It has been seven innings since we saw oomph oozing out of the Pakistani opener’s willow. While a lean patch this fresh is not counted as very concerning, however, with Asia Cup and World Cup within a sniffing distance the calls to drop Fakhar Zaman have only been getting louder.
Before these ominous seven innings, Zaman was enjoying a run of brilliance in his career. He had just rested his feet after three back-to-back centuries against New Zealand. Standing at number 2, right next to his Skipper Babar Azam, in the ODI rankings, the left-handed opener and his fans were waiting for the mega-events later the same year. To witness him take bowlers to the cleaners with his power game.
For Pakistan fans, memory slips have become a time-honoured tradition. Even a 2 or 3-match-old slump can trigger debates about the riddance of that specific player. Fakhar, here, is no exception either. Despite his ICC rankings or his just a tick below 47 average and 90+ strike rate, the 33-year-old is at the receiving end of criticism as well as demands to bench him.
Ironically, the demands are not entirely farcical either. With the opener entering the tournaments in a rut, things can get odious for the team. Does this mean the only answer to this problem is to drop Fakhar Zaman? Or is a sample size of 7 innings too small to infer that the opening batter really is encountering a streak of poor runs?
How bad have those seven innings been?
The last time Fakhar reached a milestone was against New Zealand earlier this year. Since then he has averaged 19.9 in 7 matches and has been on a fifties draught. His most recent unsuccessful appearance was against Nepal in the Asia Cup opener on Multan’s not-too-difficult pitch for batters.
More worrying than his dry patch is the fact that the ex-military sailor does not hold a very exceptional record in Asian conditions. As of now, he averages 26 in Asian countries (excluding Pakistan). This worsens his case even more. Although Indian pitches (at least the majority of them) would not trouble him much as they are slightly more skewed towards batters. However, the new ball on Sri Lankan pitches usually does not fancy forgiving.
Has Fakhar’s career always been smooth before this bad streak?
Far from smooth. The 33-year-old batsman has transitioned between lean and purple patches quite a few times. However, the one thing that he has never forgotten to do is to turn up for important fixtures.
That miraculous century after his second coming in the Champion Trophy Final or his unbeaten 180 against the Kiwis to save the day, the Southpaw has been adept with taking his team over the line in crunch situations.
Interestingly, the man dubbed Fauji has always played a key role in winning cause for his team in ODIs.
What’s the issue if we drop Fakhar Zaman?
The problem that Pakistan can face if they get Zaman busy warming the benches is that the team has no one as capable as Fakhr to replace him. The backup opener option, Abdullah Shafique, would definitely sound very attractive to a lot of ears. Without even delving into Shafique’s figures, it is important to note that getting Abdullah to open the innings in Sri Lanka (and in India if we consider things in the longer run) is just like throwing him, unaided and unarmed, to the wolves.
Moreover, Pakistan has stuck with Imam ul Haq and Fakhar Zaman ever since the latter made his debut. This entails that the team has invested in the Southpaw which has not been a bad bargain. The change in the top order all of a sudden can disturb the balance the team has achieved very arduously.
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