Cricket: Victory will be written in golden words, says former chief selector

Former players effusive in praise for Pakistan’s comprehensive win.

KARACHI: Former Test cricketer and chief selector Iqbal Qasim has rated Pakistan’s win in the first Test against top-ranked England as one of the best in the country’s cricketing history.

The comprehensive manner of the victory, where Pakistan dominated England from the start, impressed Qasim and he was effusive in his praise for the national team.

“It is one of the best performances from Pakistan in Test cricket,” he said. “This victory will be written in golden words in the country’s Test history. It’s a result of team work. Saeed Ajmal’s performance was phenomenal. He deserves a lot of praise.”

Malik terms win pleasant  surprise 

Meanwhile, former captain Shoaib Malik was equally delighted with the win and termed it a pleasant surprise.

“I wasn’t expecting England to lose this way,” said Malik. “It’s an honour for the team to win against the world’s number one Test side in such a fashion. Pakistan are showing consistency and I hope also win the series.”

Former coach Waqar Younis believed the spot-fixing scandal and other controversies, which hit Pakistan cricket in 2010, made the players stronger and is one of the reasons for their consistent show in the last 18 months.

“I’m really proud of the way they’ve responded to all the criticism and scepticism that they had to deal with after the spot-fixing scandal,” said Waqar. “The players were determined to show everyone what Pakistan cricket is all about after the scandal. They realised that the only way to respond to the crisis was to perform well and let the results speak for themselves.”

Published in The Express Tribune, January 20^th, 2012.