Saeed Ajmal will travel to England to play for Worcestershire in unfriendly spin conditions to prepare for the 50-over 2015 World Cup in Australia that has similar pitches. PHOTO: AFP
KARACHI: Pakistan’s ace off-spinner Saeed Ajmal is hoping to redeem himself after a poor show in the World Twenty20 by doing well in County Championship Division-II for Worcestershire.
The 36-year-old is currently waiting to receive a No-Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to fly to England. His departure has already been delayed, forcing him to miss the first two matches of the season.
However, Worcestershire’s third match will be played from April 27-30 and Ajmal is likely to get the NOC once the schedule of the series against Sri Lanka is finalised by the board.
The PCB is not in a hurry to issue NOCs to players looking to play in county cricket or those who will be part of the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) as it wants to make sure that all top players are available for the international series.
Ajmal stated that it will be a tough challenge to bowl in England conditions where the weather is different from the subcontinent, but it is a challenge that he is raring to accept.
“I want to do well during my stint with Worcestershire in testing conditions,” Ajmal told The Express Tribune.
“The World Twenty20 didn’t go the way we expected but that is over now. I want to move forward and face upcoming challenges. I believe that my stint in England will help me prepare for the 50-over 2015 World Cup in Australia because both countries have pitches that are not spin-friendly.”
Ajmal, who has taken 169 wickets in 33 Tests and 182 wickets in 110 ODIs, stated that international cricket is becoming demanding for bowlers because of the fast-paced Twenty20 format, while they hardly receive any respite in ODIs as well due to field changes.
“Cricket has become really fast from what it was a couple of years back,” stressed Ajmal.
“Batsmen hardly respect any bowler since they have the licence to go all out in the shorter format of the game. Even one-day cricket is now difficult; with five fielders inside the circle, the teams can easily score 130-150 runs in last 10 overs.
“So it’s all tilting in favour of the batsmen, while bowlers have to make extra effort to make their presence count.”
Published in The Express Tribune, April 18th, 2014.
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