'Things will be different tomorrow'
Pakistan's coach Javed Miandad fielded journalists' questions ahead of the second one-dayer at Rawalpindi
Anand Vasu in Rawalpindi
15-Mar-2004
After the runfest at Karachi, those looking for scapegoats turned towards the bowlers. India's attack, already identified as the weak link, came in for special scrutiny. "Is this the weakest Indian bowling attack ever?" one journalist asked Javed Miandad ahead of the second one-dayer at Rawalpindi. "No, I have seen weaker Indian attacks before!" replied Miandad in a jiffy, without even pausing to think. "Previously, they used to rely on spinners, now it's good that at least they are more pace-oriented. By the same token, just because they had one bad day doesn't mean [Shoaib] Akhtar and [Mohammad] Sami are bad bowlers." As always, Miandad had plenty to say:
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On whether the result would have been different if Miandad been at the crease to face Ashish Nehra's last ball: You can't repeat the same thing all the time. I don't believe in agar aur magar [ifs and buts]. What really bothers me is that we got so close to winning, and yet we couldn't win. It's okay if you lose by a big margin, but the disappointment is that much more when you get close. When you give yourself an opportunity to win and don't grab it, that is disturbing.
On what the loss means to the way the series is poised: That's what the game of cricket is all about. Things can change so dramatically. I was happy that the boys fought hard, but I felt bad when the match slipped out of our hands. You realise now you could have been 1-0 up and instead, you are 0-1 down.
On why he was gesticulating wildly in the last few overs of the match: A lot of the players are inexperienced. I was just trying to help them out. When I played my cricket, that's the way I played it. I didn't just go out and play, a lot of planning went into what I did. That's the way I played and it worked for me, so why should I change my style now? More than in the nets, if you can get a message across in a match situation, it tends to stay on in the minds of the younger players. It's fine for people to criticise me, but why don't they give me credit for the amount of hard work I put in at the nets?
On the suggestion that Pakistan might have been a bowler short: We have five quality bowlers. If we can't have big expectations from them and if we can't expect them to curb the Indian batsmen, even eight bowlers won't be enough. The Indian batsmen have played together for a long time. They all contribute singly and as a team.
On the much-hyped Indian batting line-up: The Indian batsmen take responsibility upon themselves. That should be the attitude. Every player has a 200% responsibility towards his team. All good players only go forward only if they take responsibility and respond to situations. We had a good session yesterday and another good one today. We worked on our no-balls and wides, on our line and length - I am sure you will see something different tomorrow.