CRICKET PASSION: Jul 14, 2011

Thursday, July 14, 2011

Azhar Mahmood crazy hitting (60 from 40 balls) 7 fours and 1 huge SIX (k...

Misbah-ul-Haq impressed by the talent present in Pakistan

The reigning One-Day captain of Pakistan, Misbah-ul-Haq, has expressed satisfaction over the presence of the enormous amount of talent in the country.
However, the prolific middle-order batsman, while talking to the media, insisted that talent alone is not enough and upcoming players need to work extremely hard to climb to the top to catch the eyes of the selectors and then make their place in International cricket.
The 37-year-old Misbah insisted that young players need to bring consistency in their form to cement a place in the national team.
Speaking on the absence of a cricket series between cricket’s biggest arch rivals India and Pakistan, the cricketer opined that both countries should resume cricketing ties for the sake of cricket fans all over the world.
He stressed that politics should not interfere in sports and the two countries regardless of their diplomatic relations should play against each other. The middle-order batsman revealed that his side was willing to play India at any venue if in case India has reservations playing in Pakistan, due to the security situation in the country.
Earlier this year, Haq replaced former One-Day skipper, Shahid Afridi, when he estranged relations with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) after criticising the team management for abuse of authority regarding team selection in the fourth and fifth ODIs against the West Indies.
After receiving a report from team manager Intikhab Alam, PCB appointed Misbah as the new skipper for the shorter version of the game, on May 19, 2011. However, the flamboyant Afridi was still retained in the squad for the two-match One-Day series against Ireland.
The Pakistan team won both the games in the absence of Afridi, who decided to miss the tournament against the minnows, under the leadership of Misbah.
According to insiders, Haq enjoys good relations with both the head coach Waqar Younis and team manager Alam. It has also been learned that in an official report, Waqar praised the professional attitude of the batsman and supported Haq’s role as the skipper in the One-Day format.
Meanwhile, after his appointment the mild-mannered batsman has not led the side against a formidable opposition which leaves many doubts regarding his abilities to cope against a tough resistance.
According to their latest schedule, the Men in Green are expected to play two Tests and three ODIs against Zimbabwe, in September of 2011.
Later however, if India agrees to play a bilateral series with Pakistan, then the country will finally have tough contests, which will most likely put Misbah’s captaining skills to test.
Meanwhile, certain sources have also suggested that Vice captain Mohammad Hafeez is being groomed to replace Misbah in future.