Pakistan's all-time ODI XI

In ODI history, Pakistan are probably the most exciting unit. They are often labelled 'the most unpredictable side' as they can play like world beaters on one day but struggle miserably like minnows on the following day.

Under the leadership of Imran Khan, they fought like 'cornered tigers' and overcame all the gigantic obstacles in their path to triumph in the 1992 World Cup. Not surprisingly, they have produced a fair share of great cricketers in all formats of the game.

Just like their arch-rivals, India, people in the country worship cricket, treating cricketers like superheroes.

On that note, here is Pakistan's all-time ODI XI.

Cut-off: A player should have played in a minimum of 100 ODIs.

Openers

#1 Shahid Afridi

Shahid Afridi was one of the most flamboyant characters of the modern era and a batsman ahead of his time. Much before the T20 format arrived, he batted in a way perfectly suited for that format.

If the batting of Saeed Anwar was all about elegance, Afridi's was all about merciless hitting. The 1990s witnessed the rise of many aggressive batsmen such as Sanath Jayasuriya, Adam Gilchrist and Sachin Tendulkar but Afridi overshadowed them all in terms of Strike Rate.

Afridi had an irresistible urge to batter the ball right from the moment he came to the crease, a trait that he never abandoned regardless of the team's situation. As a result, he had a paltry average of 23 but he was not the kind of player unduly concerned with averages. With him, it was all about Strike Rates.

In the second half of his career, Afridi became a vastly improved bowler and retained his place in the team purely by virtue of his bowling. From a 'batsman who could bowl', he made a remarkable transformation to a 'bowler who could bat.' Afridi will open the batting for this great side and provide the fireworks at the top of the order.

#2 Saeed Anwar

Saeed Anwar's batting oozed elegance

Saeed Anwar belonged to a rare breed of batsmen who possessed the ability to score quick runs without resorting to brutal hitting. His batting was full of supremely elegant shots that were a great source of delight for the traditionalists. Throughout the 1990s, Anwar was prolific and remained the most prized scalp at the top of the order for the opponents of Pakistan.

He notched up 20 hundreds, the best of which was a magnificent 194 against India. For more than a decade, it remained the highest individual score in ODIs. No other Pakistani opening batsman enjoyed as much success in ODI cricket as Anwar did. In 247 matches, Anwar made 8824 runs at an average of 39.21 and a Strike Rate of 80.67. He was a key player in Pakistan's Test team as well.

The stylish southpaw will partner the audacious Shahid Afridi at the top.

Middle order

#3 Javed Miandad

Javed Miandad is one of the best ODI batsmen of all time

In Pakistan's cricketing history, Javed Miandad's reputation as their greatest batsman finds few competitors. The run-machine from Karachi remained the team's batting mainstay in both formats throughout the 1980s.

His Strike Rate of 67 may seem low by today's batting standards, but he played in an era when it was perfectly acceptable to score at that rate. There was little doubt about his ability to raise the tempo when needed. His average of 52 in Tests and 41 in ODIs demonstrate how consistent he was.

Miandad played a number of glorious knocks in a glittering career that spanned 20 years. He played a stellar role in the 1992 World Cup triumph by scoring 437 runs, second only to Martin Crowe who finished the tournament with a tally of 456 runs.

No article about Miandad is complete without a mention of his immortal last ball six off India's Chetan Sharma that helped Pakistan win the 1986 Australasian Cup. It is a shot that still rankles many Indian fans. He will occupy the no.3 slot in our batting line-up.

#4 Inzamam-ul-Haq

Inzamam is the leading run scorer for Pakistan in the ODI format

Another automatic choice. In both ODIs and Tests, Inzamam-ul-Haq is one of the best ever batsmen to emerge from Pakistani soil. His blistering 60 off 37 balls against a shell-shocked New Zealand in the semi-final of the 1992 World Cup took Pakistan from a precarious position to the final of the tournament, which they went on to win magnificently. He never looked back after that and rose from strength to strength.

Inzamam was often ridiculed for his miserable running between the wickets but not even his most trenchant critics can deny that he was the best Pakistani batsman of his time. While he played shots all around the park, his pulls against the pacers and drives against the spinners particularly stood out.

'Inzy', as he is fondly called by his fans, played 378 ODIs and scored 11739 runs at an average of 39.52 and a Strike Rate of 74. Fittingly, he holds the record for the highest no. of runs in ODIs for Pakistan. It is impossible to keep a player of such stature out of this team and hence, he will be our no.4.

#5 Mohammad Yousuf

Mohammad Yousuf was a brilliant middle order batsman

For most Pakistani fans, the sight of Mohammad Yousuf batting alongside Inzamam-ul-Haq was extremely reassuring in the first half of the 2000s. The duo formed the nucleus of the middle-order of Pakistan in both Tests and ODIs. Yousuf's insatiable appetite for runs was never more apparent than in 2006, when he notched up a staggering 1788 runs in Tests and beat Sir Vivian Richard's record for the highest no. of runs in a calendar year. The record stands even today.

Zaheer Abbas, a stylish batsman of the 1970s with a similar appetite for runs, called 'the Asian Bradman', too is a strong contender for this slot. He made his runs at an average of 47 and a Strike Rate of 84, both of which are marvellous, but played only 62 matches. Yousuf made 9720 runs in 288 matches and no Pakistani batsman except Inzamam scored more. By virtue of excelling as a batsman for a far longer period of time, Yousuf prevails in the tight contest.

All-rounders

#6 Imran Khan

Imran Khan is one of the most charismatic cricketers ever

In Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis, Pakistan produced two of the greatest modern-day pace bowlers. Even after their retirement, there has been no dearth of young and exciting pace talent in the country, although none have been able to emulate the 'two Ws.' All this though might not have been possible without Imran Khan, the biggest superstar of Pakistani cricket and the man who glamorised pace bowling in the country. His phenomenal success as a pacer was a massive source of inspiration to the young fast men in his country.

He belonged to the golden quartet of allrounders (other three being Richard Hadlee, Ian Botham and Kapil Dev) that enthralled the spectators of the game in the 1980s and is regarded by many pundits as the greatest of them all.

His extraordinary skill as a pace bowler and effectiveness as a batsman won many matches for Pakistan and made him the most treasured member of the team. His Test record looks more spectacular than his ODI record, but he was one of the leading all-rounders of his time in the shorter format too.

There can never be a Pakistan all-time XI without the name of the greatest cricketer from the country. Imran, who captained the Pakistani side to their only World Cup triumph in 1992, will lead this side as well.

Wicket-keeper:

#7 Moin Khan (wk)

Moin Khan did a laudable job as Pakistan's wicket-keeper

The name of Moin Khan may not figure in anyone's list of all-time greats in ODI and Test cricket, but when viewed in the context of Pakistani cricket, Moin holds an exalted position, as few wicket-keepers from Pakistan fared better than him in ODIs. He was a fine gloveman and a lower-order batsman capable of delivering lusty blows.

On many occasions, he scored vital extra runs by batting along with the tail-enders. His unbeaten 31 off just 12 balls against Australia in the 1999 World Cup, which he made coming in at no.9, is a case in point. It was this cameo that made the difference as the valiant Kangaroos fell short by just 10 runs in the end. It was this quick-scoring ability that made him prevail over Rashid Latif, who often gave Moin stiff competition for the keeper's slot in the side.

In 219 ODIs, Moin scored 3266 runs at an average of 23 and a Strike Rate of 81. He pouched 214 catches and effected 73 stumpings. Sarfraz Ahmed, the current wicket-keeper of Pakistan, boasts superior numbers in all aspects in both formats, and is a strong contender but he has played only 80 matches so far, and hence is not being considered.

Pace bowlers

#8 Wasim Akram

Wasim Akram was a champion bowler and a handy batsman

If some followers of Pakistani cricket felt no qualms about the future of their team's pace bowling when the great Imran Khan called it quits after the historic World Cup triumph in 1992, they were justified in feeling so. In the form of Wasim Akram, they already had a deadly bowler destined for greatness. Akram was also the hero of the World Cup and took 3/49 in the final, blowing the wind out of England's sails. He took over the mantle of leadership from Imran and went on to become a legend himself.

When he had the ball in his hand, Akram unleashed magic in a way no other bowler could. Yorkers, slower deliveries, bouncers, inswingers, outswingers - Akram bowled them all with great skill. He possessed tremendous variety and his bag of tricks was large enough to fetch him a whopping 502 wickets in 356 matches.

Considering his wizardry with the ball, it is fitting that Akram holds the record for being the first bowler to breach the 500 wicket mark in ODIs. No other bowler except Muttiah Muralitharan bettered his tally. Who better than this genius to spearhead our fearsome pace attack? Akram can also whack the ball in the death overs, which is a bonus.

#9 Waqar Younis

In his heyday, Waqar Younis was a destructive force

The selection of Waqar Younis is a no-brainer. People often say that fast bowlers often hunt in pairs and the 'Wasim-Waqar' duo was one of the deadliest in the entire history of the game. Waqar was more expensive than Akram but was a better wicket-taker. Along with Akram, he terrorised the batsmen throughout the 1990s in all parts of the world.

He was capable of bowling at tremendous pace and when it came to delivering yorkers, he was second to none. The very mention of Waqar's name brings to mind countless images of searing yorkers that crushed the batsmen's toes or sent their stumps cartwheeling.

He became the fastest to take 300 ODI wickets at the time and only Brett Lee later reached the mark in fewer matches. Overall, he bagged 416 wickets in just 262 matches. He grabbed 13 five-wicket hauls in his ODI career, which is three more than what the second-placed Muttiah Muralitharan could manage after playing almost a hundred matches more than Waqar!

You can't argue with the selection of a bowler who took wickets at such an astonishing rate.

#10 Shoaib Akhtar

Shoaib Akhtar's red-hot pace was too hot to handle

The duo of Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis was so dominant throughout the 1990s that many talented pacers remained in their shadows and struggled for regular opportunities. But Shoaib Akhtar's extreme pace made him a sensation right from the time he entered the international arena, earning him a secure place in the Pakistani pace battery alongside Wasim and Waqar.

Shoaib ran in from an incredibly long distance and regularly clocked speeds in excess of 145 kmph. On many occasions, he beat the best of batsmen with sheer pace. Needless to say, he was famous for bowling toe-crushing yorkers that made the batsmen hop on their toes.

Shoaib had a plethora of disciplinary issues and was often labelled the 'bad boy of Pakistan cricket'. His bowling action too came under intense scrutiny. But when he was fit and on song, he swept the batting line-ups away like a hurricane. He might have fallen short of achieving the tag of 'great' in international cricket, but he has accomplished enough to merit a place in this team.

Spinners

#11 Saqlain Mushtaq

Saqlain Mushtaq was the first exponent of the famous 'Doosra'

Considering how Muttiah Muralitharan exploited the 'Doosra', one may be forgiven for mistakenly assuming that the Sri Lankan great invented this weapon. Today, it has become the most potent arrow in every off-spinner's quiver and is so commonly used that some off-spinners tend to bowl the Doosra more often than the stock off-spinner. It was Saqlain Mushtaq who first used this innovative delivery to great effect and flummoxed many batsmen.

In his heyday, he was an amazing wicket-taker and his overall ODI record of 288 wickets in just 169 matches is evidence of that. He also has two ODI hat-tricks to his name, a feat accomplished by Wasim Akram and Chaminda Vaas among others. It is unfathomable that a bowler of his calibre played his last ODI at the age of 27, in 2003. The wily tweaker from Lahore will be the frontline spinner in our team.