Batta Fast

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-410620ed02d5Here's a fascinating article by Raiyan on Pakistan's ideal T20 batterhttps://medium.com/@raiyan201/pakistans-ideal-t20-batter-4554848a481Follow 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!

The golden delicious Imran Ahmed Khan returns to join us in reviewing the latest PSL Draft, as well as the future of the league.Follow us on Youtube!

One of Pakistan cricket's great unsung heroes and a close friend of the podcast, Imran Ahmad Khan draws upon his experience as the former Head of Player Acquisition & Management at the PSL to help break down the league's draft process.Follow us on Youtube!

Introducing our Manjan series, where each episode sells the manjan around Pakistan cricket these days. In this episode, we preview Pakistan's tour of Oz, get cautiously excited by the prospect of Shan Masood's captaincy, worry about Pakistan's bowling, and take a look at the double standard masti from Hafeez and Wahab.Follow us on Youtube!

We debate India's knockout record, the toss and the pitch, Australia's unreal performance(s), and takeaways for a few others.Follow us on Youtube!

#INDvAUS review - Dozakh ke shehzaday win yet againFollow us on Youtube!

#PAKvENG but really a #CWC23review for Pakistan - it's all overFollow us on Youtube!

#PAKvNZ review - this f***ing team... Follow us on Youtube!

Pakistan's semifinal chances, #PAKvBAN review, #NZvRSA review, #PAKvNZ preview, and calling out a shambolic PCBFollow us on Youtube!

#PAKvRSA review - dil tooooootsFollow us on Youtube!

#PAKvAFG review - absolute domination by Afghanistan. Shoaib Naveed aka Silly Tiddy aka PSL Daddy replaces Osman as we discuss Pakistan's woeful bowling, Babar's costly captaincy, and Afghanistan's class and composure.Follow us on Youtube!

Australia - shaitaan ki pasandeeda team.Follow us on Youtube!

#PAKvIND review - ronay walay ke ronay ka waqt shurroo. We discuss the stunning collapse, how it rates in the all time rivalry, how boring this match was, and why there is a limit to hoping for a method to the madness.Follow us on Youtube!

SOMETIMES ITS CRAMPS, SOMETIMES ITS ACTINGFollow us on Youtube!

We discuss #PAKvNED, and how Pakistan played down to its opponents, how Saud Shakeel was an absolute revelation, and how we feel about Shadab and Hasan Ali's bowling.Follow us on Youtube!

Welcome to our special series of shows for the World Cup!In episode 1, we dig into possibly the most underwhelming start to any major tournament ever. We break down the one-sided domination of New Zealand in the opener, and we do the hope-churning task of previewing Pakistan's chances at this tournament Watch out for episodes after every Pakistan match, as well as the knockouts.Follow us on Youtube!

Batta Fast continues to host fast bowling royalty, as one of the greatest to ever do it joins the show. We talk to Waqar Younis about his greatest spells, what it felt like to miss out on the 1992 World Cup and his comeback from injuries, and his relationships with Wasim, Imran and others.Watch the show: https://youtu.be/1QgjgkHYIpkFollow us on Youtube!

The most requested spell ever since this podcast began, we recap Junaid Khan's brilliant, and hugely underrated spell against India in a forgotten bilateral series. We cover the many lows and few highs of Junaid's career, the absurdity of this tour, and spend some time with Mirza Ghalib.Watch: https://youtu.be/50ahHdTqYYcFollow us on Youtube!

The Sultan of Swing, the greatest left-armer in cricket history, the GOAT Wasim Akram joins Ahmer and Osman to discuss his favourite wickets and memories, his moral responsibility for making an an entire generation get the burger cut hairstyle, and what it was like bowling with Waqar, Imran and Shoaib.Watch episode here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=waHpU4Or1dcFollow us on Youtube!

Peak Waqar, peak Haal, peak Pakistan. A slightly forgotten spell of a slightly overlooked genius, this reverse swing devastation of South Africa was perhaps Waqar at his most ferocious. We pick apart what made this spell special, and dissect everything from Waqar's swag and style to his injuries and decline. Follow us on Youtube!

The spell that gave birth to the legend of Wasim, to a left-arm fast renaissance in cricket, and to the death of English white-ball cricket for several decades.Few moments in cricket history are as indelible as Wasim's double-wicket death strike in the final of the World Cup. We break down the spell, the legacy of Wasim's impact, and who he was before this spell changed his life, as well as ours.Follow us on Youtube!

"Pakistan cricket at its best - one minute down, next minute up!"The return of the prodigal son, playing in the country where he was jailed, in an ICC final vs the eternal rivals - Mohammad Amir's tournament-winning spell in the 2017 Champion's Trophy felt like the long awaited return of the teenager caught in cricket's worst fixing scandal of the 21st century. But was it really that, and what did Amir's career mean before and after this spell? And what about all those dropped catches? We break down one of the most fascinating personalities and spells in Pakistan cricket history. Oh, and Nasser Hussain has a cameo talking about his iconic commentary for Virat Kohli's wicket!Follow us on Youtube!

Has there ever been an enigma quite like Mohammad Asif? Even in the colourful history of Pakistan cricket, no one has quite combined both the highs and lows quite like Asif did. In a brief career punctuated by all sorts of scandals, Asif managed to mesmerise a fandom obsessed with pace by removing it from the equation. A cricketer who bowled like he was playing music, Asif's most famous spell wasn't the best example of his longform artistry. Yet in compiling a series of video game deliveries against one of cricket's most storied batting lineups, it was the sort of performance that meant he was never forgotten.Follow us on Youtube!

If you're a cricketer who shares the same last name as one of the country's biggest ever stars, how do you stand out of his shadow? How about a stunning opening spell that led Pakistan's men's team to its first ever victory over India in a World Cup match? Shaheen Shah Afridi was already a star when the 2021 T20 World Cup rolled around, but this spell took him to another level, the second episode in Batta Fast's discussion on favourite Pakistani pace spells.We take a look at the historic status of Shaheen's spell, the changing nature of Pashtuns in Pakistani society and cricket, and potentially eclipsing the fame of his very famous father-in-law.2:50 – 3:38 – Aao Shaheen Afridi ki nazar utaaro 6:43 – 9:00 – NostraOsmanus for Shaheen prediction9:30 – 11:44 – And now it’s time for Ahmer’s WTF analogy, featuring the GoW opening15:58 – 16:20 – Where we slander Bazid Khan19:30 – 21:49 – And now it’s time for Ahmer’s WTF analogy II, featuring M Night Shyamalan23:22 – 25:20 Hasan Cheema ki nazar bhi and Kylian Mbappe33:20 – 36:24- Getting heavy on the Pashtun identity56:40 – 58:40 If Shaheen went to Karachi Kings or Islamabad United1:05:40 – 1:07:30 Shaheen and his Alpha transformation1:09:29 – 1:10:20 Shaheen wins shaadi season1:11:05 – 1:11:50 – I have Trump hairFollow us on Youtube!

The first episode of our podcast kicks off a series where we discuss our favourite fast bowling spells by Pakistani players.We begin with the birth of a legend - Shoaib Akhtar's two wickets in two balls, including Sachin on a golden duck, began one of the most exciting, intriguing and dramatic careers in cricket history.We go from Bappi Lahiri to Salman Khan in trying to explain what and who Shaiby was.0 – 2:20 – Intro to the podcast2:45 – 3:40 – The spell as the Pakistani Dream: bowling two Indians, one of whom is Sachin in front of a full house off two consecutive balls3:40 – 5:55 – Silence in the Biggest Stadium in the World & some more on the dreamlike nature of Shoaib impact7:32 – 10:15 Maradona 1986 vs England comparison13:00 – 14:30 - The Two Deliveries as works of art 20:20 – 22:17 - The Sallu Bhai comparisons25:25 – 27:55 - The Faisalabad Story28:25 – 33:40 - Gun Master Interlude – Bappi Da! Including the Jimmy Jimmy tangent 38:00 – 39:39 - Why Dravid was the greater wicket (and Shaibi bowling genius)41:45 – 43:53 Shaibi Origin Story and being an outlier as a worldly star43:59 – 45:10 Shaibi Saves a Child and Hello Nicole Kidman 45:11 – 47:00 The Groundedness of being Shoaib all the way through 47:10 – 49:20 On a White Horse in the Margalla Hills, with a Quran49:20 – 50:50 Navigating a way through match-fixing era52:55 – 53:33 The Mathew Hayden send-off 53:45 – 59:05 The Sachin Ball and the Art of Bunking School59:20 – end Loving Sachin Ball contdFollow us on Youtube!