Pakistan Cricket World Cup Folder

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All the articles and news for the pakistani cricket team should go in this thread, only for the pakistani cricket team.

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Pakistan factbox

Pakistan cricket World Cup factbox:

Captain: Waqar Younis.

Coach: Richard Pybus.

Group B (with Australia, India, England, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Netherlands)

Strengths: Batting and bowling match-winners in abundance. It is hard to find a Pakistan player who has not produced a man-of-the-match performance.

Weaknesses: Regular dissension between team mates, suspect fielding (they have never matched the Australians or South Africans in this department) and few disciplined players, apart from Abdul Razzaq and Yousuf Youhana, to steady the ship in times of crisis.

Squad: Waqar Younis, Saeed Anwar, Saleem Elahi, Shahid Afridi, Taufeeq Umar, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Yousuf Youhana, Younis Khan, Wasim Akram, Rashid Latif, Saqlain Mushtaq, Shoaib Akhtar, Abdul Razzaq, Mohammad Sami, Azhar Mahmood.

Key man: Wasim Akram – playing in his last World Cup, he has the stature to make sure Waqar Younis is supported as captain. He also has the power to undermine him, which could prove fatal.

One-day form: Coach Mudassar Nazar was sacked in September after a wretched run, the team losing six out of 10 one-day internationals and being knocked out of the Champions Trophy at the first hurdle. Whitewashed Zimbabwe 5-0 away but lost their final World Cup warm-up with a 4-1 defeat in South Africa.

Past World Cup performances: Pakistan’s greatest hour came when they beat England in the 1992 final but they made a horrible mess of their second final in 1999, when they were skittled for 132 by Australia, having beaten them earlier in the tournament.

Their only real failure came in the first tournament in 1975, when they won one game out of three. They reached the semi-finals in 1979, 1983 and 1987 and the quarters in 1996.

Prediction: Semi-finals – at least.

::: Reuters **

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Flamboyant Shoaib plans to stir up more trouble

ISLAMABAD, Jan 27, 2003 (Reuters)

Pakistan’s express paceman Shoaib Akhtar said a strange thing recently. He said he was no longer interested in bowling faster.

Just imagine if James Dean had said he was giving up screen stardom for slippers, a pipe and an armchair by the fire.

Shoaib is speed. The man, with his powerful, low-centred frame, reeks of the stuff.

If the fastest bowler in the world were to start trying to check his pace and concentrating on line and length instead, he would be denying his very personality.

He would no longer be Shoaib Akhtar. He would be Glenn McGrath. Only with longer hair.

Fortunately for the World Cup and for world cricket, Pakistan’s most exciting player – whatever he maintains – will be hurtling in during the World Cup with the express intent of sending as many stumps and batsmen flying as possible.

FLAMBOYANT TALENTS

The man has been in love with his own flamboyant talents since bursting on to the world scene in the late 1990s, breaking rules almost as often as wickets.

That did not stop him being the biggest draw of the 1999 World Cup, when he took 16 wickets before disappointing in a one-sided final against the Australians.

Much of 2000 and 2001 was obliterated by injury or throwing controversies before Shoaib wrenched his career back on track last year with a string of lavish displays.

In January he took five for 24 in the first test against West Indies and in April a career-best six for 16 in a one-dayer against New Zealand in Karachi, shortly before being timed at 100.04 mph (161 kph) against the same opponents in Lahore.

UNPLAYABLE YORKERS

In May, the New Zealanders suffered again in the first test, when Shoaib rocketed down a spell of four wickets for four runs by clean bowling Matthew Horne, Mark Richardson, Stephen Fleming and Chris Harris with unplayable, in-dipping yorkers.

He finished that day with test-best figures of six for 11 from 8.2 overs.

In June, he helped Pakistan to beat Australia in a one-day series by taking five for 25 in the decider in Brisbane, prompting wicket keeper Rashid Latif to say: "I have kept to Waqar Younis and Wasim Akram at their peak but Shoaib is very,very fast and very difficult to keep to.

“If he does not face any injury problems, he will cause havoc in the World Cup.”

Australia captain Ricky Ponting concurred: “We’ve got to find a way to combat that (Shoaib’s pace and swing).”

The Australians had not done so by October, however, when the bowler widely known as the Rawalpindi Express took five wickets in 15 balls – including both Waugh twins for ducks --for figures of five for 21.

With things going so well, it was time for the rogue in Shoaib to make a reappearance, leading to a ball-tampering charge against Zimbabwe in November, followed by late-night partying in South Africa.

The question is, who will suffer most at the hands of the Pakistan paceman when the World Cup comes around – the bowler himself or his opponents?

::: Reuters

© Reuters Limited.**

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Pakistan promise another World Cup roller-coaster

ISLAMABAD, Jan 27, 2003 (Reuters)

There seems little point in trying to forecast how Pakistan might fare at the 2003 cricket World Cup. Guessing which way the wind will blow might be easier.

This is a mercurial team, capable of lurching dramatically from the divine to the dregs and back – usually in the face of all logic.

Logic and Pakistan cricket performances, in fact, have never enjoyed a close relationship.

At their best, Pakistan are the most naturally talented side in the sport. At their worst, they are a disorganised rabble whose commitment has been questioned even by their own supporters.

They revealed their true colours at the 1992 World Cup, under the unifying hand of captain Imran Khan. Facing first-round humiliation, they came back to win the trophy after being asked by their captain to fight like “cornered tigers”.

Their rock-bottom World Cup display came in 1999, when, with the help of three run-outs and a string of injudicious shots, they inexplicably contrived to lose by 62 runs to Bangladesh.

True, the team went on to reach that year’s final anyway, where they were outclassed by Australia, but the result angered many.

To put matters into perspective, Pakistan had played Bangladesh in Dhaka just before the World Cup and obliterated them by 233 runs, the second biggest victory margin of all time.

The first time they met after the tournament, Pakistan --again in Dhaka – won by 152. Bangladesh, meanwhile, have never won again since the 1999 World Cup.

COMPLACENT APPROACH

Skipper Wasim Akram, in trying to explain the result, said his side had been “complacent”. He was later cleared of any wrong doing during a match-fixing inquiry but barred from leading the team again.

If Pakistan, who feature in the tougher group A alongside the likes of Australia, India, England and Zimbabwe, can show the commitment and unity of a decade ago, they will certainly trouble the best in South Africa.

Their line-up simply bristles with exotic talent.

Wasim, in his swansong tournament and man of the match in that 1992 final, has taken more one-day wickets than any other player. Skipper and fellow paceman Waqar Younis is the only other man to get past 400.

Inzamam-ul-Haq, he of the velvet hands, is the third highest limited-overs run-scorer in history, three places ahead of teammate Saeed Anwar.

Shoaib Akhtar is the fastest bowler in the world and world-class off spinner Saqlain Mushtaq one of only two men to take a World Cup hat-trick. Abdul Razzaq is among only a handful of genuine allrounders currently playing.

The list of superlatives is virtually endless.

Yet Pakistan still managed to make such a mess of their tournament warm-up that they lost a test series against the South Africans 2-0, having been hammered 4-1 in the one-dayers.

To make matters worse, rumours of behind-the-scenes problems continued to dog the team, with Wasim and Waqar’s testy relationship at their nerve centre.

KNEE INJURY

Shoaib, meanwhile, sent home for treatment on a knee injury, was spotted instead partying in South Africa.

It may be a case of too many long-in-the-tooth generals and match-winners and not enough foot soldiers willing to do the ‘hard yards’.

As Waqar himself says: “When you have six or seven established players – many of them former captains themselves-- then you have many different opinions on how to approach a situation.”

The never-ending coaching merry-go-round – Richard Pybus is currently back in charge for his fourth tenure after Mudassar Nazar was sacked in September – has not helped either.

At least things are more stable, though, than at the last World Cup. In 1999, Pakistan had five different coaches.

Ultimately, everything this year will depend on which Pakistan turns up on the key World Cup dates.

South Africa, for one, will not have been lulled into a false sense of security.

They may have cruised to victory in the recent one-day series but Pakistan’s single win in Port Elizabeth handed the home team their heaviest defeat in limited-overs history – by182 runs.

As South Africa skipper Shaun Pollock put it: “It just puts into perspective how good this Pakistan can be.”

::: Reuters **

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1992 World Cup – Imran and stupid rain rule create sensation

By Tapan Joshi

One can say the fifth World Cup, hosted by Australia and New Zealand, was not a ‘fair’ one because of a stupid rain rule formulated by cricketing legend Richie Benaud. The rule, 5.2 of the playing condition, read: “If, due to a suspension of play, the number of overs in the innings of the side batting second has to be revised, their target score shall be the runs scored by the team batting first from an equivalent number of highest scoring runs, plus one.”

As the tourney progressed, one witness India and South Africa, the latter playing in their first World Cup, suffer a great deal because of this senseless rule formulated by one of the most intelligent captains of all time.

South Africa, led by Kepler Wessels, were the best team in the tournament. They were a hungry lot, and wanted to prove a thing or two after coming back from the isolation. However, in the semi-final clash, chasing 252 against England, South Africa reached within sight of a victory.

They needed 22 runs in 13 balls with Brian MacMillan and wicket-keeper Dave Richardson at the crease when the rain stopped play. When the play resumed, according to revised calculation, the South Africans were left to get 22 runs off one ball. The world was outraged… cricket and not South Africa, was the loser that night.

However, the bright spark to an otherwise dull tournament was provided by Imran Khan and his Pakistanis. The way they came back from the brink to lift the Cup was nothing short of sensationalism, and young Inzamam ul-Haq with blistering innings in the semis and the finals announced his arrival to the cricket world.

Pakistan was almost eliminated, and their hopes lay with Australia, already out of the tournament, beating the West Indies in a Group fixture. Had the Windies won, Pakistanis would have been out and the Caribbeans would have made it to the semis.

Imran’s call to his men was loud and clear, “We would play like cornered tigers,” the great man, nursing a shoulder injury, roared and the cubs, motivated by that wily old fox Javed Miandad, responded magnificently.

The rest, they say, is history.

India, under Mohammed Azharuddin, played good cricket only in patches. Azhar was brilliant with the bat but his leadership was nothing to speak. Sachin Tendulkar was another who impressed but overall, the Indians played like an average team that they were in that tourney.

India’s cause was not helped by the fact that the players were mentally and physically exhausted. They played a five-Test series and a one-day series involving hosts Australia and West Indies in Australia immediately before the 1992 World Cup and the exhaustion showed on the field.

Overall, a forgetful tourney for the Indians.

::: Tapan Joshi **

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– A gem from Inzamam](http://www.cricketnext.com/blastpast/1992.htm1992)

By S S Ramaswamy

There were quite a few blazing knocks, including centuries, in the first World Cup to be held Down Under, but none better timed and executed than the stocky Pakistan batsman Inzamam-ul-Haq’s.

In fact Inzamam’s unforgettable gem of an innings of 60, batting at number six, which came off only 37 deliveries that he faced against New Zealand in the semi-final at Auckland, took the fat out of the fire and enabled his team to storm into the final against England that they won by 22 runs.

When Inzamam walked out to bat in that semi-final things looked very gloomy indeed for Imran Khan and his men. Chasing New Zealand’s 262 for 7, built around the Kiwi captain Martin Crowe’s brilliant 91 not out and his 97-run third wicket stand with Ken Rutherford (50), the Pakistanis had floundered against some innovative tactics employed by Crowe to be struggling at 140 for four, needing another 123 runs in only 15 overs.

Undaunted by the tall order, and guided by the inspiring presence of that fighter Javed Miandad, Inzamam went on to decimate the Kiwi bowling with an array of brilliant shots. The fifth wicket duo cracked 87 runs off only ten overs to put Pakistan on the way to a memorable victory.

When Inzamam was finally out, typically run out as he was wont to in later stages of his career, Pakistan needed 36 from 30 balls, a very achievable target and they did so as first Wasim Akram and then Moin Khan gave Miandad the support needed for the wily old fox of Pakistan cricket to guide them into the title-clash.

However, the man of the match was obviously the precociously talented Inzamam who justified the top billing given to him by his captain Imran.

::: S S Ramaswamy **

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**Waqar says Pakistan side now fully rested
Reuters - 25 January 2003

JOHANNESBURG, Jan 25 (Reuters) - Pakistan have fully recovered from their hectic schedule of international cricket and are ready to challenge for the World Cup, captain Waqar Younis said on Saturday.

Pakistan were beaten 4-1 in their recent one-day series in South Africa as well as suffering two heavy defeats in the test series.

“If you look overall we played six months on the trot in Sri Lanka, Kenya, Zimbabwe and South Africa,” Waqar said after landing at Johannesburg International Airport.

“We needed a rest and it was an important break. We used the time well. We talked about the tour here and spoke about the problems. Hopefully we’ve sorted things out.”

The World Cup, staged in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Kenya, starts in Cape Town on February 9.

The Pakistan captain said he had spent some time talking to Imran Khan, Pakistan’s victorious skipper at the 1992 World Cup.

“In 1992 no one expected Pakistan to win. I spoke with Imran Khan. It’s not that he won with the team – he won with the brain,” he said. “It was the way he thought about things. You have to believe in yourself and the team.”

Opener Saeed Anwar and all rounder Azhar Mahmood both missed out on the South Africa tour and Waqar said he was hopeful they could add to his side’s effectiveness.

“You must remember that the World Cup is not a three-nation tournament, it lasts for six weeks,” he said. “Azhar was injured and Saeed was out of touch, but he’s (Anwar) played some domestic cricket. We brought the oldies back in for their experience.”

Waqar also said his team had no problem with traveling to Zimbabwe where they are due to play the home side in Bulawayo on March 4.

“We’ve never had a problem with playing there. We haven’t even spoken about it,” he said.

© Reuters

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**Ashes over, time for another cricketing rivalry
Somi Rai - 24 January 2003

1st March 2003 is an eagerly awaited day by cricket fans worldwide. On that day, the Group A World Cup match between bitter rivals India and Pakistan will be played at Centurion. It is almost two years since they last met on a cricket pitch, in the Asia Cup at Dhaka in 2000 when Pakistan won in convincing fashion.

The two teams have much in common. Both have fanatical support. Both have won the World Cup. Both have fought on and off the field. The captain’s job is regarded as the second toughest in either country after that of the nation’s political leader. They are dissimilar in some ways too. India is led by a batsman, Pakistan by a bowler. India is renowned for its quality batsmen, Pakistan for its battery of lethal pace bowlers.

Even in 2002, there was an eerie similarity between the two teams. Pakistan had a good first six months, winning their one-day series in Australia. India played good cricket for the better part of the year, with notable wins in England and Sri Lanka.

Then suddenly, as if by design, both fell apart. Pakistan were thrashed by Australia and South Africa, and had a dismal time in Tests as well as ODIs. India, shockingly, lost their one-day series at home to a resurgent West Indies, and were ground to dust in New Zealand in both formats. True, Pakistan were without their major players in these series and many Indian supporters would claim that the pitches in New Zealand were sub-standard. But excuses will not be good enough for the side that loses the clash on 1st March.

Both teams are mercurial. Regardless of their respective performances before the World Cup, only the brave would write them off. The clash could prove crucial to the chances of either side making it to the super sixes. It is India’s last league match and Pakistan’s second-last. It could well be that the winner goes through to the Super Sixes and the loser takes the next flight home.

There is talk about the game being a clash between Sachin Tendulkar and Shoaib Akhtar, or Wasim Akram and Virender Sehwag. Whatever the result, it should provide wholesome entertainment. It won’t be just another match. It will be about pride, passion, electrifying intensity, and supreme batting against quality pace bow
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**We will beat Australia in World Cup, says Waqar
Reuters - 24 January 2003

Pakistan captain Waqar Younis predicted his side would beat Australia in their opening World Cup match, as the squad left for South Africa on Friday.

The match, on February 11 in Johannesburg, will be a re-run of the 1999 final in England which Australia won by eight wickets.

“That match is very important,” Waqar told Reuters before his departure.

“It is our first match and if we win it, this will leave an impact on the other teams as well and we are going to leave an impact by beating them.”

Pakistan recently lost both a test and one-day series against South Africa, but Waqar was confident his side could deliver a surprise performance in the World Cup, which starts on February 9 in Cape Town.

“I am surprised that people have written us off even for the Super Sixes stage. It is a misconception about our team. I have told my players to prove everyone wrong with some positive, aggressive cricket,” he said.

Pakistan, who won the World Cup on 1992, are drawn with defending champions Australia, England, Zimbabwe and old rivals India.

A crowd of more than 20,000 gave a rousing farewell to the team on Thursday at the Gaddafi stadium in the eastern city of Lahore in a ceremony that was telecast live on domestic television channels.

"We are surprised at the reception we got even after our recent poor form and reversals in South Africa,’ Waqar said.

He said the ceremony had encouraged the players. “The support we got from the crowd yesterday is the one final thing we needed to boost our morale,” he added.

© Reuters

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**Pakistan get ready for the showdown
Taha Noor - 23 January 2003

The Pakistan team has just left for South Africa, all geared up for their campaign against the rest of the world. There is a lot at stake, for this 15-man squad carries the hopes and aspirations of the 150 million passionate cricket fans in Pakistan. They must be feeling inspired after a sensational and emotional send-off at the Gaddafi stadium in Lahore. They certainly left with all the good wishes and prayers of the Nation.
Waqar at press conference
Photo © PCB

The Pakistan team is a well balanced outfit and really reflects the best possible selection from the existing pool of players.

Thus, it’s high time the fans stop debating about what should or could have been but concentrate on support to bring out the best from the resources we have at hand.

Although there will always be differences in opinion on the omission or inclusion of some players in the squad but effort would be better served by thinking about what combination Pakistan intend to field in their opening encounter. The Aussies have sent out a clear warning to all the teams in the competition, by crushing England in the first final of the VB series. One must not forget they were missing their frontline pacemen, McGrath and Gillespie in this match and at full strength they will be simply awesome in every department.

Pakistan has gone early, with time to settle in and work their way into the tournament but they clash with Australia in their opening match. One can’t help feel that this match is likely to set the tone for the remaining tournament, as far as Pakistan is concerned.

Most would regard a victory by Pakistan, going on present form, as a serious upset but there is reason to believe that this team can pull it off. This squad, minus the services of Saqlain and Razzaq did better the Aussies twice in the Super Challenge II through teamwork and a superb display of pace bowling. That is exactly what needs to be discovered yet again.

The main issue is ofcourse the playing eleven to be fielded for the first match. Saeed Anwar has not played international cricket for some time, but leaving him out would be foolish. Taufeeq Umar and Saleem Elahi will fight it out for the other opening berth, and to choose between them is not an easy task.

The main problem, or rather debate, is how to draft in Afridi? If Pakistan were to go in with two specialist openers, an all-rounder will need to be sacrificed and that means either Afridi or Razzaq.

In consider the most effective team combination for the first encounter to be: Saeed Anwar, Saleem Elahi, Yousuf Youhana, Inzamam ul Haq, Younis Khan, Abdul Razzaq, Rashid Latif (wicket keeper), Wasim Akram, Saqlain Mushtaq, Waqar Younis and Shoaib Akhtar.

However, Afridi is considered a necessity by many because without him, Pakistan have no sixth bowler to turn to if one of frontline bowlers have a bad day. An option could be to include him at the expense of Younis Khan, but this would weaken an already fragile batting order. This crunch decision will have to be taken by the team management on the spot but I personally believe that against Australia, Afridi will have to sit out on the bench.

Having done with the opening game, it is necessary to discuss Pakistan’s chances in the tournament.

Simply put, on paper the team has the potential, but its time to deliver on the playing field. Pakistan has arguably, the best pace attack, a quality spinner in Saqlain and highly competent all-rounders. So that leaves us with the batting, which has three big guns, in Saeed Anwar, Youhana and Inzamam. One or more from this trio shall have to put their hand up to be counted, something they have lacked to do consistently in the recent past.

Saleem Elahi and Younis Khan have been up and down, brilliant one day but worryingly, quite ordinary the next.

Razzaq’s role must also be clearly set out, especially as a batsman. He has been the sacrificial lamb for too long, being shuffled up and down the order and its time to establish is place at number 6. The number 3 position requires the most competent batsman in the side, and Youhana fits that role perfectly.

A tough pool, alien conditions, bouncy and seaming pitches are just some of the problems that this team shall encounter, but they have managed it in the past and there is no reason to believe they can’t do it again. It’s time to put an end to the discussions, and get down to some action.

The Nation shall do the praying, worrying and well-wishing but Boys, its now up to You!
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**World Cup snapshot: Pakistan

On the face of it, winning 23 of 38 ODIs played looks really good. However, when Pakistan have lost, as they mostly have done in the last while, they have gone down like a lead balloon.

They have swopped team managers and coaches even faster than their opening batsmen. People have been sent home, possibly injured, but mostly for disciplinary reasons. The last six months have been a rough ride.

Having played in Zimbabwe and South Africa most recently, they have enjoyed the best preparation from an itinerary point of view. While they slapped Zimbabwe around like a wet puppy, things did not go so well against South Africa. There they crashed 4-1 in Hindenburg fashion, leaving the tour with fewer players than they started, but more questions than answers.

Again on the face of it, Pakistan should be the most successful team in the world. Just look at the talent they possess: Saeed Anwar, Imran Nazir, Shahid Afridi, Yousuf Youhana, Younis Khan, Big Inzi, Abdul Razzaq, Moin Khan, Saqlain Mushtaq - and lets not even get started on the most impressive pace attack since somebody said “Lets try this game with a straight arm.”

Pakistan have players who can potentially smack the ball harder and hurl it faster and swing it further than anyone else. Yet they don’t. Why? If you know, please mail Richard Pybus.

Along with such brilliance comes an erratic streak that makes a mockery of any attempt to cast predictions. As terrible as Pakistan have been on their last tour to SA, they could just as easily come back and clout the hosts by 507 runs with 29.3 overs to spare in the Super Sixes. Nobody knows. We hope.

Perhaps the key to Pakistan lies in their previous status as world champions. Imran Khan. He held all their disparate elements together, channeled their creative fury and dampened their destructive instincts. And he could play a bit. Waqar Younis, that urbane breaker of toes, is not Imran Kahn. He started off successfully, but since then things have gone downhill and there are few indications that his leadership is halting the slide.

I am not drawing up a table measuring Pakistan’s prospects, as I have done for the other teams. There is little point, they are the ultimate wild card. Suffice to say much will come down to Waqar. If in January he can soothe the angst of his senior players and marshal his troops,
Pakistan will be a serious force, possible winners. If he does not, which is far more likely, they will once again crash and burn.
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I think we need to have a 6th bowler for sure. Seeing Waqar’s Razzaq’s and Shoaib’s recent performences, we must have a 6th bowler otherwise if one of them is getting hammered, it will cost us the match. I think Afridi needs to be in the team, not for his batting, but for his bowling and fielding.

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bas rehney do ab:(

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team group photo

[thumb=A]team1.JPG[/thumb]

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Pak manager’s efforts make positive impact on team](http://www.jang-group.com/thenews/jan2003-daily/29-01-2003/sports/s3.htm)

**Pakistan manager Shaharyar Khan has taken concrete measures to generate good team spirit and inculcate sense of responsibility among the players as soon as Pakistan’s World Cup squad settled down in Johannesburg which is their base camp for the World Cup.

According to the team spokesman in Johannesburg, the manager has already constituted a number of committees to keep all the players involved and create a unified atmosphere in the team.

Shaharyar has taken the wise decision of including two of Pakistan’s most enigmatic cricketers Shoaib Akhtar and Shahid Afridi on the disciplinary and fines committee that will be headed by vice-captain Inzamamul Haq.

The disciplinary and fines committee is perhaps the most important on a tour as it regulates the code of conduct for the players, their curfew timings, the level of discipline in the dressing room and most importantly the fines to be imposed for any unbecoming behaviour like late arrival, missing of practice etc.

The manager has also constituted four other committees and their charter of responsibilities will be prepared soon. The committee are Entertainment, leisure: Wasim Akram (chairman), Azhar Mahmood, Saleem Elahi.

Scheduling and programmes: Saeed Anwar (chairman), Abdul Razzaq, Mohammad Sami

Gifts and protocol: Rashid Latif (chairman), Younis Khan, Dr Riaz

Autographs and Public Relations: Saqlain Mushtaq (chairman), Yousuf Youhana and Taufeeq Umer.

“The objective behind constituting the committees to make the players realize their responsibilities and have their full participation,” Shaharyar Khan said.

Meanwhile on the cricketing front, the Pakistani players are on schedule in their preparations for the mega-event. The players had extensive workouts on Tuesday, including the luxury of having a nets session after two days of physical training.

The boys assembled at The Wanderers Stadium at 9.30am and stayed there till 1.15pm during which they had workouts and nets under the guidance of coach Richard Pybus.

The team will also have nets at The Wanderers on Wednesday and there will be another physical training session on Friday morning.

Torrential rains that have hit Johannesburg late in the evenings have kept Pakistan players away from nets for the last two days. Nevertheless, special emphasis is being laid on physical training and Pakistan’s Australian physiotherapist/trainer Dennis Waight is utilizing all his experience and making the Pakistan players go under strenuous and testing drills, including downhill running that is extremely taxing on the players.

In the last two days, players’ meetings organized by Shaharyar Khan have also been held. In the meetings, cricket and the forthcoming World Cup have been discussed besides a brief speech by the manager how they have to act during the tournament.

“We have to make more friends. I want that when the boys go home, people remembers them in good words,” Shaharyar said. According to one of the senior players, he could see the change in the attitude of the team.

"They are all motivated and so far everyone has enjoyed the stay. The team meetings are informative and everyone makes his presence felt. The (training) facilities are excellent here so we have every reason to have good preparations for the World Cup.

Meanwhile, Pakistan have managed to get an additional practice match that will be played on February 1 at Alberton against Gauteng Invitation XI. Former South Africa international Clive Eksteen will lead the home team.

Earlier, Pakistan were provided only two warm-up games - against Gauteng Invitation XI at Lenasia on February 4 and against Easterns at Benoni on February 6.

The local Gauteng Cricket Association on Tuesday named its teams for the two games against Pakistan.

Gauteng XI (for Feb 1 game) - Clive Eksteen (captain), Marthinus Otto, Stephen Cook, Enoch Nkwe, Adam Bacher, Vaughn van Jaarsveld, Matthew Harris, Grant Elliott, Ashfak Abowath, David Terbrugge, Yunus Keiler. Saurad Chatterjee (12th man).

Gauteng XI (for Feb 4 game) - Clive Eksteen (captain), Stephen Cook, Marthinus Otto, Enoch Nkwe, Adam Bacher, Vaughn van Jaarsveld, Khalid Moothasamy, Ahmed Omar, Ashfak Abowath, David Terbrugge, Shane Burger. Ziyaad Desai (12th man).**

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Thanks for the information

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sems like new manager is getting every individual involved in team activites and meetings. ITs a good sign that every player is realizing his responsibility. It will for sure raise the level of unity in the team and that will hel;p the team spirit to. Good job shahryar sahib :k: :jhanda:

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Pakistan team remains star attraction for mediamen
Pakistan Cricket Board - 29 January 2003

JOHANNESBURG (South Africa), Jan 29: The Pakistan cricket team remains the star attraction for mediamen here though Canada, England and New Zealand have also arrived to participate in the 2003 ICC Cricket World Cup starting from February 8.

The newspapers have discussed Pakistan’s strengths, weakness and have also compared them with the other participating teams. Some of the newspapers have gone to an extent where they have discussed the glamour of the players.

And the unanimous view is that Pakistan remains a very dangerous side and one of the favourites for the World Cup even though they had a disasterous tour to South Africa late last year.

The leading The Star newspaper had an interesting view about the Pakistan team.

“When it comes to glamour in world cricket, few teams encapsulate the term better than the Pakistanis. Designer shades, elegantly styled hair and, for some, Hollywood good looks,” wrote The Star.

It continued: "For those not interested in the sex appeal of international cricketers, they’re a fairly exciting side when in the mood - as indicated by the fact that four of their pool matches are already sold out.

"But those who saw the Pakistanis here a mere three weeks ago a still wondering just which side will pitch up on the field for that potentially mouth-watering opening tie at the Wanderers against Australia on February 11.

“If it’s the same Pakistan side that was so emphatically defeated at Lord’s four years ago, then punters may want to look elsewhere to put their money. If it’s the Pakistan team that so enthralled the world in the later stages of the World Cup in 1992, then no one need look further for the 2003 champions.”

The paper added: “It has become a cliche to describe Pakistan as unpredictable, but it is that very nature which makes them such a dangerous side for the eighth edition of the World Cup.”

The newspaper opined that when Pakistan toured South Africa for five one-dayers and two Tests, bowling was the weaker link. “Not so for the World Cup, with one-day cricket’s leading wicket-taker Wasim Akram returning for the final hooray and one of the fastest bowlers in the world, Shoaib Akhtar, ready for action.” **

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:eek: :jhanda:
gotta see who rules the world :k:

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Ofcourse Pakistan:k:

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:jhanda: :bhangra: :jhanda: :bhangra: :jhanda: :bhangra: