Abdullah Shafique faces Test snub threat: Analysing Pakistan star's fall from grace

Abdullah Shafique sustained his lean patch vs SA [Source: AFP]

Pakistan's opening batter, Abdullah Shafique, had a poor start to the Test series against South Africa. The right-handed batter managed only two runs before ace South African fast bowler Kagiso Rabada trapped him plumb in front of the stumps in the very first over. Thus, Shafique, who has repeatedly been slammed for his mediocre returns, further extended his lean patch in Test cricket.

Abdullah Shafique's exponential decline in Test cricket

Abdullah Shafique made his Test debut as one of Pakistan's brightest batting prospects. His water-tight defence and ability to score with orthodox shots helped in his instant rise, as he hammered 736 runs across 13 innings in his first three Test series. However, what followed next was nothing short of a nightmare for the batter as he started to fail miserably with the bat in 2024. 

(Abdullah Shafique's downfall in Tests)

The aforementioned stats give us a fair idea about the decline of Abdullah Shafique in Test cricket. The Pakistan batter, who averaged 47.50 till the end of 2023, has managed only 176 runs at a horrible average of 14.67 since the start of 2024. The fact that he has been dismissed for a single-digit score nine times and recorded four ducks vividly tells the story of his exponential downfall. 

Decoding what has gone wrong for Abdullah Shafique

(Shafique vs pace and spin in Tests since 2024)

• Although Abdullah Shafique averages just over 20 against spin bowling in Tests since 2024, it can be attributed to Pakistan's pitches, which have heavily assisted the spinners in recent times. On the contrary, Shafique's average of only 11.6 against pace suggests he has failed to counter seam bowling even on home soil, despite the pitches in Pakistan not offering enough help to the fast bowlers. 
• Abdullah Shafique has been dismissed LBW and bowled six out of twelve times, signifying his vulnerability against the deliveries within the three stumps. A major reason behind his Test decline has been his inability to counter the incoming deliveries, resulting in a significantly higher percentage of LBW and bowled dismissals. 

Technical explanation

New Zealand's legendary cricketer Martin Crowe beautifully explained the basics of foot movement in one of his columns for ESPNCricinfo. Ideally, the back foot must do all the work to make the front foot move close to the ball. To move forward, a batter must load, press and release his back foot in an appropriate manner so that his weight gets transferred in time before the ball arrives. This is the way a batter can avoid getting his front foot planted against the moving ball. 

Abdullah Shafique's similar dismissals vs BAN and SA [Source: @point_backward/X]

The picture above suggests that Abdullah Shafique's knack for keeping his back foot still led to a half-body movement. As a result, his front foot went across as he tried to reach out to the delivery with the upper part of his body, creating a large gap between bat and pad.

Conclusion: The way forward

In an age where all teams have qualified analysts and cameras of high resolution to find flaws in players, it will be a daunting task for Abdullah Shafique to sustain himself in Test cricket with such a faulty technique. So, time is indeed running out for Shafique, who could lose his place in the Test team if he doesn't evolve his game. 

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