Islamabad
Former pacer Waqar Younis believed the preparation for the England tour was not ideal, due to the COVID-19 pandemic but expressed happiness on the young bowlers’ excellent progress in the series.
“Because of COVID-19, the preparation for the tour of England was not ideal. For three months or so, these guys were stuck indoors and not really able to train. The weather was also a frustration at various points on the tour but the young bowlers have made excellent progress and we’re happy with their performances.”
“You can see that they have the talent, now they just need to play more cricket, particularly first-class cricket. We have to identify those bowlers who are best suited to Test cricket and willing to play the longer version of the game,” he wrote in a blog on Pakistan Cricket Board’s website.
Waqar said we have already seen that Naseem Shah and Shaheen Shah Afridi were wonderful bowlers. “Mohammad Musa, who was part of the squad in England, is another, and there are a couple in the under-19s also. Of course, Mohammad Abbas is very seasoned and experienced. We will keep trying to give them the opportunities.”
The former skipper said he wanted Test cricket to be a real focus for these guys and that means also placing an emphasis on four-day cricket. “If you want to succeed in Test cricket it’s important to play more first-class cricket to get your body used to bowling long spells.—APP
