Tag: Basit Ali

Former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali offered a piece of advice to Test captain Shan Masood ahead of the two-match home series against Bangladesh.

The two-match series, part of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC), will run from August 21 to September 3 at Rawalpindi and Karachi respectively.

The series against Bangladesh will mark Shan Masood’s second assignment as Pakistan captain, having previously led the national team away in Australia.

His start to Pakistan’s Test captaincy was far from ideal as the national team succumbed to a 0-3 series whitewash.

Meanwhile, Basit Ali, on his YouTube channel, shared his insights on the upcoming series and advised Shan Masood to change his batting order.

“Shan Masood sahab, stop playing at No. 3. When I saw you for the first time, I gave you the advice that the bat’s length should be long. Today, I am giving you the advice to stop playing at No. 3. You should open the batting in all three formats. If you come at No. 3, you will harm yourself and Pakistan,” Basit Ali said.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

Basit Ali then went on to criticize Shan Masood for giving examples from his time with Yorkshire ahead of leading his team in a crucial series.

“He gave an example of Yorkshire in his press conference. He spoke about how rain is a factor there, and Joe Root and Harry Brook are also part of that team. I just want to say two things to Shan Masood. You are the captain of Pakistan, not Yorkshire,” Basit said.

“Do not give their example; give examples of players of your country. Speak about how you have players like Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Abdullah Shafique, Saud Shakeel, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Shaheen Afridi, and Naseem Shah. Give your example. Don’t give the example of the Kookaburra ball because there is a big difference in our pitches and their [England’s] pitches.”

READ: Arshad Nadeem shares he received offers to represent UK, Turkiye

Former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali drew a comparison between star athlete Arshad Nadeem and national men’s white-ball team captain Babar Azam, terming the former’s success at the Paris Olympics as the standout achievement.

Babar is one of the most celebrated sports figures in Pakistan while Nadeem rose to fame with his ground-breaking performance in the Javelin Throw final of the ongoing Paris Olympics 2024.

The star athlete turned heads with a massive 92.97m throw in his second attempt to set the all-time Olympic record. His astounding effort eventually paved his way to the Olympic gold.

Arshad Nadeem with his 92.97m throw ended Pakistan’s 32-year Olympic medal drought and became the first individual from the country to win the Gold.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

Meanwhile, Basit Ali, known for his blunt remarks, came up with a major assertion and stated that Arshad Nadeem’s gold-medal victory at the Paris Olympics put him ahead of Babar Azam and the national cricket team.

“Cricket is a different game. But the work that Arshad Nadeem has done for this country will take a lot of years for Babar Azam. Because Babar plays a team game. He does not play an individual game. Arshad plays individually. He got a gold medal alone,” Basit said.

Basit Ali then went on to state that if the Pakistan cricket team manages to win a gold medal in the Los Angeles Olympics 2028 then it would be fair to draw a comparison with Arshad Nadeem.

“If the Pakistan cricket team goes to the Olympics in 2028 and wins a gold medal there, then we can draw comparisons. But at this time, there is no comparison of Babar to Arshad Nadeem. Arshad is a hero at this time,” he added.

READ: Bangladesh team to reach Pakistan “early” for Test series

Former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali sparked a debate with his remarks about Babar Azam’s performance with the bat, suggesting the latter to step down as white-ball captain to excel as a player.

Babar has been far from his bat in international cricket as the right-handed batter last scored a century in 2023 which came against Nepal during the Asia Cup.

Basit Ali termed the upcoming two-match home series against Bangladesh a pivotal opportunity for Babar Azam to prove his mettle.

He, however, suggested Babar relinquish the national men’s team’s captaincy to focus more on his batting.

“Babar Azam has made the last century against Nepal in the Asia Cup. It is a great chance for him to prove himself. To come back in the Test Rankings,” said Basit.

“And he is not the captain. It is a very good thing. And he should quit the white-ball captaincy as well. He should focus on his batting. He is a premium batsman of Pakistan. So, he should perform well,” he added.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

Basit Ali then went on to advise the current national Test team captain Shan Masood, urging him to make bold decisions and prioritize team over individual preferences.

“In the last 2-3 years, we have played a lot of talkative cricket. We will win the World Cup. We will win the Asia Cup. We will play in the finals in India. It was all talkative cricket. Now, it is time to deliver. Shan Masood becomes the Test captain again after the Australia series, so he will now have to make his own decisions,” he said.

“He should not think like that if he is a premium batter or a premium bowler, then I will give him a soft corner. No. He must take decisions that are good for Pakistan. Not out of fear. Out of bravery. Then the cricket will look good, and they will perform better.”

READ: Arshad Nadeem to be conferred with Civil Award for Paris Olympics glory

Former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali on Monday, called for the relocation of ACC Men’s Asia Cup 2025 from India.

Ali, while speaking on his YouTube channel, did not mince his words to slam Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Jay Shah for what he termed a strategic move to put Pakistan’s participation in upcoming major tournaments in jeopardy.

“Well done, Jay Shah. You’ve killed two birds with one stone. You kill two birds with one stone, but Basit Ali kills three birds with one stone. Now let me give you some free advice. Try to shift the Asia Cup to some other country. Jay Shah could take a U-turn after my show” Ali said.

Ali then suggested that Pakistan might refuse to travel to India for the Asia Cup 2025 if the BCCI decided against sending their national men’s team to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy 2025.

“Jay Shah knew that India would have to go to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy; otherwise, Pakistan won’t come for the Asia Cup. Pakistan won’t even go for the T20 World Cup if India says no for the Champions Trophy.

“To hell with the hybrid model. There could also be another lollipop of India adopting a hybrid model for the Asia Cup so that Pakistan do the same for the Champions Trophy.”

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

The former cricketer then went on to praise Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi, stating he is as sharp as his BCCI counterpart Shah.

“I agree Jay Shah is very sharp, but the guy in front of him, the current PCB chairman, is also in the same league. Now you will have to come forward openly and declare that the Asia Cup is in India, so we would have to go to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy,” Basit Ali concluded.

It is worth mentioning here that India refused to tour Pakistan for last year’s Asia Cup and the continental event was thus, held in a hybrid model with Sri Lanka emerging as a co-host.

As per the hybrid model, Pakistan could host only four matches while the rest of the games were played in Sri Lanka including the final.

READ: Babar Azam rises as Joe Root claims top spot in ICC Test Batting Rankings

Former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali slammed India pacer Mohammed Shami for using “indecent” remarks about legendary batter Inzamam-ul-Haq.

Shami, on Saturday, reignited the reserve-swing debate, which started when Inzamam-ul-Haq questioned Indian pacers’ ability to reverse the ball early during the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024.

Indian bowlers were on a roll in the 20-team tournament, the highlight of which was when they defended 30 runs off as many deliveries in the nerve-wracking final against South Africa.

But, former Pakistan captain Inzamam, while citing Arshdeep Singh’s example, questioned how India bowlers reverse swung the ball in just the 15th over during their Super Eights fixture against Australia.

“Arshdeep Singh when he was bowling the 15th over, the ball was reversing. is it too early [for reverse swing] with the new ball? This means the ball was ready for reverse swing by the 12th or the 13th over, Umpires should keep their eyes open [to spot] these things,” stated Inzamam on a local news channel.

“If it was Pakistani bowlers [reverse swinging the ball] this would have been a big issue. We know reverse swing very well and if Arshdeep can come in the 15th over and start reversing the ball, it means some serious work had been done before,” he added.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

Inzamam-ul-Haq’s concerns did not sit well with Mohammed Shami, who in a local YouTube podcast, did not mince his words in hitting back at the former Pakistan captain.

“They had accused me of putting a device into the ball during the 2023 ODI World Cup. They recently brought out another foolish theory on Arshdeep Singh. I respect Inzamam-ul-Haq a lot, and one doesn’t expect him to make such statements. They are the ones who started this reverse swing, and when we do it, they have a problem,” Shami said.

Meanwhile, former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali, on his YouTube channel, expressed his disappointment with Mohammed Shami’s statement and termed his remarks about Inzamam-ul-Haq, indecent.

“When Shami talks about Inzi bhai and calls him a cartoon, that’s not right. Inzamam has led this country and captained it. Shami, your choice of words isn’t good. We praise your bowling, but you should have chosen your words better. You didn’t pick your words well, and that hurt me,” stated Basit.

“If you think Inzi bhai said something wrong, say it nicely. Don’t call him a cartoon and all that. Have some respect. He’s a senior. You should respect your seniors. If you don’t, cricket will make you cry 300 days out of 365 and only make you happy for 65 days. So, please don’t do this, it’s a personal request,” he added.

“Be a bit more careful, you can’t just say anything anywhere. Whatever question is asked, you keep giving ‘behuda’ (indecent) answers. I’m using the right word, ‘behuda (indecent)’. Aapne behuda zabaan use kiya hai (You’ve used indecent language). Your elders probably never taught you this,” Basit concluded.

READ: Mehran, Dahani star as Pakistan Shaheens down Bangladesh A

LAHORE: Bahawalpur Royals opening batter Basit Ali played a match-defining knock of 54 before bowlers displayed a combined effort to rattle Hyderabad Hunters’ batting line-up for a paltry 113 and aided in their team’s eight-wicket victory in the second match of the ongoing Pakistan Junior League (PJL).

In the second fixture of the ongoing PJL, the Royals sealed a dominating victory over the Hunters by eight wickets with 44 balls to spare.

Batting first on the invitation of the Royals captain Obaid Shahid, the Hunters’ batting line-up failed completely and could only accumulate 113 before bundling out in the 19th over.

The Hunters had a decent start to their innings as they were 61/1 in the seventh over before Nathan Edward broke the important second-wicket partnership that saw Saad Baig and Moiz Rana add 47 runs.

Saad, who fell victim to Edward in the seventh over, remained the top-scorer for his side as he scored 34 off 24 deliveries with the help of five boundaries and a six.

Following his dismissal, the side then ran into a frustrating collapse and could not recover despite Muneeb Wasif’s gritty knock of 26 in the middle.

Sajjad Ali and Arham Nawab claimed three wickets each, while Nangeyalia Kharote, Johan Mahne, and Edward made one scalp each.

Set to chase a paltry 114, Royals comfortably steered to the victory in the 13th over for the loss of two wickets, thanks to a brilliant half-century from Basit.

The right-handed batter smashed 54 off just 30 balls, laced with 11 boundaries.

Royals captain Obaid also chipped in the run chase as he played a sensible knock of 32* off 26 balls. Wicketkeeper batter Shahwaiz Irfan scored 18 not out.

For Hunters, only Mohammad Zubair Jr and Haseeb-ur-Rehman managed to make one scalp apiece.

READ: FIFA World Cup 2022 anthem ‘Light The Sky’ released 

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has reportedly sidelined the regional coaches and national selectors Basit Ali and Faisal Iqbal from the forthcoming National U-19 Cup.

According to the details, Faisal and Basit have not been selected for the National Under-19 Cup, while the head coaches of the First and Second XI teams of all regions have been deployed in the event.

The two coaches first coached the first and second Playing XI of their respective regions last season and were assigned to do so in the upcoming edition.

It is pertinent to mention here that Basit and Faisal were serving as the head coach of Sindh and Balochistan respectively and were also part of the national selectors’ panel.

There were several complaints lodged against Sindh coach Basit and Balochistan coach Faisal in the past, according to sources. Faisal’s Assistant Coach Wasim Haider has refused to work with him.

READ: All-rounder Kaur propels India to seal T20I series victory over Sri Lanka