Farhat's form provides tough conundrum

Wasim Bari played a straight bat when asked about Imran Farhat's chances of a recall © Getty Images

An impressive hundred for Pakistan A against India by Imran Farhat has left Pakistan's selectors with a tough conundrum as they prepare to select their squad for the series against India on Monday. Farhat was dropped after the Melbourne Test against Australia just over a year ago and despite a shortage of opening options - Pakistan picked only one specialist opener in the series against England - he has faded away from national reckoning since.

Pakistan recalled Yasir Hameed, another opener dropped in recent time, for their training camp but he has since fallen ill with typhoid and is unlikely to participate in the first Test. With Shoaib Malik failing to entirely convince as an opener in three Tests against England, Farhat's reminder to the selectors of his presence could not have been timed any better. Of Farhat's two Test centuries, one came against India in Lahore two years ago. On the back of an impressive year, that restrained and matchwinning hundred seemingly sealed his place in the side. But a loss of form, culminating in a poor series against Australia left him on the sidelines, since when he has been left to impress at domestic level. Less than a month ago, against a PIA attack including Umar Gul, Fazl-e-Akbar and Najaf Shah, Farhat compiled a mammoth 242 and is averaging just over 80 after four matches in the Patrons Trophy.

Wasim Bari, chief selector, admitted his panel had been impressed by the innings but refused to divulge whether he would be called up in light of Hameed's likely absence. "We will discuss it when making the selection," Bari told Cricinfo. "We all watched him bat today and it was a good innings but I don't really want to say anymore on his chances right now. All players in this match are under consideration."

Bari did point out, revealingly perhaps, that captain, coach and selectors are reluctant to tinker too much with a winning team. It suggests, as Inzamam-ul-Haq has also hinted, that Malik may be persevered with as opener for a little longer. "We're keen on sticking with a winning combination and Malik does also bring balance to our team with his bowling. But it will depend also on what sort of balance the captain wants in his team."

Pakistan has struggled to find a settled opening pair for some time now; some might argue since the left-handed days of Aamir Sohail and Saeed Anwar. In their last thirteen Tests alone Pakistan have tried ten different opening combinations and the emergence of Salman Butt - and that too only recently - has been their only success.

Lower down, at number six, lies a more pleasant problem. Primarily, the dilemma is one of intent. In Abdul Razzaq, Shahid Afridi and Asim Kamal Pakistan have three options and endless possibilities. Afridi and Razzaq not only provide robustness to the bowling, their batting allows Pakistan opportunities to attack. Bari said, "The form Afridi and Razzaq have been in means it is very difficult to drop them from the line-up," which suggests that Kamal's stodginess in the lower-order may not warrant a starting place. With eight fifties in twelve Tests in his career thus far, Kamal's plight highlights the current depth in Pakistan's squad.

Earlier in the day, while speaking to the press, Bari said Shoaib Akhtar was bowling as well as he had ever seen him bowl. Bari, along with team management didn't select Shoaib against India and the West Indies last year. "Not just my view but that of the committee as well that he wasn't fit when the tour of India was on. It is important for every cricketer to be fit. You can see he is fit, and I haven't seen him bowl as well as he did against England. He was a complete team man and played brilliantly. He played in all the Tests and took crucial, important wickets for the team. He is now a total team man."

Bari also said he was expecting a keen contest between India and Pakistan. "They are two very good teams. Both are very balanced. No expert can say who is going to win the series. It depends on who plays better on the day. But both have their srengths. India have a formidable batting and very good seam bowlers. Pakistan has the edge in one of the fastest bowlers in Shoaib. If he bowls as well as he did against England, run-getting will be very difficult."