Inzi and Lara press conference

THE Pakistan cricket team captain Inzamam ul Haq blamed dropped catches from both sides for a no-result in the second test at Multan.

Speaking at a press conference at the National Stadium Karachi on the eve of the third and final test match between Pakistan and West Indies, Inzamam laid emphasis on holding onto catches to ensure victory in any type of cricket.

“We put great emphasis on our ground fielding as well as catching in our practice session and its right up there with our batting and bowling,” said Inzamam.

Talking about his own poor form in the series so far, Inzamam assured fans and supporters that he will try and score this time round and contribute to the team’s success in winning the series.

Perhaps the most surprising of replies from Inzamam came when asked if the team had devised a plan to counter Brian Lara’s recent onslaught against the spinners, especially Danish Kaneria who was hit for 26 runs in an over during the Multan test. Inzamam, maybe trying to put a humorous spin on the matter, said that he will put his fast bowlers on when Lara comes in.

Talking of his pace options, Inzamam welcomed the addition of Sami to the squad.

“It is true that we are missing our two best fast bowlers but Umer Gul and Shahid Nazir have performed reasonably well in the recent past.

“Mohammad Sami’s inclusion will not add an experienced bowler to our line-up but also add some pace to our attack as he is a genuinely quick fast bowler.

“Our combination of fast bowlers is pretty new whereas if you see West Indies attack, they have been using from a consistent selection of fast bowlers recently and therefore provide the experience a team requires in test matches,” added Inzamam.

When reminded of the mauling India’s currently receiving in South Africa and that Pakistan’s next series is against South Afica, Inzamam confirmed that he would request the team arrives in South Africa at least two weeks prior to the start of the series to get acclimatised to the conditions and bouncy wickets.

Brian Lara, the West Indies captain, echoed Inzamam’s views regarding dropped catches in the previous match. He, however, confirmed that his team was going into the third test in a positive frame of mind.

“We will go onto the field tomorrow with the second test, minus the dropped catches, in our back pocket.
“If we carry on playing like we did in Multan, we can surely win this match and take something from the test series,” said Lara.

When asked if Sarawan, West Indies vice-captain who was dropped for the last match, would be considered for this crucial match in Karachi, Lara confirmed that Sarwan had as much chance of making the final eleven as anyone else.

“Ramnaresh has been one of the brightest stars for West Indies cricket to come out in the last ten to fifteen years and even though he had to sit out the last game, he is certainly in consideration for the final test,” confirmed Lara.

Lara was vary of the threat Pakistani batsmen, especially Mohammed Yousuf and Inzamam ul Haq, posed to the West Indies team. “Inzamam has not performed well in the series so far and he is due a big score. We will therefore make use of his bad patch with the bat and try to get him out as quickly as possible.

“We are also aware of Yousuf approaching Sir Viv Richards’ record for the most number of runs in a calendar year. Because of that, we will do our best to get him out cheaply and ensure the record stays with Sir Viv Richards,” said Lara.

© Faras Ghani 2006-2008. Published in The Star Nov 27, 2006