; a part of me will still wish I was out there with them. But, whether I am with the team or not, mentally I am there. I will always be there supporting the Pakistan team and urging them to do well.

"I want my former team-mates to do well and be great ambassadors for Pakistan. They are a young group of players and I really want them to do well and do their country proud.

"They are like my brothers and my own children and I want them to succeed and improve. I will always be there to support them and help them in any way I can, today, tomorrow or in the future."


Does it still seem remarkable that you became Pakistan Test captain in 2010 from almost obscurity?

Misbah: "It was a really sad and difficult time for Pakistan cricket and we needed stability. Looking back, perhaps the Pakistan Cricket Board felt that I could provide that stability for them and the team.

"From being nowhere near the team I was suddenly made captain of the Test team in 2010, but that's the way it goes in Pakistan cricket and these sort of things can only happen in Pakistan."


Are the memories of the 2016 series against England still fresh in your mind?

Misbah: "It was a special series as doing well in it meant that we went to the top of the ICC Test rankings and playing in England was always special for me. Ahead of that series, the preparations went well with the Army training camp and competing against a strong England team and finishing the series 2-2 was satisfying.

"The push-ups and the salute after my century at Lord's became memorable moments and will always be recalled as good times for Pakistan cricket.

"I felt that in that series it was important that Pakistan cricket won the hearts of cricket-lovers in England once again after the events of 2010 and I feel we did that. We left English shores having once again won the trust of English cricket fans as even they were cheering for us in 2016."


How do you rate Pakistan's chances in the upcoming Test series against England?

Misbah: "The Pakistan team has potential but it's a young team and it's not going to be an easy series for Pakistan in the conditions they will encounter in the early stages of the season in England.

"The home team has a very good bowling attack and most importantly it's an experienced bowling unit against a very inexperienced batting line-up. It's a huge challenge for Pakistan but I still believe in them as they have potential and have some very good young players."


Who from the Pakistani batting line-up are you looking to make a name for themselves against England?

Misbah: "It has to be looked at as a big opportunity for all of the Pakistani batsmen. If you can score runs in Test cricket in England at this stage of the season then you can show that you not only have the potential, but you also have the ability to succeed in the tough world of Test cricket.

"I'm looking to Haris Sohail especially as I believe he has the technique to do well in England and the way he plays he has all the skills to become a very good Test player. He has a very good technique against pace bowling and he leaves the ball well which is vital in England. I think he can become one of the main performers in the Pakistan Test team in the short term and also in the future."


Do you think it's a big risk to pick such an inexperienced squad?

Misbah: "It is, but it is one of those situations where a couple of your senior players are no longer around, so you have no option other than to give the youngsters their opportunity to shine. It stands to reason that if there are no experienced players around, then you have to throw in the younger players at the deep end and see how they do.

"You have to go this way, it's the only way when you don't have the luxury of having experienced players in the side. It's more difficult to do this in Test cricket but it's a great chance for the younger players to step up and show what they are capable of and it could be the making of some of these players."


Azhar Ali has been promoted to open the batting in Test cricket. Do you think it's a wise move especially considering he has done so well at number three in the past?

Azhar Ali scored 295 runs at an average of 42 on the 2016 Test tour of England

Misbah: "I think Pakistan are having to do this because none of the openers are performing consistently well at the moment and since Azhar has been asked to open he has been tremendous. He scored runs in England and also in Australia and other parts of the world and his overall record as an opener is very good and that's why the team management have pushed him up the order to open.

"He's been performing well consistently as an opener and if he goes in and gives the team a good start that should, in theory, make things easier for the rest of the batsmen further down the order."


You are an extremely modest man but honestly speaking, how difficult is the task to replace you and Younus Khan in the Pakistan Test team?

Misbah: "It is difficult. But, it's not a case of a lack of talent, Pakistan cricket has the talent, but experience is vital especially in Test cricket.

"Younus and I when we were starting out in Test cricket also took some time to establish ourselves as Test cricketers and be successful in the toughest format of the game. So, you have to give these youngsters time to establish themselves.

"These young players that Pakistan have at the moment will get better with experience, but they need time and patience from the selectors."

Pakistan stalwarts Younus and Misbah bow out with silverware

Do Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq have the ability and character to become the backbone of the Pakistan batting, like you and Younus Khan were?

Misbah: "They have to, there is no other option. Azhar Ali, Sarfaraz Ahmed and Asad Shafiq need to lead this young team and lead the batting line-up. They are the most experienced players now and I have high hopes from all three players that they can be the players that the younger players can rely on to lead the way and provide guidance."


Sarfraz Ahmed has the unenviable task of captaining Pakistan in all three formats. How long before his hair will start turning grey?

Misbah: "Thankfully when I was made captain I already had a lot of grey hair so I was ok in that regard! I don't think Sarfraz has a lot to worry about. My advice to him is that if you start getting too tense then things can get difficult for you. What is going to happen will happen and as a captain, you can only control what is in within your remit."


Do you think Sarfraz Ahmed is the right man to lead Pakistan in all three formats?

Misbah: "At the moment there is no other choice. I think people have a problem with his hyperactive behaviour at times, but that is just the nature of some people. He will learn with experience and patience comes with experience.

"He's doing well, Pakistan are No 1 in the twenty-over format, they won the Champions Trophy last year which was a great achievement and in Test cricket once the younger players have gained more experience they will improve and climb the rankings."


You will always be remembered fondly by fans around the world but looking back at your career how do you want fans to remember you?

Misbah: "I want my cricket story to be remembered as one of a simple man, a patriotic man, a middle-class man and an ordinary man who did not have the natural talent of some great cricketers, but always relied on discipline and determination throughout his career."

http://www.skysports.com/cricket/new...cts-in-england

[SarfiBabarHaris]

Nice interview by Misbah. The young lot needs time and experience. They will come good. Have patience.

Good comments about Haris too.

[moghul]

He will be remembered as as selfish cricketer . Who delayed his retirement for years and Pak cricket suffered a lot.

[coy0607]

Don’t get the patriotic and middle-class parts.. what does his cricketing career have to do with either

[Rinnegan Sasuke]

Legend.

[MenInG]

The very meaning of a gentleman cricketer.

Misbah's legacy is not judged by results but by the respect he brought to Pak cricket.

[Flat_Track_Bully]

For years selected his over 30s journeymen friends and plunged to new lows in ODIs. You are not Imran Khan please retire in silence.

[MenInG]

For years selected his over 30s journeymen friends and plunged to new lows in ODIs. You are not Imran Khan please retire in silence.

This man gave you respect around the world when there was talk of Pakistan being thrown out of cricket! And he has retired.

[Hasan123]

Sensible words from Misbah. Time to back the youngsters now.

[moghul]

He caused lots of embarrassment too for the Pak team particularly in NZ and Australia by delaying his retirement. In his last 3-4 years he took Pak national team as his personal cricket club where you can play whenever you want to and you can include players in your team of your on liking . Sorry he gained a lot but lost everything in last years of his career.

[Mueez]

Misbah. What a player he was.
What a captain he was.
What a leader he was.

The man, who regained Pakistan's dignity after the spot-fixing scandal.
The man, who did the pushups at Lords.
The man, who lead his team on the front line when he was needed.

skipper!

[waleed88]

He caused lots of embarrassment too for the Pak team particularly in NZ and Australia by delaying his retirement. In his last 3-4 years he took Pak national team as his personal cricket club where you can play whenever you want to and you can include players in your team of your on liking . Sorry he gained a lot but lost everything in last years of his career.

His record in NZ isn't that bad, won 1 series and lost the second one... if any captain has won a test match let alone a series against Aus in Aus from Wasim, to Inzamam, to Mohammad Yousuf - you can be my guest and bash Misbah for that too...

[Square Drive]

I've said a lot of negative things about Misbah but he's gone now.

Good interview from a good natured man.

[moghul]

I've said a lot of negative things about Misbah but he's gone now.

Good interview from a good natured man.

Yes, we had enough of him but some people keep bringing him back, hoping people will start liking him , for no reason. Lets move on from him-------------------and Sadaf--, enough.

[Major]

Gentleman indeed.

No better person to captain Pakistan after 2010.

This is what Australia needs at the moment. A wartime captain
@MenInG has said it nicely. I remember back in 2010 some cricket stakeholders literally had the audacity of thinking about throwing Pakistan out of the ICC. Which is why to understand Misbah's career you have to look back at the 2009-2010 cricket season of Pakistan.

No matter how Misbah played i would had not been his fan, what made me his die hard fan was the whole situation in 2010 and how he came and represented the team with his heart.

You could have Shoaib Akhtar shooting umar akmal and Kamran akmal in the leg, but the captain would come out next day and say that nothing happened the reports are false. Thats the kind of attitude this guy hand.

I think many people around here know how not only players, but captains of the past have thrown each other under the bus, funny thing is most of the players who leaked each others news were friends.


This guy was one of the few who didnt take part in the Oath brigade aswell.

One of the reasons why Ijazz Butt gave him the captain's cap was because Misbah wasn't part of any lobby, he minded his own business, and din't keep himself to one circle. He stayed out of the circles, thus whenever there were groupings or problems, Misbah would be the guy standing alone and not being part of any group.

And you know what was funny? To the chairman and other people it looked as if Misbah was a weak person who could easily be made as a puppet. He could easily be controlled.

Yet, Misbah who was part of no groups in the Pakistan team camp, had everyone's respect. He had soo much respect of everyone that Pakistan cricket has no players union, yet when there were pay disputes or contract disputes Misbah would lead them in the back office. I remember there were times players were not signing their contracts until the contracts were made according to how Misbah wanted them.

Thus, it could be said Misbah was one of the few successful person in the Pakistan team management who was able to make a Pakistani players association till the time he was there.

I hope Sarfraz also learns from this, because we have seen how PCB is now saying only 2 leagues are allowed to contacted players.

Point is, captaincy is not only about being on the field, setting the field or making bowling changes. Backroom talks are as important aswell.

The guy survived multiple chairman, presidents and Prime ministers. We have seen how an incoming boss would make changes, but this guy wasn't changed. He had the respect of the top bosses aswell.

Thank you Kaptaan!

[cricketAXEpert]

The very meaning of a gentleman cricketer.

Misbah's legacy is not judged by results but by the respect he brought to Pak cricket.

Exactly, Misbah is a savior of Pakistan cricket. He rescued Pakistan from it is lowest point the 2010 spot fixing scandal. He made Pakistan almost unbeatable in UAE. Which resulted in Pakistan becoming the # 1 in Test ranking. He also had to rescue Pakistan's failing batting line up on regular basis.

[Snak3eye5]

I would love to see a movie about him and his story on he became captain and he brought Pakistan during he dark times. There’s a lot of interesting tid bits there.

[MenInG]

Happy Birthday to Kaptaan!

[moghul]

Happy Birthday to Kaptaan!

He was captain ,no doubt, but there is on only one KAPTAAN and thats not Misbah.

[Savak]

Simple Yes. Gentlemen To an extent Yes. Patriotic, nope. Patriotic people do not play till 44 and hog a spot unnecessarily.

[KB]

The very meaning of a gentleman cricketer.

Misbah's legacy is not judged by results but by the respect he brought to Pak cricket.

I would also see his legacy as the laying of the foundations for a very different culture within Pakistan cricket. It was a culture that placed more emphasis on fitness, that challenged the preference for talent over ‘character’ in selections, that sought to achieve discipline in the bowling and some consistency in the batting. These building blocks he put in place are now being built on further, with Micky Arthur looking to elevate standards in these areas further.

Of course, he was not perfect. Misbah was a conservative captain whose default position was to contain whenever possible. There was sometimes a lack of imagination; there was not always much adventure in team selections. In seeking stability, some of the magic, some of that ambition that had animated Pakistan cricket historically was quelled.

But on balance it is hard not to admire him for what he achieved given the context. Ijaz Butt had reduced Pakistan cricket to a standing joke. The match-fixing crisis left Pakistan with very little goodwill around the cricketing world. Yet by the end of Misbah's era, Pakistan’s reputation was rebuilt, a respect for it re-found.

And though he has retired, the ethos he built around the team does continue, revised and renewed.

[Godhelpma]

Simple Yes. Gentlemen To an extent Yes. Patriotic, nope. Patriotic people do not play till 44 and hog a spot unnecessarily.

Yes patriotic ones fix the match like amir , asif or they cheat and chuck . They make tv appearance for their non selection .Patriots keep on fighting with team mates and management. They prefer the foreign leagues over country matxhes . You are very right misbah is not patriotic .

In my opinion ,Misbah is the best person to grace Pakistani cricket , an absolute legend of pak cricket .

[GreenKhan]

This whole perception that Misbah was hogging a spot is a joke .

Look at his last few series for Pakistan

England summer 2016- Man of the series
West Indies 2016- UAE- 50 average
Australia 2016- had a very poor series for his standards.

Final series v West Indies he was top scorer and averaged about 65 I think . Including two 99's .

Hardly hogging a spot . Rest my case 🙂

[Savak]

And yes a patriotic man does not black 4-5 balls in an over to the detriment of his country.

[Blistering Barnacle]

He was great for a few years when Pak was in turmoil. But thank god he's gone now. In my opinion, he really brought down the ODI team. I think he would still be playing if not forced to retire.

[Khan12]

Has he retired yet or will he play domestics with his grandsons.

[olivialees12]

Now before people start labelling me a hater let me plaese clarify that i believe Misbah is Pakistan's most reliable batsman and one of the bettar ODI cricketers we have ever produced. There is no way he can be dropped from this fragile batting line up.

Despite this i have been a critic of Misbah's approach. My argument is that Misbah is not suited to bat at 4. He is only useful at this position if we are suffering a collapse or chasing a low total. In all other cases he is more harmful than beneficial.

Consider the following scenario Pakistan are doing well and are something like 80-120 after 20 overs with just one wicket down. Suddenly the 2nd wicket falls would u send in Misbah?

In my opinion from this situation most teams would aim for the 300 mark yet if Misbah is the next man to come in we would end up at something like 260-270.

Now over to my next question. IN AN IDEAL SCENARIO IN WHICH OVER WOULD YOU LIKE MISBAH TO COME IN AT???

In my case i would like him to come as late as the 40th over. Why? Because i remember back in 2007 Misbah would bat at number 7 and had a SR of something like 90+ yet he still averaged 37.

Here i have highlighted why i am a critic of Misbah's approach. When the team is struggling or when we are chasing a low total then Misbah is "THE MAN" u want on the crease. But when we are cruising or chasing a high score then Misbah batting at 4 is a nightmare. It is just my opinion that he should not bat any higher than 5 unless we lose early wickets.

Its an odd sort of post so i apologize if the readers find it tiring but i think i make my point.

[msb314]

Now before people start labelling me a hater let me plaese clarify that i believe Misbah is Pakistan's most reliable batsman and one of the bettar ODI cricketers we have ever produced. There is no way he can be dropped from this fragile batting line up.

Despite this i have been a critic of Misbah's approach. My argument is that Misbah is not suited to bat at 4. He is only useful at this position if we are suffering a collapse or chasing a low total. In all other cases he is more harmful than beneficial.

Consider the following scenario Pakistan are doing well and are something like 80-120 after 20 overs with just one wicket down. Suddenly the 2nd wicket falls would u send in Misbah?

In my opinion from this situation most teams would aim for the 300 mark yet if Misbah is the next man to come in we would end up at something like 260-270.

Now over to my next question. IN AN IDEAL SCENARIO IN WHICH OVER WOULD YOU LIKE MISBAH TO COME IN AT???

In my case i would like him to come as late as the 40th over. Why? Because i remember back in 2007 Misbah would bat at number 7 and had a SR of something like 90+ yet he still averaged 37.

Here i have highlighted why i am a critic of Misbah's approach. When the team is struggling or when we are chasing a low total then Misbah is "THE MAN" u want on the crease. But when we are cruising or chasing a high score then Misbah batting at 4 is a nightmare. It is just my opinion that he should not bat any higher than 5 unless we lose early wickets.

Its an odd sort of post so i apologize if the readers find it tiring but i think i make my point.

Dude I am so confused

What is going on?

[daytrader]

Gentleman indeed.

No better person to captain Pakistan after 2010.

This is what Australia needs at the moment. A wartime captain
@MenInG has said it nicely. I remember back in 2010 some cricket stakeholders literally had the audacity of thinking about throwing Pakistan out of the ICC. Which is why to understand Misbah's career you have to look back at the 2009-2010 cricket season of Pakistan.

No matter how Misbah played i would had not been his fan, what made me his die hard fan was the whole situation in 2010 and how he came and represented the team with his heart.

You could have Shoaib Akhtar shooting umar akmal and Kamran akmal in the leg, but the captain would come out next day and say that nothing happened the reports are false. Thats the kind of attitude this guy hand.

I think many people around here know how not only players, but captains of the past have thrown each other under the bus, funny thing is most of the players who leaked each others news were friends.


This guy was one of the few who didnt take part in the Oath brigade aswell.

One of the reasons why Ijazz Butt gave him the captain's cap was because Misbah wasn't part of any lobby, he minded his own business, and din't keep himself to one circle. He stayed out of the circles, thus whenever there were groupings or problems, Misbah would be the guy standing alone and not being part of any group.

And you know what was funny? To the chairman and other people it looked as if Misbah was a weak person who could easily be made as a puppet. He could easily be controlled.

Yet, Misbah who was part of no groups in the Pakistan team camp, had everyone's respect. He had soo much respect of everyone that Pakistan cricket has no players union, yet when there were pay disputes or contract disputes Misbah would lead them in the back office. I remember there were times players were not signing their contracts until the contracts were made according to how Misbah wanted them.

Thus, it could be said Misbah was one of the few successful person in the Pakistan team management who was able to make a Pakistani players association till the time he was there.

I hope Sarfraz also learns from this, because we have seen how PCB is now saying only 2 leagues are allowed to contacted players.

Point is, captaincy is not only about being on the field, setting the field or making bowling changes. Backroom talks are as important aswell.

The guy survived multiple chairman, presidents and Prime ministers. We have seen how an incoming boss would make changes, but this guy wasn't changed. He had the respect of the top bosses aswell.

Thank you Kaptaan!

Definitely the most Patriotic gentleman to grace the field. His push ups and tribute to Pak army are stuff of legends.

Our cricket is where it is because he was able to marshal the troops through the darkest period in our cricketing history. Of it wasn't for him, we would be at minnow level now with cricket being next to dead. Thank you captain!

[KyoOne]

Why did he not play Fawad Alam for all his years, despite the allrounder topping batting charts year in and year out? Felt threatened from him obviously

Dropped M Yousuf despite him begin younger than himself and still performing in domestics/county. Felt threatened again.

Played mediocre players so that limelight remained on himself.

Played till he crossed 44 and was a burden on the team.

Most selfish person in Pakistan cricket history

[moghul]

Why did he not play Fawad Alam for all his years, despite the allrounder topping batting charts year in and year out? Felt threatened from him obviously

Dropped M Yousuf despite him begin younger than himself and still performing in domestics/county. Felt threatened again.

Played mediocre players so that limelight remained on himself.

Played till he crossed 44 and was a burden on the team.

Most selfish person in Pakistan cricket history

That's why he has been the most selfish cricketer to play for Pakistan.

[Savak]

You can create a movie out of the careers of Imran Khan, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Shahid Afridi and even Shoaib Akhtar but Misbah does not attract such appeal.

[hadi123]

Spent some time with Misbah-ul-Haq a few days ago. What a humble man & great ambassador he is:
Children asking him for pics & autographs - treated them like his own kids.
People of his age - treated them like brothers & sisters.
Elders - treated them like his parents.#Cricket

— Saj Sadiq (@Saj_PakPassion) July 29, 2018

[gazza619]

You can create a movie out of the careers of Imran Khan, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Shahid Afridi and even Shoaib Akhtar but Misbah does not attract such appeal.

If Misbah had retired from limited overs cricket long time ago, it would have been so much better. We lost far too many important games because of his tuk tuk which created a lot of Misbah haters. He was never really made for that format just like Younis Khan.
Personally I was never against his selection in ODIs at the time but in hindsight i realise that Misbah and Afridi was one of the prime reasons why we were so low in ODI rankings.

[Ab Fan]

Phenomenal leader and captain.

It was a nightmare watching him single-handedly taking on Indian team in the T20 WC 2007 final. One of the phenomenal T20 innings IMO.

[Zaz]

If Misbah had retired from limited overs cricket long time ago, it would have been so much better. We lost far too many important games because of his tuk tuk which created a lot of Misbah haters. He was never really made for that format just like Younis Khan.
Personally I was never against his selection in ODIs at the time but in hindsight i realise that Misbah and Afridi was one of the prime reasons why we were so low in ODI rankings.

I dont think misbah can be blamed for that solely He was a product of his environment The man learnt his cricket in the 90s when 260 was a good score Together with him as well as the lack of home cricket, no forward thinking management there was no new direction to follow

Yes pakistan odi cricket stagnated and fell behind during his period at the helm but there were various factors that contributed to it apart from him

[gazza619]

I dont think misbah can be blamed for that solely He was a product of his environment The man learnt his cricket in the 90s when 260 was a good score Together with him as well as the lack of home cricket, no forward thinking management there was no new direction to follow

Yes pakistan odi cricket stagnated and fell behind during his period at the helm but there were various factors that contributed to it apart from him

See i think Misbah didnt necessarily play in the 90s mode rather it was the Misbah mode which was block block block block six block. The succesful ODI batsmen of 80s and 90s believed in rotating the strike. So if you look at Misbah’s overall strike rate it may not be too bad but because he played so many dot balls, the batsman at the other end ended up paying the price most often than not and the team’s overall score suffered. The strange thing is that it wasnt like Misbah didnt know how to take singles. He was awesome when his mind was up to the task. For example he wouldnt be scared to reverse sweep the first ball against a quality spinner. I have seem him play some remarkeble ODI/T20 knocks. He was a curious case and always confused us by his mixed performances.

[m.shah]

Good human being but crap cricketer.

[Nasty Naz]

Good human being but crap cricketer.

This is remotely not true.

[Kashmiri_Pak_fan]

What is the number of Misbah in playing most number of dot balls among 5000 run club batsmen in ODI cricket? Any statsguru?

[leatherface58]

Some really embarrassing behavior in this forum by some fans bending over backwards to talk crap about a guy who took Pakistan out of the darkness that was the spot fixing scandal and brought them back to respectability. His captaincy and batting style was too defensive sometimes but the work he did to repair Pakistan's image cannot be forgotten. A legend and a genuinely decent human being.

[CadPakFan]

Some really embarrassing behavior in this forum by some fans bending over backwards to talk crap about a guy who took Pakistan out of the darkness that was the spot fixing scandal and brought them back to respectability. His captaincy and batting style was too defensive sometimes but the work he did to repair Pakistan's image cannot be forgotten. A legend and a genuinely decent human being.

Thank you!

[TeamPak95]

I can easily see him becoming the team manager.

[Khan12]

Some really embarrassing behavior in this forum by some fans bending over backwards to talk crap about a guy who took Pakistan out of the darkness that was the spot fixing scandal and brought them back to respectability. His captaincy and batting style was too defensive sometimes but the work he did to repair Pakistan's image cannot be forgotten. A legend and a genuinely decent human being.

A decent human being who is allergic to youngsters , a decent human being still playing when there are much better players. A decent human being who selects his friend. A decent human being who doesn't want to retire at the age of 45. A decent human being who doesn't play Azhar in odis but then recommends him as a captain. He did a lot of harm then good for us.

[Kroll]

Misbah will always be a bit of a polarizing character, but no doubt he was a fantastic addition immediately after the spot-fixing scandal. Sadly couldn't develop or make the ODI side into a good team which irked a lot of fans. We need to remember the good things that he did.