Pakistan head coach Misbah-ul-Haq indicated that the form of many players in the PSL 2021 is "tempting" to consider for national selection, but their performance at the international level was a major concern. Pakistan's squads for the tour of England and West Indies series were announced earlier this month without considering performance in the ongoing PSL in Abu Dhabi, which Misbah said was a result of logistical challenges due to the pandemic.
"Ideally, we could have waited for the PSL, but then there are logistical challenges during COVID-19," Misbah said. "Some of the players are in lucrative form and it seems that we are missing out but the biggest concern is their international performance. They all had their chances and were picked for their domestic performances last year, but unfortunately, They couldn't do that. Translate it at the top level. It's about international cricket and how they work here, and we've given them enough chances.
“I know it is hard to ignore but we are not ignoring either. It is just the timing of the tournament and the dates for the England tour [that we need to consider]. There are still some important games left in the PSL. And we will have more clarity on all the players. We are holding them and, if necessary, we can trace them for future series. At the moment, we have our resources and we are on the selected players. Want to focus and groom them. They are great and I believe we can manage to get the best out of them."
The focus of Misbah's argument has been the performances of Asif Ali and Iftikhar Ahmed. Both the batsmen have been repeatedly selected for the national team after strong performances on the domestic circuit, but have failed to translate that form at the international level. Both the batsmen have been in excellent form in the PSL as well, helping their franchise Islamabad United to top the table.
Azam Khan has been included in the T20 squad for the first time in his career after finding a powerful combination of consistency and a higher strike rate in T20s than last year. Haider Ali has been retained in the white-ball side despite his weak form in international form last year. Imad Wasim was brought back to bring experience and strengthen Pakistan's middle order.
Another issue for Pakistan is the sudden fall in the form of one of their most experienced batsmen, Mohammad Hafeez. By the end of 2020, Hafeez had re-established himself in a year of unparalleled form - he scored the most runs in T20Is last year, with 415 runs at an average of 83.
Across T20Is in the period between February 2020 and the end of February this year, Hafeez scored 1102 runs at an average of 50.09 and a strike rate of 147.32. Since then he has scored just 155 runs in 13 matches at an average of 14.09 and a strike rate of 99.35.
"There is concern that apart from Babar (Azam) and (Mohammed) Rizwan most of the players are collectively looking out of form, but it's just a matter of a good game," Misbah said. "In franchise cricket, players play against different teams every day but at the international level, there is a different mindset. The best thing for us is that they are playing tough cricket and they have been charged.
"Players like Hafeez whose bad patch has lasted a bit - and it happens - but he is an experienced player. He has scored heavily and has a tendency to come out of bad patches. England has been good to him last year and I I am very optimistic that he can do well for us.
“Our top order is responding well and our bowling unit is a strong unit and only No. 5 and 6 have to work quickly. We have experienced batsman Haris Sohail in ODIs and another solid prospect is Saud Shakeel, So we hope they can provide us with the needed stability. In T20 cricket we are still figuring out all the resources we have. Haider and Azam both are young and we have time to prepare them for the role And they have the ability to give us what we have. We need," Misbah said.