U19 World Cup: ‘Pakistan a well-knit unit’

Manager warns of stiff competition in Australia.

KARACHI:

The Pakistan under-19 team will be leaving for Australia in the early hours of Wednesday to take part in the World Cup with manager Haroon Rasheed hoping for a good show.

The two-time winners will play a three-match series against the hosts before playing warm-up matches against England and Papua New Guinea on August 7 and 8.

“On paper, the team is a well-knit unit,” Rasheed told The Express Tribune. “We have depth in all departments but it’s going to be a tough tournament. Sides like Australia, South Africa, England, New Zealand and India have done a lot of preparation for the tournament.

“We left no stone unturned in our training. Our last international outing – the Asia Cup that was shared with India - was a huge positive. We also did a lot of work in the final training camp that mainly consisted of practice matches. The players also had a couple of extensive sessions with the psychologist [Moenul Atiq] and tips from him will help them handle tense situations.”

The manager termed the series against Australia ahead of the World Cup a ‘huge advantage’ for his side, saying that it will ‘help players get accustomed to the conditions’.

Pakistan are placed in Group B of the 16-team competition along with New Zealand, Scotland and Afghanistan.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 24^th, 2012.