For what it is worth, I would be surprised were the Head of Cricket to leave his post. There is considerable goodwill towards him at Derby and what I'm sure is a generous contract is his for the next three years. He can achieve something at the county in that timescale and leave it in a far better condition than it was found.
If he goes back to Pakistan? Things are never simple in that part of the world and it always seems to me that there are way too many fingers in pies they should be steering well clear of. Selection inconsistences and infighting seem to go hand in hand. There is no doubt that the main sport in that country produces some magnificent cricketers, yet I am never convinced that their strongest eleven ever takes the field.
The absence of Shan Masood for a long time and Mohamad Abbas perpetually seems odd at this distance and they are far from isolated occurrences. I get the impression that a slight shift in power battles sees the current incumbent of the coaching role in an awkward position, usually resulting in the end of a contract. It has been so for Arthur before, it will be again.
We must only hope that common sense prevails. Were he to see out his Derbyshire contract he would still be young enough to take on another international role, having probably added something notable to his CV. Leaving, let's make no bones about it, would leave a bad taste and after protestations of wanting to leave a legacy and be referred to in the same breath as the likes of Eddie Barlow and Fred Swarbrook, that wouldn't happen. But at the end of the day, all of us must make our own decisions in life.
With the offices at the Incora County Ground closed for the festive period, it is likely that any statement from the club will come next week, when they all return to work. I do hope that such a statement is quickly forthcoming, because there are memberships to sell and an overseas player to be signed. This work will be made considerably easier with the right man in post and that right man is Mickey Arthur.
Anyway, that will all sort in due course. From me, very best wishes for 2023 and thank you to all of you for your support, your messages, comments and emails over this year.
Perhaps 2023 is the year of the falcon...
All MA and the club need to do is punish an agreed social media message to put the conjecture to bed swiftly.
ReplyDeleteI do hope he stays but, whatever the outcome, happy new year to everyone and let's hope for some great cricket in '23.
Happy New Year Peakfan. Many thanks for all your match reports and for keeping your finger on the pulse of Derbyshire cricket.
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year Peakfan and to all your fans of your great blog. Fingers crossed that Mickey stays and for a great season. Clay Cross Mark
ReplyDeleteHowever capricious the Pakistani selectors might be, the absences of Shan Masood from the international team aren't very surprising at all. He's played 28 tests and averages 28. His only real bright spot was a period in 2019 and 2020...which he followed up with several tests where he almost literally couldn't get a run. In his last 13 innings, his median score is 4. Even in all f-c cricket, he's played almost 150 games and averages less than 38. He strikes me as a competent domestic batter who's a little short of international class--and hsi figures suggest he's a slightly worse version of Rory Burns.
ReplyDeleteI think the only thing the selectors might be blamed for is not understanding quite how difficult (according to his interviews) he found the experience of bubble life duriung Covid--but then he wasn't the only player, and the Pakistani selectors weren't the only selectors, to have been in that position.
With regard to Abbas, his absence is less easily explained--and the selection of Mohammad Ali, who's a similar age and style, over him was truly bizarre--but I suspect it has something to do with his dire record in the southern hemisphere (9 wickets in 5 tests at an average of over 50). If we're talking Derbyshire, it might be a similar reason to why Dominic Cork didn't play more for England...although Abbas sounds like a much more amenable person to manage!
Dave
PS Still waiting for you to sign Shafique...:-)
Shan Masood has scored only 3 ,10 and 20 in the current Test series v NZ
ReplyDeleteGood to see MA at the Derbys nets on the Twitter feed.
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