Pakistan cricket forges ahead

After a long drawn process of trial and error, the now revamped Pakistan team under Moin Khan seems to be clicking quite well. After horrendous performance on their last tour of Australia and then an equally dismal home series, in which they lost both the Test and oneday series against Sri Lanka, the current combination now appears to have developed into a formidable outfit.

The rejuvenation of the team came to focus during the recently concluded tour of West Indies where the national team displayed tremendous fighting qualities particularly in the last Test at St Johns, Antigua, in which after showing great resilience, the team was unlucky to lose by a narrow margin.

Pakistan team conducts, under grave and charged circumstances, was flawless and indeed praiseworthy, particularly in the face of two obviously adverse umpiring decisions. It was heartening to see skipper Moin Khan during a TV interview after the Test had ended, showing no signs of frustration. Qualities.

Earlier, during the third week of March the team demonstrated its superior talents in all departments of the game win the Sharjah Cup with emphatic all round performances.

In the recent four-nation Asia Cup in Bangladesh in which besides the home team, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka participated, Pakistan won the championship for the first time since the inception of the tournament with consummate ease and with glittering performances.

I feel that inclusion of young Qaisar Abbas in the team, a balanced blend of youth & experience, is not a bad idea. He may or may not win a selection in the final squad for test or ODI, yet it will be an education for him to be mingling and jostling with the top ranking players. I would certainly like to commend the PCB chairman's policy of infusion of the young blood with the experienced players. However it should be done gradually and deliberately so that the mingling of the two bring about efficiency and better performances.

In my opinion the present Pakistan contingent in S.L. is one of the best teams on away tour after their tour of Australia and W.I. in 1976/77. Our team has now great depth & solidity in batting due to three excellent allrounders Abdul Razzak, Azhar Mahmood & Wasim Akram with skipper Moin Khan an innovative & pugnacious batter adding great versatility in the batting lineup. In bowling, except for a slow left arm bowler, Pak team abounds in genuine fast bowlers with two good off spinners Arshad Khan & Shoaib Malik and a top class leg break / googly bowler Mushtaq Ahmed. Therefore with normal luck, physical fitness and fair weather, I am confident that our team will return from S.L. with flying colours.

To conclude I would like to emphasise that cricket is essentially a team game in which though individual performances do count yet the collective efforts of a team would invariably be the harbinger of success & triumph. Pakistan team now appears to be riding on the crest of a wave due mainly to its superb penetrative low bowlers, magnificent batsmen and above all lately improved quality of fielding coupled with innovative & imaginative captaincy of Moin Khan. I am convinced that if Moin and his team can maintain the prevailing tempo of their performances, they would soon be compared with the Aussies & the proteas for their consistency rather than the dubious epithets of unpredictability and uncertainty. Let's wish our team the best of luck & all the success in Sri Lanka