Islamabad
Former captain Ramiz Raja has asked Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) selection committee to focus on a new pack of bowlers for England tour, who have the ability to scalp wickets by consistently bowling at the same place. Pakistan are likely to visit England to play three Tests and as many Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is) in August and September. The tour will be a tough test for bowlers as International Cricket Council (ICC) has recently confirmed interim changes to its playing regulations, which also include a ban on the use of saliva to shine the ball.
“This (ban on saliva) will have impact upon bowling. Test cricket is an attractive format because in it balance is maintained between the bat and ball. In this format, the bowling side makes a comeback through reverse swing after a flat session. “But now it will be very difficult to get reverse swing as there will be no saliva. We will not be able to see this great bowling art (reverse swing) for some time now. The boredom will prevail as nobody will like to see every session for the batsmen,” Ramiz said in a video on his YouTube channel ‘RamizSpeaks’. “So there is a problem for cricket as the bowlers will have to rediscover themselves and this has become a very tough task for them,” he added.
The cricketer-turned commentator said that it would be difficult for the national selection committee to pick up players, particularly bowlers for the England trip. “But as they say: ‘courses for horses’; they will have to decide in accordance with the situation. “If I were in selection committee, I would have selected a new pack of bowlers who can control and win the sessions not through reverse swing or sideway movements [of the ball] but through a command on their line and length.
I will go for the bowlers, who have the ability to bowl consistently at the same place,” Ramiz added while laying out his preliminary selection mindset for the Test team.—APP
