Pakpassion presents an interview with Sui Southern Gas captain Saeed Bin Nasir. Saeed has been a prolific performer at domestic level but rather surprisingly has never been given a chance at international level. With his consistent peroformances we wish him the best of luch. Here is what he had to say.
by Saj Sadiq (12th December 2009)
PakPassion.Net :: How did you get into cricket? Which cricket club did you play for?
Saeed Bin Nasir : I started club cricket, then under 19?
PakPassion.Net :: Did you play club cricket in Karachi?
Saeed Bin Nasir : Yes with ?Town? sports ? started as Under 19 played for Pakistan, 3-4 years FC cricket regularly
PakPassion.Net :: You are a veteran of FC cricket even though you are young ? what are your views on FC cricket?
Saeed Bin Nasir : In the old days, there was more quality in the game with some really good players to boot ? now we have many regional FC cricket teams and a high number of games.
We used to have departmental teams with less but good quality players. Any player who came through that was by definition a good player.
PakPassion.Net :: Your record is fairly outstanding ? 43 avg, 19 centuries, a consistent performer etc ? why haven?t you been given a chance to play for the national side?
Saeed Bin Nasir : Believe me ? I don?t know ? because last 3 years have performed well ? ALL Selectors say that you are playing well but they seem to overlook me when its time for selection.
PakPassion.Net :: Have you spoken to the selectors recently ? especially after the announcement of Australian tour squad, containing many of the old tested and tried names?
Saeed Bin Nasir : Yes I have but to me it appears that there is an absence of well defined criteria for selection. If you are asking players to play in FC cricket and performing well, then he should be rewarded. This can either be by placing him on a central contract or selecting him for the reserves.
One does feel hopeless in such situations ? as if there is no one to look after us ( emerging players) ? it would appear that as long as you have backing from certain quarters or if selectors like, you will be selected. It doesn?t matter if your performance is good or not. Take the case of Misbah ? how many years did he hang around as a top performer before he was selected?
PakPassion.Net :: Being an experienced captain yourself ? how do you read the current controversy surrounding Younis Khan?s resignation and his refusal to play FC?
Saeed Bin Nasir : Frankly, what I feel is that the appointed captain of a national team must be given a say in team selection ? he must be accorded respect as he has a lot of experience.
Additionally, if you appoint someone as captain for 2-3 years than we should support him in all his decisions ? problem is that in our country, we elevate people to instant hero status and then drop them to nothing if they make one mistake!
In Younis Bhai's case, he has performed at his best for this country and the team turns against him ? what do you expect him to do?
PakPassion.Net :: As a captain, have you ever faced an issue with ?playpower? in your team?
Saeed Bin Nasir : I haven?t played at the International level but I can tell you that its only natural that senior players build an affinity with other senior players but I must add that this kind of lobbying in team selection should not happen.
The fact is that when we don a Pakistani cap, we represent the nation not just a few players. Other players also need fair representation and they lose out in such lobbying.
PakPassion.Net :: ICL made many offers to Pakistani players ? some were accepted, others turned down - were you ever approached to play in India with ICL?
Saeed Bin Nasir : 2 teams were made from Pakistan and before the Indo-Pak relations deteriorated, there were rumours that a team from Karachi would also be invited.
Fact is its all about money. As you know in Pakistan, playing domestic cricket does not pay that well but I have to say that I find this very strange that we have centrally contracted players who are not playing in domestic cricket but playing in foreign leagues. I can understand non contracted players doing this but those on such contracts should play in domestic season.
PakPassion.Net :: You have mentioned the lack of quality in our players at domestic level. How would you go about improving this? Should there be for example 2 leagues or the pitches made more sporting etc?
Saeed Bin Nasir : Firstly and foremost, we should only use cricket balls made for International cricket. Secondly, as I have mentioned before, the number of first class teams is too high. There should only be teams based on Departments, with less teams in total where the emphasis is on quality rather than on quantity ? players will concentrate more and produce better competition.
PakPassion.Net :: Just like in Australia ? a few teams but the standards are very high?
Saeed Bin Nasir : Yes ? exactly that is my point.
PakPassion.Net :: We have all seen Pakistani domestic cricket produce the likes of Aamir and Umar Akmal ? are there any other players of similar calibre, who we should be aware of?
Saeed Bin Nasir : A few bowlers that come to mind are :
Sohail Khan
Shakilur Rahman
Uzair ul Haq
Danish Khan
Any one of these can perform for Pakistan, if given a chance.
PakPassion.Net :: Our members, who are all very keen on pace bowling, would like to know about the fastest bowler you have faced.
Saeed Bin Nasir : In my opinion, Sohail Khan is the fastest bowler in Pakistan ? second only to Shoaib Akhtar.
PakPassion.Net :: Interesting you bring this up because when we spoke to him last, he indicated that he had made changes to his run up and he felt much more comfortable with his bowling. In your opinion, should he have been selected for the Australian tour?
Saeed Bin Nasir : I don?t think he has done that well in this season and as a result, was not selected by the committee.
However, given the type of bowler he is, I am confident that he will gain his place in the Pakistani team. The only issue is that with Aamir, Asif and Gul spearheading the Pakistani pace line up, it is difficult to see where Sohail will fit in. He is still young and I believe that in a year or two, he can gain a place in the team.
PakPassion.Net :: According to a lot of players, the tracks used in domestic cricket this season were quite lively and seamer friendly. What is your opinion on this?
Saeed Bin Nasir : Look, I believe that the pitches should help both batsmen and bowlers ? a few of the pitches we have played have been like that but then we have a totally batting friendly pitch as in Shiekhupura where I scored a 100 and some other records were created ? this isn?t good. In my view, a good pitch is one that is enjoyable to bat on and is not dead for bowlers.
PakPassion.Net :: Must have been very tiring watching them score that record?
Saeed Bin Nasir : Certainly, it was! We batted 2 days and then had to sit and watch them amass those runs in another 2!
PakPassion.Net :: Just as you mentioned fast bowlers who have caught your eye, do you have any thoughts on any up and coming batsmen as well?
Saeed Bin Nasir : I would say that one batsman that has really caught my eye is Azeem Ghumman ? very talented player. He is the captain for Pakistan Under 19 ? he looks very competent and appears to be someone who could easily play at the senior level. He is a good batsmen ? very much a complete cricketer.
PakPassion.Net :: In your illustrious career so far, who is the best bowler you have faced?
Saeed Bin Nasir : Amongst the pace bowlers I have faced, I would rate Shahid Nazir as the most difficult to play against. Mohammed Zahid was another one, due to his sheer pace.
With Shahid Nazir, it is his inswing and outswing and his ability with the new ball that has really impressed me.
As for Mohammed Zahid, I would say that he really impressed me with his pace ? At his peak, I would rate him faster than Shoaib Akhtar.
PakPassion.Net :: You were included in the 2003 squad against Bangladesh ? but you didn?t get a chance to play under Rashid Latif ? what happened there?
Saeed Bin Nasir : Rashid Latif didn?t really give me a reason although there were other problems at that time (Aamir Sohail was chief of selectors) ? All I will say is that it was my fate that I didn?t make it to the final XI at that time.
However, I have been consistently performing for the last 3-4 years, with a 1000 runs in last year alone. I am yet to receive a call up for the team or a central contract.
This season, I have 3 centuries under my belt ? yet I don?t feature in the Australia bound squad for test matches.
Having said that, I am still hopeful that I can make it to the limited overs squad in Australia ? as you know, only in Pakistan can you perform well in the longer version of the game and suddenly get selected for 20/20 games!
PakPassion.Net :: So, after that 2003 call up, you were never consider again ? why was that?
Saeed Bin Nasir : I don?t understand why that is - I am not sure who doesn?t like me even though I have been performing so well and the media also highlighted this aspect so many times ? its difficult to understand.
PakPassion.Net :: Do you think Pakistan needs a separate captain for each major form of cricket? Will that work for us?
Saeed Bin Nasir : I am personally in favour of captains for each form of the game ? at the moment, we don?t have that in Pakistan with Mohammed Yousuf being appointed as captain for Test and ODIs but we have seen Afridi win matches as captain for Pakistan in T20 and ODIs ? however, as you know, this is Pakistan ! I am also in favour of separate squads for One day and test matches.
In Shahid Afridi we have an aggressive captain and a world class allrounder in ODIs ? possibly the best all rounder in this form of the game. He is also respected by players and really Mohammed Yusufs own position in limited over game is questionable ? how can he be made captain?
PakPassion.Net :: We are yet to find a decent No 3 batsman or a durable opening pair after departure of Saeed Anwar and Aamir Sohail ? what is the reason for this?
Saeed Bin Nasir : To me the reason for that is that we never allow one batsman to play for a decent period. For example we have Khurram Manzoor ? he didn?t play well in one match and he is dropped ? how can a player ever play with any confidence when his position is perpetually in danger? Why not allow a decent run for a player before dropping him? Salman Butt is another example of such a policy.
Look, an opener?s job is very difficult. They need all the backing of the management that they can get ? they need to be told that they have been selected to play the whole series. Without such backing, no player can perform to his potential.
PakPassion.Net :: What are your future plans? Do you wish to coach after you retire?
Saeed Bin Nasir : Well, I still have a few years of cricket left in me ? as long as I am fit. Frankly speaking, I haven?t given it much thought yet!
I intend to play to my best ability and keep on trying whether they select me or not, Inshallah
PakPassion.Net :: On behalf of your many fans on PakPassion.Net : we wish you all the best and look forward to reporting on your progress next year during your stint in league cricket.
Saeed Bin Nasir : Thanks
The audio clips can be found on youtube :-
Part 1 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a22HpA3nnlM
Part 2 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dOHQFRgDnm8
Disucss!
