Preparation camp focusing on attacking cricket

PCB wants players to adapt to demands of modern day limited-overs cricket

KARACHI: There is good news for advocates of Pakistan adopting a more attacking approach in limited-overs cricket as the players in the ongoing ‘high performance camp’’ at the National Cricket Academy in Lahore are being painstakingly prepared to attack ahead of the ODI and T20I series against England.

The national selection committee had earlier announced 31 players for the camp, out of which eight were highlighted as players who could be in line for selection. These eight probables include Sharjeel Khan and Hasan Ali, both of whom did well on the recent tour of England for Pakistan A.

According to Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) Senior General Manager Academies Ali Zia — a former first-class cricketer and one of Pakistan’s most qualified coaches — the players are being prepared to quickly adjust before the ODI and T20I series.



“There is a feeling that generally our players aren’t meeting the demands of modern day ODI cricket, so the ongoing camp has been especially arranged for this purpose,” Ali told The Express Tribune.

“Just like we prepared well for the Test series against England, the PCB wants the players to be ready and sharp for the limited-overs leg,” he added. “An initial test was conducted on all the players before work began on their fitness and fielding. Fitness standards are now being regularly monitored because they help in fielding.”

Ali added that from next week, work will start on the players’ technical adjustment, while they would be put into match situations where they will play around 10-12 matches including both ODIs and T20Is.



“The players in the camp will get around four to six 50-over matches and around the same number of T20Is,” said the 59-year-old. “This would help them to get ready for the ODI and T20I series against England. When you prepare well for different challenges, the results are always positive and these players are putting in added hard work.”

Published in The Express Tribune, August 7^th, 2016.

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