Pakistan's all-time ODI XI

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.