‘Hope Australia series opens the door for big-time cricket in Pakistan’

To start with, this is an incredibly important home series for Pakistan. Australia last toured Pakistan in 1998, so after a gap of almost a quarter of a century, they are here. England and New Zealand, too, have confirmed that they would tour Pakistan this year. It’s a big thing for Pakistan cricket.
Pakistan deserves to get these big series. The overall situation in the country, and cricket in Pakistan, is conducive to hosting this series. There’s positivity around. The Pakistan Super League (PSL) was a great success. Cricketers from all over the world turned up to play the tournament. This has helped build confidence. Also, when the West Indies came, they gave positive feedback. So this is great news for Pakistan cricket and I hope that this opens the door for big-time cricket in the country on a consistent basis.

I think Pakistan’s performance at the T20 World Cup last year triggered a positive vibe. When you play good cricket on the global stage, at an ICC tournament, then cricket lovers everywhere want to see the team host big home series. Fans from England, Australia, India, and all other cricket nations agree that this team is good enough to host marquee home series. And the PSL showed that overseas cricketers trust Pakistan’s security and system.

No practice today due to rain in Rawalpindi
For now enjoy Babar Azam practicing in the Test mode
👊👊#BoysReadyHain#PAKvAUS pic.twitter.com/ZfjZN4iNtO

— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) March 3, 2022

Beating India at the T20 World Cup was huge. Pakistan hadn’t beaten India in a World Cup before that and it was a (mental) hurdle. So the win created a positive environment and gave the players the belief (to strive for higher). You can have a strong team on paper, but belief comes only from winning. Defeating India at a World Cup and then reaching the semifinals and most importantly, playing good cricket augured very well for Pakistan cricket.

Babar Azam, too, has played a big part in this, through his handling of the team and batting performance at the T20 World Cup. The way he has built the team in his own image has created even more sympathy among the fans, that Pakistan deserves to host home series.

Crowds were allowed for the PSL matches and for the three-match Test series against Australia. too, fans will be present. This will create an excellent atmosphere. Pakistan will certainly get the home advantage. Pitches are expected to be prepared to suit their strengths. I don’t think Australia will get the advantage of playing on hard surfaces, something they are used to.

One disadvantage for Pakistan could be players’ fatigue. Top players are coming into the Test series on the heels of the PSL. I think this could affect their energy level. Pakistan spinners will have a big role to play in this series. They have good spinners in Nauman Ali and Sajid Khan. Also, Nauman and Sajid haven’t played any PSL, so they will be fresh. I think Pakistan will start as favourites. The pitches are expected to be to the liking of the Pakistan batsmen, so if they can put on 350-plus on the board, they will have a very good chance to win the Tests.

There’s a perception that young cricketers in Pakistan are more attracted to T20 rather than the longer format. But this is not only Pakistan’s problem. This, in fact, is a global problem. With so many T20 leagues around, the majority of young cricketers are falling for the shortest format. Playing T20 cricket is easy – you can fast-track (your career) to the next level through this format. The majority of modern-day youngsters don’t want to go through the rigours of Test cricket, putting themselves under intense pressure, something that tests your skill level. Then again, for any cricketer worth his salt, Tests remain the ultimate format. Cricket boards all over the world should make it mandatory for young cricketers to play domestic red-ball cricket (first-class matches) at least for a year or two during their formative period to help them understand the effort one needs to put in to score a hundred or take a five-wicket haul.

Coming back to the series against Australia, I don’t think a low-key PSL will affect Babar in Tests. He has been batting well and scoring consistently over the last couple of years and he knows that once in a while he would go through a lean period. Babar needed a break, which he got and I think he will be OK.

He is mentally tough.

Finally, a lot of credit goes to (Pakistan Cricket Board chair) Ramiz Raja for the country hosting this series. He made a lot of communications with international cricket boards over the past six months, and Australia, New Zealand and England coming to our shores is the result of that.

(As told to Shamik Chakrabarty)