Misbah-ul-Haq’s past:

Misbah-ul-Haq’s past:

There was a time when Pakistan’s current head coach and chief selector, Misbah-ul-Haq, looked like he would only be remembered for that one moment of madness. Around 12 years ago, Misbah-ul-Haq had gone on the front foot against India’s Joginder Sharma and looked to use his pace to scoop over fine leg, Pakistan at that point of the game, was six runs away from winning the inaugural World T20 in 2007.

What happened next is known to everyone. Joginder Sharma does not have much pace to work with, and Sreesanth stood right underneath the high ball which was scooped by Misbah-ul-Haq over fine leg, taking a very comfortable catch giving India that unforgettable five-run win against Pakistan in the final of World T20 2007.

Even though it was all through Misbah-ul-Haq’s effort that the match was within the reach of a one-hit for Pakistan, the fans directed all their frustration towards his choice of shot, and his failure to see the game through towards the end. Misbah-ul-Haq scored 43 runs off 38 balls in that match by hitting 4 sixes.

Misbah-ul-Haq’s efforts as a captain:

It was expected to be the end of Misbah-ul-Haq cricketing career and Misbah-ul-Haq himself was on the verge of retiring when he was handed the captaincy of Pakistan cricket team three years later at the age of 36. Misbah-ul-Haq was suddenly tasked with picking Pakistan back up from the ground after the spot-fixing scandal, which tainted the names of Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir. Misbah-ul-Haq has been the shield for Pakistan to look up to in any time of crisis.

Misbah-ul-Haq handled the task in a very admirable fashion as he took charge of Pakistan’s cricket team and led them for seven years, the longest-ever unbroken stint by a Pakistani as captain. Misbah-ul-Haq is undoubtedly, one of the best captains Pakistan has ever had in any sport.

Misbah-ul-Haq as a coach and chief selector:

As of now, there is no crisis in Pakistan cricket at the moment. There have been no changes in the Pakistan team’s captaincy since Misbah-ul-Haq retired, and left the role in Sarfaraz Ahmed’s hands. The recently concluded World Cup 2019 saw Pakistan miss the semi-finals based on net run rate alone. Pakistan’s T20I side is number one in the entire world.

Pakistan’s head coach and chief selector Misbah-ul-Haq said that he is ready to it, the picture is clear to him, and it is only a matter of being confident about taking the right decisions.

There seem to be no problems with Pakistan’s current cricket team but that is not how things are. Pakistan’s Test cricket has been going downhill even since Misbah-ul-Haq’s captaincy. Pakistan has now won only 7 and lost 15 of the last 23 test matches they have played. Since Misbah-ul-Haq’s retirement, Pakistan has won 5 out of 14 tests they have played with 8 loses. Nine months before Misbah-ul-Haq retired from international cricket, Pakistan was the top-ranked Test team in the entire world. Now they rank seventh from the top among all the Test-playing nations.

Misbah-ul-Haq is also working towards the Pakistan Cricket Board’s vision of a fresh approach to bringing new talent through to the national side, thanks to the much needed domestic reforms in Pakistan cricket. Misbah-ul-Haq being played domestic cricket most of his life has took it in his hands to bring betterment to the system.

In his recent press conference ahead of the series against Sri Lanka, said that this role is a challenge for him. Misbah-ul-Haq further explained that every new project is challenging but the reason he accepted it was being Pakistan’s captain until very recently and played a lot of domestic cricket. Misbah-ul-Haq clarified because of his knowledge of domestic cricket he knows what to do and it is only a matter of being confident about taking the right decisions.