Tour of England: Waqar available to answer Arthur’s questions

Former Pakistan head coach willing to help South African read players

KARACHI: Former Pakistan head coach Waqar Younis, who has been succeeded by Mickey Arthur, has welcomed his successor’s wish to interact with him before the tour of England begins, stating he is just a call away if Arthur needs his help.

The 44-year-old developed Pakistan into a strong Test unit, but was unable to turn around the side’s fortunes in ODIs and T20Is as the Men in Green plummeted to new lows.

Pakistan’s tour in England starts with Tests — their favourite format in sub-continent conditions at least — and Waqar feels the first challenge would be far from an easy one for Arthur and company.

“The tour of England isn’t going to be easy for sure, but self-belief of achieving something in testing conditions can do wonders,” Waqar told The Express Tribune.

“It would have been a challenging task for me and it would be the same for Arthur. If he wants to speak to me, I’m always available and my phone is always open for his calls. I can help him gain insight into the strengths and weaknesses of the players, their good points and bad, the dealings of the board with the team and team management etc.”

Waqar, who picked up 373 and 416 wickets in Tests and ODIs respectively, backed the appointment of Arthur, saying the South African has a good track record as a coach. He also recalled that he has previously spoken to Arthur only once when he wanted Waqar to work as bowling coach with the Australian team — an offer he had declined due to his commitments.

“Arthur has coached around the world so the required experience is there, but again it all comes down to how players respond to a coach’s or captain’s call,” he added.

Responding to reports linking him to Afghanistan head coach job, the former captain said he has different offers on the table but he misses working with Pakistan, as he wanted to help the national team compete with top teams of the world.

“Any player who has served the country for 10 years or more wants to see the team do well and not stay behind the rest of the world,” said Waqar. “A lot was being said about me when I took the job, but I wanted to serve Pakistan after receiving so much from the country. I could have taken up other big offers, but I chose to serve here.”

Reflecting on the team’s chances in the Test series against England, he said Pakistan can trouble England especially with their bowling line-up.

“I feel Pakistan’s bowling would be a threat even in English conditions with Mohammad Amir, Rahat Ali, Wahab Riaz and others in the pace attack. And if Yasir Shah starts landing his ball in the right areas, the hosts will face some serious problems,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 12^th, 2016.

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