To expect Pak to fire in WC is a bit difficult: Abbas!

Karachi: Former Pakistan captain Zaheer Abbas feels that players representing the country in the upcoming World Cup will have to play out of their skin if they are to reach the last four stage of the mega event.

"Given the problems and issues Pakistan cricket has faced in the last one year and also the fact that we have lost three of our top players, it is difficult to see Pakistan among the top four in this World Cup," Zaheer told reporters on the sidelines of an exhibition here today.

"If Pakistan are to make the semi-finals it will have to play extraordinarily and consistently well because I
personally believe India, England, Australia and South Africa are the starting top four teams of the World Cup," he said. The elegant batsman of the yesteryears said that Pakistan cricket had done well to slowly recover from problems like spot-fixing.

"But this process will take time and it is good to see that the new players inducted in the team in place of Salman Butt, Muhammad Aamir and Muhammad Asif are shaping up well.

"But to expect this team to fire in the World Cup is a bit difficult."

He said if Pakistan cricket authorities had acted on the match-fixing allegations years back and taken strict action, the sport would not have faced the crisis it is facing today.

"Because we didn`t take action on the fixing allegations years back that today we are in a position where we have lost three very good and experienced players," he said.
! Zaheer, who has backed Test captain Misbah-ul-Haq to lead the side in the World Cup, however felt that the board has delayed the captaincy issue for too long now.

"I don`t think now with the World Cup just weeks away it would be wise to change the captain and Shahid Afridi, who is leading the team in the one-day series in New Zealand, should continue as captain for the World Cup.

Zaheer also felt that Pakistan`s hopes of doing well in the World Cup would brighten if they win the remaining three matches against New Zealand.

"So far they have not really dominated the New Zealand team, which to me, is weaker compared to us.

"We should, on paper, beat them in all three matches and if this happens then Pakistan?s chances of doing well in the World Cup will improve," he said.

"We have already delayed our final World Cup preparations and plans compared to other teams, so, it is important we make the most of this series in New Zealand," he said.

PTI

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Huge win for Punya Nagri in inter-media T20 tournament

NAGPUR: Punya Nagari recorded a thumping 127-run win over Pancan in the UCN T20 inter-media cricket tournament at Central Railway ground, Ajni, on Wednesday. In another match, Lokmat defeated Deshonnati by 38 runs. Brief scores: Lokmat: 160 in 19.5 overs (Gitesh Wanjari 35*, Sharad Mishra 29; Manish 3-21, Shahagir Sheikh 2-29) beat Deshonnati: 121 in 17.1 overs (Shahagir Sheikh 46; Sachin Rahangdale 3-20, Nitin Patariya 3-19) by 38 runs. Punya Nagri: 273-5 in 20 overs (Sunil Thavkar 78, Vaibhav Sonwane 57, Pankaj Pande 38; Avishkar Deshmukh 1-45) beat Pancan: 146-5 in 20 overs (Avishkar Deshmukh 59, Ravikant Sane 47; Umesh Tekade 1-20, Pankaj Pande 1-24, Manoj Zariya 1-10) by 127 runs. Man-of-the-match: Sunil Thavkar.
Keep reading

The Ashes: Australia women v England women, first Test, day one report

Image
Steaming in: Rene Farrell caused England's batters all sorts of problems Photo: GETTY IMAGES By Telegraph staff and agencies 11:22AM GMT 22 Jan 2011 Comments A maiden Ashes Test century from captain Charlotte Edwards helped England 's women to a recovery of sorts in Sydney, as they ended the first day of the first Test on 181 for eight. Edwards occupied the crease for over five hours on her way to an unbeaten 103, after her decision to bat after winning the toss had initially backfired. A devastating new-ball spell from Ellyse Perry saw Heather Knight and Caroline Atkins removed as England slipped to seven for two, with Lydia Greenway not far behind them as she was snared by Rene Farrell. But Edwards dropped anchor to halt Australia's charge and her partnership of 65 with Jenny Gunn was the biggest of the day. Gunn eventually fell to Rachael Haynes for 33, leaving Edwards to accelerate her scoring further as the tail fell around her.
Keep reading

Will Sourav Ganguly play for Kochi?

KOLKATA: Eleven days after the auctioneer brought down his hammer for the last time at IPL players' auction in Bangalore, a ray of hope has emerged for Sourav Ganguly, who was ignored by all the 10 franchises. Team Kochi, which will be making its IPL debut in the ensuing T20 event, have belatedly realised their folly and are keen to take Ganguly on board. The Kochi management, who clearly showed no aptitude for team composition and failed to net a single capped Indian batsman other than VVS Laxman, have approached the Governing Council to allow them to sign the former India captain. However, they can do so only if the other nine franchises raise no objection to this out-of-auction deal. The BCCI, on its part, has no objection. "If the franchises have no objection, why should we stand in any player's way to play in the IPL? However, there is no question of bending the rule or making an exception," said a Governing Council member. IPL rules state that capped pla
Keep reading