Batta Fast

We are back to worship the algo, and so fittingly we have found a way to force the Kendrick Drake beef into this episode. We also take a look at what Babar can learn from Akshay Kumar and Aditya Pancholi, why Andre Russell is the GOAT, and our take on the World T20 squads. Kendrick, Drake and the 2023 World Cup Babar Azam, Akshay Kumar and Aditya Pancholi Bobby's career at an inflection point The role of bowling in modern T20s Dr. Sohail's resignation and PCB shenanigans T20 World Cup Contenders Dre Russell Love Follow us on Youtube!

*puke* A terrible series that taught us nothing and made us despair a lot. We dive deep mostly into Babar, but also the larger malaise afflicting Pakistan cricket. 0:00 - 5:00 Intro and whining 5:00 Lack of ambition and intent 11:14 Toxic national team atmosphere 24:23 Babar's lack of evolution 30:37 Did we learn anything at all? Follow us on Youtube!

To celebrate the star turn by Naseem Shah in his new ***** ad, we decide to take a look back at some of the iconic cola adverts starring Pakistani players. Thirty years of pure pop culture. Original compilation of ads: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhwhTaU14zM Osman podcast discussing War Minus the Shooting: https://www.81allout.com/2021/02/22/an-unquiet-history-an-interview-with-writer-osman-samiuddin/ Ahmer article on separating art from artist: https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/ahmer-naqvi-the-mohammad-asif-enigma-913199 Abid Hussain article on tape ball history (Nadeem Finger) https://www.thecricketmonthly.com/story/929545/tape-ball-tales 0:55 Intro to why we aren't doing data but Naseem ogling 4:00 BDS, Palestine and the ethics of working with such companies 9:00 Stop calling us boomers (we then proceed to do boomer shit) 10:40 1987 Have a ***** Day ad with Imran Khan 11:55 1990 with IK and Ws 14:00 1993 Vital Signs traffic jam 14:31 1994 Haroon 17:00 1996 the iconic Nothing Official About It ad 23:30 1997 Saeed and Afridi 26:50 1998 Saqlain 27:00 1999 Shoaib, Speed, 100mph 29:00 2000 The last Afridi launda ad 31:08 2001 Wasim bhai 32:10 2002 Lehmann, Warne and Street Cricket 34:19 2003 Problematic 'tribal' ad 34:50 2004 Osman rant on Strings 36:19 2005 Harasser with unknown 37:12 2006 Adnan Sami 38:30 2007 Younis Khan 40:51 2008 Retired Wasim and baby Asim Azhar(?) 41:30 2009 Last minute Afridi ad 42:40 2010 Aisam ul Haq ad 43:19 2011 Afridi and Shoaib 44:00 2012 Afridi golf etc 45:30 2013 Misbah, Junaid Irfan 'pahunch toa gaye ho' 48:20 2014 Afridi, Ws, Selfie, Gul, Sana Mir 49:22 2015 Afridi and Ukmal 52:05 2016 No cricketers 52:30 2018 No cricketers 53:30 2016 (no clip) Afridi and Misbah shipwrecked 55:00 Naseem's ad and his burgeoning sexiness Follow us on Youtube!

This week, we respond to many fan queries and do a detailed discussion of our criticism's of Ramiz Raja's stint as PCB Chairman. We also debate just how gold was Shaheen's 'don't anger me' Insta story, and discuss how a return of the franchise-based Champion's League tournament is both exciting and ridiculous. 00:00 Intro and Shaheen's insta story 9:53 The Chairman Rambo era 37:03 What does a revival of the Champions League mean? Follow us on Youtube!

We had planned to do a data deep dive on the recent PSL, but instead we have to content with all the elite level clownery going on at the PCB. Turns out, the board changed captains and released a #wholesome press release which had never been shared with the players instead. So now, we've got one recently sacked captain back, one highly fucked over player sacked without being told why, two of the most recent successful PSL captains not even considered, and two known haters of the current captain back in the team. Of course, the big question is, which of these can run 2 kilometres with faujis? 00:00 Discussion on the latest farce 04:11 Lack of communication and mismanagement in the PCB 08:04 Mohsin Naqvi's role as chairman 12:16 Treatment of players in Pakistan cricket 25:30 The captaincy debate and overlooked captains in the PSL 30:40 The legacy of Sheharyar Khan 47:21 Same old genuine concern for the future of Pakistani cricket Follow us on Youtube!

APOLOGIES FOR THE LATE UPLOAD ON AUDIO! Part 2 of our episode with the 3-time PSL winning General Manager of Islamabad United Rehan ul Haq. We go match by match throughout the whole magical season, charting all the ups and downs and how Islamabad's side found their way back to the top. 0:00 Match 5 - Trouncing the Kings 4:54 Match 6 - Rematch with Zalmi, Shadab's best PSL knock 10:06 Match 7 - Losing to nemesis Lahore, rise of Faheem 15:03 Match 8 - Beating Karachi, Pollard's genius, Haider's emergence 18:02 Match 9 - Did Islu hit their peak when beating Multan? Finally, home advantage, Usman Khan eater of spin, Munro's guts 26:14 His Imadness takes over the playoffs, integrating Imad into Isloo 32:37 Eliminator 2 - Overcoming that final hurdle 39:19 The final vs Multan, Ifti mania and the importance of momentum, Naseem's pep talk and clutch batting, Hunain's cuteness 49:21 Shadab's catch of Babar Follow us on Youtube!

In our favourite episode ever, great friend of the podcast and 3-time PSL winning General Manager of Islamabad United Rehan ul Haq joins us. We go match by match throughout the whole magical season, charting all the ups and downs and how Islamabad's side found their way back to the top. 0:00 Intro and banter 4:28 Why this PSL was his proudest professional achievement 7:51 The importance of team culture and how it was established at Islu 21:11 Match 1 - Beating Qalandars at home 25:41 Match 2 - Losing to Multan, Shadab as captain and Naseem as sexpot superstar 39:26 Match 3 - Losing to Quetta, Abrar's courage and chutzpah 45:42 Match 4 - Shocker vs Zalmi, Arif Yaqub's genius, playing vs Babar, Hesson's calmness Follow us on Youtube!

Guess who's back? We take a look at each of the PSL sides and how their seasons have gone 8 games in. From realising that Karachi Kings, not Lahore, are the worst PSL side ever to getting excited about everyone from Saim Ayub and Khwaja Nafay to Hunain Shah and Arif Yaqoob, we cover all the highs and lows of the season so far. 0:00 Intro 1:39 Lahore Qalandars - the funnest team in the PSL 10:51 Karachi Kings - the absolute worst thing about Karachi 21:26 Islamabad United - wait, why are these guys not good? 31:20 Peshawar Zalmi - wait, these guys are good? 40:12 Quetta Gladiators - the Saify in the room... 50:00 Multan Sultans - the unsexy dynasty Follow us on Youtube!

A match that was over in the first powerplay, or a slow-burning thriller? Ahmer and Osman can't agree on how to frame Multan's win over a lacklustre Islamabad. You can also watch the show on https://begin.watch, an upcoming, premium OTT platform called #Begin. 0:00 Why Ahmer hated this match 1:45 Why Osman enjoyed it 4:52 Multan's efficiency 6:42 Where was Shadab? 10:36 Multan's dominance at home 12:38 Why is the fielding so bad? 14:19 Power Rankings Follow us on Youtube!

The two-time winners are now two-time losers. Lahore slump to another defeat as Quetta looks rejuvenated. You can also watch the show on https://begin.watch, an upcoming, premium OTT platform called #Begin. 00:00 Intro and Khwaja Nafay mania 2:46 That PSL time of the year 4:28 Jahandad and the joy of PSL 6:15 Enjoying these moments for what they are 7:21 Nafay's viral ride 9:38 Cricket's toxic babay 11:00 Lahore's multiple concerns 13:10 Haris's form 14:00 Part-time keeper or specialist? 16:30 Lahore's potential 17:30 Sahibzada vs Selfie Follow us on Youtube!

So we get that boring, one-sided blowout match early. Multan looked to have scored below par before proving that was enough for two Karachi chases. You can also watch the show on https://begin.watch, an upcoming, premium OTT platform called #Begin. Follow us on Youtube!

Once the marquee matchup of the league, both teams now seem to be in the midst of new chapters. You can watch the show on https://begin.watch, an upcoming, premium OTT platform called #Begin. 0:00 - 1:21 Intro 1:22 - 2:21 Regeneration of Quetta 2:22 - 3:33 Peshawar's struggles 3:34 - 5:11 Saffy bhai and giving the kids a chance 5:12 - 12:31 Karachi's evolving school of batting, and Hanif Malik's impact 12:32 - 14:27 Peshawar's confounding tactics 14:28 - 17:06 Abrar's bowling and celebration 17:07 Power rankings Follow us on Youtube!

Welcome to Batta Fast's coverage of PSL9. We will be doing a post-match show for every game of this year's PSL, with the episodes being hosted on our Youtube page, as well as on an upcoming, premium OTT platform called #Begin. You can also watch this show on https://begin.watch Follow us on Youtube!

Friend of the podcast, founder of the Five Rupees blog, and itinerant cricket columnist for Dawn, Ahsan Butt joins the show to discuss the year that was in Pakistan cricket. Follow us on Youtube!

Two great cricket writers, Rameen (@rameenwhile) and Raiyan (@CricCritic2) join the show to discuss the two games from the New Zealand series, their thoughts on the T20 World Cup, and their take on how older cricket fans view the game. Read this beautiful take by Rameen on Sundays and cricket: https://medium.com/@rameensalman/on-sundays-and-cricket-410620ed02d5 Here's a fascinating article by Raiyan on Pakistan's ideal T20 batter https://medium.com/@raiyan201/pakistans-ideal-t20-batter-4554848a481 Follow us on Youtube!

As closely fought as a whitewash can get, Shan Masood's team continues to put in some of the best performances by Pakistan in Australia, admittedly a low-bar. We discuss Jamal's heroics, Saim's sexiness, and the joys of test cricket. Follow us on Youtube!

On an eventful first day of the final Test of the tour, Pakistan put up a fighting total despite an early morning collapse. But as discussed here, its the bowling that has led to more heartbreaks than the batting. Follow us on Youtube!

In a solo episode, Ahmer discusses how cricket creates stories of hope and glory in our minds; the pleasure of watching in the dark with friends on Whatsapp; and knowing when the good old days end and the loss begins. Follow us on Youtube!

As Pakistan prepares to play the second test of its Australian tour, we preview what looks like a very bleak test match. Follow us on Youtube!

As Australia thrash Pakistan inside four days, we review the abject batting failure, the context of Lyon's 500 wickets, and an impassioned discussion on how cricket fails its poorer teams. Follow us on Youtube!