What Pakistan cricket team needs

And here we are on the verge of losing another test match against Australia and we are yet to go into the third day of the test match. I hope the result is different than what we are all expecting. Having lost the series already, even a draw now would be consoling.

What has happened to our team? The team that won the 1992 world cup, the team that had bowlers like Imran/Wasim/Waqar and lots others which terrorised batsmen all over the world, the team that was so confident that it could hit a six on the last ball and win and on and on. What has really happened to them!

I agree with Javed Miandad that our team basically lacks discipline professionalism. We are the laughing stock of the town given the way we drop catches. Mohammed Yusuf, whilst he may be an excellent batsman, lacks captaincy skills. He is currently publicly criticising Salman Butt for being selfish and getting two other players to run out. Reminds me of the days when I used to play cricket in the local ground and would accuse the other batsman for getting me run out. Sounds similar! The other day Intikhab Alam, our coach, says dropping catches is a cultural issue. Now how is the culture connected to dropping catches?

We need a good captain and a good coach. Discipline is by far the most important factor and as defined on the Wikipedia it is 'the instant willingness and obedience to all orders, respect for authority, self reliance and teamwork...'

At the same time accountability of players and coaches is also important. If the players are constantly dropping catches, then there is something wrong in the way they are selected and coached. They need to be asked about and properly publicised so that people can also judge what is wrong with their national team.

We dont need three coaches. Occassional referrals to specialists is always preferred but the methodology and style of one coach should be enough. A captain who can control the team without any hassles of hierarchy and should have the decision making ability. He should be able to drop players on the basis of their performance and should be able to recommend good players. Currently, it doesn't look like they have any such plans. However, I sincerely hope that there is someone out there in PCB and senior ranks who is thinking about the country, the game of cricket and will take all reasonable steps to ensure we have a truly world class team!