'We want to play with our natural flair'

What do you remember of watching the 1992 World Cup as a teenager?
It was a really memorable World Cup for us. Being a young teenager at that time I was watching that World Cup, especially Imran Khan, Javed Miandad, Wasim Akram, Inzamam-ul-Haq - the way they performed and the way we won the semi-final and final was really something special for us as cricket fans and as Pakistanis. I still remember the semi-final and final, the way the team played, they really fought hard to win.

That tournament was a lesson in timing your run - Pakistan did not begin the tournament well but put it all together when it mattered.
That's an important thing in your life, to keep trying. Keep trying hard, believe in yourself, that's the only way you can turn things around. Otherwise if you lose hope then actually you've lost everything. That was a key message for everyone in Pakistan and for every sportsman or person in their life. Whether you are on a high or a low, just keep trying and that's what you can do. If you believe in your hard work, some day times are going to change and you can really achieve what you wanted to.

More recently, what did you take out of the experience of the 2011 tournament?
We really played well in that World Cup. We lost to India in the semi-final, but overall, if you go back and see how we played that tournament, we were really playing well. For our team it needs to be about putting in your effort, being focused and playing your natural game with your natural flair. That is a key for us. That's what we will try to do here. We've still got a lot of potential in this team. It's not an experienced team but still there are a lot of players who have the potential to win games for you.

One thing about the team that appears strong this time around is the middle order. Yourself and Umar Akmal are in good touch, and then there is Shahid Afridi behind you.
That's really important. But it is important too at the top that somebody can give you good starts. Our top order is doing well in bits and pieces, not having big innings yet, but I think Younis Khan is playing well, Haris Sohail is also playing well. It is unfortunate they are not getting big runs at the moment. Ahmed Shehzad is another key player for us and we're hoping that in the tournament he really comes through and that could help us. But at the moment Sohaib Maqsood, me and Umar Akmal are in good nick, and Shahid Afridi is also batting well. I think there are a lot of positives but also areas where we need to improve.

The guys have really improved since the day we arrived in New Zealand. I think we are getting better in batting and bowling. The last two games have improved our bowling, even with the new ball and in the middle overs, but especially with the death overs. Wahab Riaz and Sohail Khan have bowled really well especially.

Your bowling attack lacks experience, but the coaches Waqar Younis and Mushtaq Ahmed certainly don't.
When they arrived here, most of them were not used to these conditions, which lengths and lines they should hit. After playing three or four games in New Zealand, then two practice games here, they have got to know where exactly they have to bowl, which lines and lengths, and they really have improved in the last two games. They were much better than before and they are getting up to the areas where they need to bowl on these pitches, so that's really key for us and we're looking forward to how they go.

Let's talk for a moment about a quality you and MS Dhoni have in common, and it seems to have helped both of you to remain captain of your country for a long time - your calmness. When did you first recognise how important that was?
Over a long career as a captain, over the last 15 years with my regional teams, my departmental team and Pakistan, you learn this is an important aspect of a captain. You should be calm, otherwise during games you can't make good decisions. Also, you can frustrate your own fellow team members and their performances can go down instead of getting some sort of motivation from you on the field. If you just give them gestures and you panic it could really reflect on your team. So it is better to just stay calm. You can take better decisions that way.

One man who was important in recognising your qualities and helping you graduate to a leadership position was an Australian - Geoff Lawson. Do you still keep in touch with him?
Whenever we get a chance we share thoughts with each other on emails and during tournaments when we come across each other. It was a really important comeback for me in 2007 after the World Cup when he became coach of the Pakistan team. The best thing about him was he really gave me a lot of confidence. He showed a lot of confidence in me and that really helped me improve my performance. That was the time when I started to put on the performances you really need at international level to stay in the team. He recognised that. He always rated me as a player, and whenever someone shows trust in you, it really helps.

Still on Australia, the series in the UAE was certainly memorable for Pakistan. Your innings in Abu Dhabi was extraordinary. Ever felt that sort of freedom before or since?
Sometimes you just get a chance. The stage is set. We already had enough runs on the board so you've got nothing to lose and you just go there and enjoy your batting. That was the case in that innings. We just needed to declare quickly and we were just waiting for Azhar Ali's hundred. So I just felt this was a chance, whatever we can get I can just blast. Whatever I did went right, and it gave me a lot of confidence.

Having been in Australia and New Zealand for a little while and having seen how the other teams are going, is your confidence comparable to that, or when you last played and beat India at the Asia Cup?
At the moment we are really feeling much better. When we arrived here in Sydney after losing all the games in New Zealand, it was totally different. We were still having hopes, but at that time when we lost so many games on the trot you feel a bit low. But after winning two games, especially against England - where we not only won the game but we improved in so many areas where we were lacking in the last three or four games in New Zealand - that really gave us a lot of confidence. I think at the moment the team is feeling far better.

One thing about this tournament is that across Australia and New Zealand you will need to make a series of small adjustments from ground to ground and pitch to pitch.
I think so. There is a little bit of a difference wherever you go, different grounds, different bounce. So we have to adjust according to that. But I always believe that confidence is the key. When you are on a high as a confident team you can do that. But when you are on the lower side of confidence, you struggle to do those adjustments. At the moment we are in good shape to do that.

There are the usual questions about the record against India in World Cups. As a captain do you address that directly with the team, or do you say, "Don't think too much about that"?
I think it's a big motivation for us that we've never won a game in the World Cup against India. So if we can just make it with an inexperienced team, most of the guys playing for the first time in a World Cup, that's a big motivation for them. We've got nothing to lose - just go out there, express yourselves and try to win it. Try to play good cricket. That will be a key for us tomorrow.

So the message is not to be afraid of that?
You don't have to be afraid, because you can't control the result. What you can do is control your effort - go there, express yourself, put your efforts in and wait for the result that happens.

You've been playing the game for a long time. Some have even said it feels like you could have been playing in the 1992 World Cup! How far do you go on from here?
I've already announced my retirement from T20 cricket and one-day cricket after the World Cup, so I'll be just playing Test cricket after that. Let's see for how long. But I think because we are having a lot of Test series this year right after the World Cup I will just be playing that. And then, let's see.

Apart from winning this World Cup, what is left for you to achieve?
Winning a World Cup for your country could be the ultimate. After that I will be looking forward to those Test series against Bangladesh and England - an important series against England in Dubai - and then we are playing against India. Those are really important Test matches for us. We are at No. 4 at the moment, but I really want to see if we can improve on that. I really want to do well in those series.