Should Shahid Afridi be part of Pakistan’s 2015 World Cup team?

On any other page, this post will not be read. It will be a very unpopular post. But on this page, there might be more agreement I expect. Sensitive topic. 

Should Shahid Afridi be part of Pakistan’s 2015 World Cup team? Here is why not. This is not what will happen, but what should happen. 

Not a knee jerk reaction. After 2012 World T20, I felt that was the time, to call time on his career. He performed atrociously; his long term conduct was an issue hanging over his selection and with an eye on England’s Champions Trophy in 2013 and Australia/New Zealand 2015, the team composition looked stronger without him in such conditions with a superior batsman in the top 7 in conditions where the top order was going to be exposed, requiring more depth in batting.

Instead, it’s been a cycle of him coming back into the team after being dropped twice for the India series in early 2013 and the Champions Trophy that summer, despite no performance of note in domestic cricket to earn a recall. Not to mention, the drama of his conditional retirement in the summer of 2011 after being removed and replaced from captaincy on disciplinary grounds. He was unwilling to play under Misbah initially.

Can you afford 3 spinners in Australia and New Zealand? Not the usual thing to do.

Ajmal is a strike bowlers, obviously gets in. Hafeez is a number 1 ranked ODI all rounder recently, must pick. Where does that leave Afridi?

Selecting both Hafeez and Afridi in the top 7 is badly upsetting the team balance which was exposed in the 4-1 series defeat to South Africa. Both are liabilities with the bat, more so Afridi of course, because of his reckless style. Can you afford 2 weak links in the top 7 in an already vulnerable batting line up, especially in those conditions? Hafeez struggles against top class bowling sides when it’s moving around. That’s already one liability you are accommodating and have to accommodate. Can you afford another one?

Afridi always disappoints with the bat in World Cups. He has never scored a World Cup half century. Never fired on the big stage of 50 over cricket. His World Cup average is 12 from four tournaments. In Champions Trophy, it's 15 from five tournaments so not fired on the 2nd biggest either.

He has performed recently with the bat after a long string of failures, but that’s in Asian conditions on short boundaries where he has destroyed some spinners. Won't be as easy in Australia.

His fitness is a concern as seen in Asia Cup. His bowling has lost its venom. He has already played four World Cups. This one is one too far if he gets selected.

Also, Afridi's bowling needs scoreboard pressure to be effective. He need batsmen to be chasing 5 an over+. He is not the type who can get wickets when batsmen can play the waiting game. That's why he has not got many wickets in test cricket. With Pakistan's batting being a 160-240 type, you need a more attacking bowling option. Hafeez is already a containing option.

And with Waqar likely to return as head coach, he will obviously feel more comfortable without Afridi’s presence after the events of 2011. They didn't get on.