Faislabad Wolves and Pakistan captain Misbah-ul Haq is quickly acquiring a new tag “the Great Wall of Pakistan”. For the national team, in all forms of the game, and here for the Wolves in the CLT20 qualifiers, he has yet played a familiar role — that of the boy on the burning deck.
With another disappointing campaign winding down, the classy right-hander shared his thoughts on the IPL’s gains for Indian cricket, the state of the game in Pakistan amidst the international isolation, and what it means to literally “ekla chalo re” with the bat against an incessant rain of criticism back home.
On gains from the IPL: I have said in Pakistan too that exposure and skills will only improve when you play more cricket. The more you play under pressure, the more you will learn to handle it. It is unfortunate for Pakistan that there is no such cricket there which we need to think about quickly.
People from all parts of the world come here to play the IPL and there are different leagues in other countries and you can see a tangible difference. You can see that in Indian cricket – young players are mature and they know how to handle the pressure, how to build an innings and in bowling, how to bowl under pressure.
On lack of international cricket at home: It has had a huge effect. When there is international cricket in your country, there is definitely an impact on your cricketers. If there is no international cricket and you don’t get to see players in action, there are no side matches and opportunities, it makes a difference.
On the pressure of playing a lone hand: Sometimes it happens that your team doesn’t respond, unfortunately, like this time. Even in the Pakistan team, the batsmen are struggling and here for Faisalabad, mostly we have inexperienced players.
Wherever there are shortcomings, we must try to give the batsmen a boost because this kind of form can’t last forever.