Interview with Waseem Akram

Interview with Waseem Akram

Waseem Akram

Question:  Wasim how are you finding the T20 World Cup, entertaining?

Wasim Akram: Brilliant. I think it's fun, it's fast and I think that's why its been picked up worldwide. It's quick, in 3 hours the game is over and there's plenty of action. It's pure entertainment.


Question: Any regrets on T20 not being around when you were playing because I think you would've fetched a pretty decent price at the IPL.

Wasim Akram: No regrets whatsoever, I think I had my time. I played three T20 games for Hampshire in 2003 but I didn't enjoy it. That was at the end of my career, during my peak I would've loved it. Right now the Pakistan team playing in this tournament is looking good and I feel like I should be part of it.

Waseem Akrem

Question: When the tournament started I went to some of the warmup games and Pakistan were really struggling. Where do you think things have turned around, was it the introduction of Abdul Razzaq?

Wasim Akram: It's typical Pakistani cricket mentality. They start off slowly and lethargically but when the do or die situation comes they all come out guns blazing. The introduction of Razzaq has increased their confidence and strengthened the batting as well as the bowling. Razzaq is a plus for the Pakistan team, I hope they're peaking at the right time.


Question: How far do you think they can go? It looks like a difficult semi-final against the South Africans up at Nottingham.

Wasim Akram: On form you'd think South Africa but it's only a 3 hour game and if Pakistan can play well for 3 hours then they can beat any team in the world. They have the potential and the firepower in their side.

Waseem Akram

Question:  Looking at the makeup of the team there are a couple of young left handers in the squad, having been such a great left armer yourself you must be paying close attention to Aamer and Tanvir. What do you make of those two guys?

Wasim Akram: I'm the one who pinpointed them a year and a half to two years ago when I did a camp for Pakistan. Thank God the selectors picked them up, they're both very talented. Aamer is nippy and is only 17, he's only going to get quicker. Sohail has to improve, he's not looking good at all. He's not looking fit but the talent is very much there. He can swing the ball, big time. I think in general they're both good for Pakistan cricket. And for me Aamer could be the the bowler who could really save Pakistan's bowling with Umar Gul at the other end.

Waseem Akram

Question:  You mentioned about Sohail Tanvir not looking good, are there any specific areas you've pinpointed?

Wasim Akram: First of all I dont think he's 100% fit, something to do with his hip. If he's not fit then he shouldnt be on the tour, especially in T20 because there's no time to recover. There's a game very day. Secondly if he wants to be an all-rounder then he has to improve his batting, the talent is there but he needs to know how much hard work will go into that.


Question:  I was listening to your commentary and you mentioned that Aamer has a very good runup but that as he approaches the crease he moves away from the crease. Why arent these things being picked up by the bowling coaches and the academy coaches?

Wasim Akram: I think they have picked this up but will work on it after the tournament, it's very hard to have a bowler change anything whilst a tournament is going on. But eventually if he wants to take wickets then he will have to come closer to the stumps, I think he will. He's only 17 but he's a quick learner.

Waseem Akram

Question:  Aqib Javed is the current bowling coach but what everyone wants to know is have the PCB ever approached you to work as either a part-time or full-time bowling coach for them?

Wasim Akram: No they haven't approached me since I retired. The previous board chairman (Nasim Ashraf) invited me twice for a one week camp. In the first camp I pinpointed Aamer and Sohail and in the second camp I pinpointed a fast bowler called Mohammad Talha. He's played a test match and is quite nippy as well. I cant be a coach on a regular basis but I can help Pakistan cricket, I dont need to get paid by them. My services are there, if they want me I'm there but first of all they have to want me.


Question: So the ball is in the PCB's court to contact you and to come to some sort of agreement?

Wasim Akram: Yeah whenever I have time, I can give it to them. I can have a fast bowling camp going on and give the inner details about bowling, like how to bowl a yorkers and how to look after the ball and stuff like that. But I meet them regularly when I'm commentating on the Pakistani games, I give them tips when they come and see me.


Question: You mentioned about Mohammad Talha playing that one test match, we've had reports that Aamir Sohail is working on Talha with his runup and action. Were you surprised that a guy so raw was given an opportunity?

Wasim Akram: No I think this is the beauty of Pakistan cricket, we still give chances to player we think are good enough to play international cricket regardless if they're 17 or 18. Raw talent is the feature of Pakistan cricket, if they play at the age of 17 then by the time they're 23 they're experienced and they're still young so they can play longer for Pakistan.


Question: Are there any other fast bowlers that you've pinpointed for PAkistan. You've already mentioned Sohail Tanvir and Mohammad Aamer.

Wasim Akram: I dont know, for that the Pakistan board has to send us to smaller cities like Gujranwala, like interior Peshawar and Islamabad. In smaller cities and smaller areas, I think the talent will be there.

Question: Saeed Anwar recently said Pakistan is going through dark times as a cricketing nation, are things as bad as he thinks?

Wasim Akram: I think Saeed is talking about the possibility that no team will tour Pakistan for 2 or 3 years and yes that will affect our international cricket. To overcome that we need a plan B which allows us to play home games in places like Dubai, Abu Dhabi and even England. We need international cricket on a regular basis to be competitive.

Waseem Akram

Question: Imran has been a critic of the domestic system for many years saying we need fewer teams and that we should base our structure on AUstralia but when I interviewed Lawson a couple of days ago he disagreed saying Pakistan is a bigger country and needs more teams. What's your take on it?

Wasim Akram: Imran has his opinion but I'm happy with the structure as long as it's consistent. Each new board changed the structure of first class but I think the direction we're taking right now is the right one and that we should keep it for the next 2 or 3 years.


Question: You were always an aggressive captain, you set aggressive fields and didnt mind having an extra slip or a silly point in place. These days guys like Malik and Inzamam have been very negative in there field settings.

Wasim Akram: I think Younis Khan is very positive in his field settings, he takes chances and I think he's only going to get better. He needs to know how to communicate with the boys, communication is very important to the Pakistan team. Time teaches you and Younis is learning very quick.


Question: What did Imran Khan say to you during the 1992 tournament after the heavy defeats in the early games almost knocked you out of the cup, how did he turn it around?

Wasim Akram: We had lost a couple of games but Imran had a belief in himself and in his team, he just said keep on trying and working hard. He said if we won 1 game then we'd start winning more and thats what happened. It's about believing in yourself and in your teams ability.


Question: We've heard stories of the Pakistan dressing room before the 1999 World Cup final and how it was packed with people who were getting in the way of the players and the preparations, how true is that?

Wasim Akram: Yes, there were a lot of political people in the dressing room before the final but they all disappeared after we lost. It was a distraction but thank God the ICC have made a rule to stop anyone from going to the dressing room, however important he is. We did well in that world cup apart from in the final.


Question: The Nehru Cup is one tournament I always used to watch as a child. I remember when you came in to bat against the West Indies and hit that 6 off Viv Richards into the Kolkotta crowd. What was it like playing in front of 100,000 cheering Indians?

Wasim Akram: It's awesome playing in the subcontinent, they love their cricket and unlike England it's very noisy there. I think when England saw the way cricket was enjoyed in India and especially all the noise, they thought that that was how cricket should be played and now you find a lot of noise even in English grounds.


Question: Everyone I've spoken to said that whilst you and Waqar had natural ability the secret to your success was that you were the guys who were still doing extra laps round the pitch when everyone else had gone back in. You were the guys who were putting in extra hours in the nets and with the coaches. Do you think the hard work and commitment has gone from modern Pakistani players?

Wasim Akram: It's about what your aim is, these days players want to be good T20 players and earn lots of money. Our aim was to be the best bowler ever for Pakistan, today the aims and goals of players have changed. The PCB needs to tell their players that if they want to be recognized as great players then they need to perform at test level.


Question: Wasim do you have any message for the your fans out there, we haven't seen a lot of success recently. Have you got a personal message for Pakistan fans around the world?

Wasim Akram: This is the best country, England is where we have always got the best support internationally. These guys here have been watching us play since 1987, thrashing England in England. I want them to keep on supporting Pakistan cricket, the talent is there and with their support we can win against any team in the world.

Waseem Akran & Aqib Javeed

Interview with Shahid Afridi

Interview with Shahid Afridi

Shahid Afridi

Question: What would Shahid Afridi be doing today if he had never become a cricketer?

Shahid Afridi: If I didn't play international cricket, I would have joined the Army.


Question: Did anyone coach your style of batting or is it completely natural?

Shahid Afridi: It's natural, I never had a coach teach me, my style of batting, nor do I believe in coaching at an international level.

Shahid Afridi

Question: Are you surprised that your 37 ball century record hasn’t been broken yet?

Shahid Afridi: Do you want someone to break it?


Question: Do you think you can break it again?

Shahid Afridi: No i don't think I could break it again but then records are there to be broken.


Question: Which other players do you think could break it?

Shahid Afridi: Who ever has a good game on their day could break it.


Question: Who were your cricketing heroes both Pakistani and non-Pakistani?

Shahid Afridi: Imran Khan was my ideal. Other than him I enjoyed watching Mark Waugh, Lara, Sachin & Inzi bhai.


Question: Have you ever been at the crease with a batsman, who was out-hitting, be it Ijaz, Imran Nazir, Razzaq, Azhar? Have you ever been challenged by another batsman to see who can score the fastest.

Shahid Afridi: Never, they don't want to try it.

Shahid Afridi

Question: You've already hit 303 International sixes; tell us about the most memorable sixes you've ever hit?

Shahid Afridi: I can remember about 3 or 4 years back during the VB series I hit some big sixes off McGrath and Lee's bowling, they're two of the best ODI bowlers in the world and I'd never thrashed their bowling before so that was some very memorable six hitting for me.


Question: What bowler have you most enjoyed hitting sixes against?

Shahid Afridi: It was during the same VB series and the bowlers were McGrath and Lee.


Question: What was your best performance with the ball in any form of cricket?

Shahid Afridi: It was under Inzi Bhai's captaincy during the Bangalore test match vs India, my 3 wickets in the 2nd innings broke the Indian middle order and I'll never forget the way we won that match.


Question: What has been your best performance with the bat in any form of cricket?

Shahid Afridi: The 141 runs in scored in Chennai vs India is an innings that I remember vividly to this day.

Shahid Afridi

Question: We've seen you bowl an 85 MPH spin delivery, why don't you bowl as quickie?

Shahid Afridi: Actually I started out as a fast bowler but people told me that I was chucking the ball, so I changed to spin.


Question: Did you ever consider becoming a fast bowler; you have the physique and power of a fast bowler so why did you choose to bowl spin?

Shahid Afridi: No, you see fast bowling is not an easy job. Especially if you are also a batsman as well as being a fast bowler, a fast bowler has to work harder than any other cricketer on his fitness.


Question: Do you still bowl fast in the nets?

Shahid Afridi: No I just stick to my leg spin.


Question: Your faster ball has enabled you to take many wickets. Why have you stopped bowling this type of delivery?

Shahid Afridi: The reason for that is that my faster delivery causes problems for the wicket keepers.


Question: Most cricketers want to make a name for themselves in Test cricket and they give more importance to their Test careers but you are more concerned about ODIs and dont seem to enjoy Test cricket even though you've been very successful when playing Test matches, why is that?

Shahid Afridi: (gets quite passionate about his answer) It's not that I don't like to play Test cricket, that's not the issue. They dont play me. There's no consistency in the way I'm picked to play Test cricket. Sometimes I'm playing and other times I dont even make the squad and it makes me think maybe its better that I just dont play any Test cricket at all. But as of now I really want to play Test cricket, I know that at this moment, the team needs me and I would do anything for the team.

Shahid Afridi

Shahid Afridi

Question: Why did you retire from Test cricket and what made you change your mind and come back?

Shahid Afridi: It was a rash decision on my part; I didn’t think it through properly before making the announcement. My well wishers were very upset with me and they convinced me that I should reverse my decision so I came back.


Question: Do you find that the constant crowd anticipation for you to hit every ball for 6 affects the way you bat? How do you counter act this? Does crowd pressure make you try to hit sixes every ball?

Shahid Afridi: It's very difficult for me because the plans I have in my head before I go out to bat get forgotten, when I go out there it's like hitting a wall of sound and I forget whatever we had discussed minutes earlier in the dressing room.

Question: How do you cope with pressure like that?

Shahid Afridi: (switches to English) I'm not very strong mentally, I'm straight forward.

Question: If in a few years in the future you became captain of Pakistan, what changes would you make?

Shahid Afridi: If I am ever given the captaincy, I will be very tight on my players to keep them in line.


Question: Do you think the Pakistan team of the last few years has been aggressive enough?

Shahid Afridi: Not really, we havent been aggressive enough.


Question: Is there any truth to the rumors that there is tension between you and Malik because on the field you always seem very close and friendly with each other.

Shahid Afridi: We get along just fine. It is sad that some people in the media like to create stories to sell their media, without any real facts to back up their stories.

Question: You're known as "The Beast" because of the way you destroy bowling and attacks and bowlers on the pitch. Do you have any beastly messages or quotes for your huge fan base?

Shahid Afridi: The only thing I would say to my fans is always try to understand and educate yourselves on the reasons why Allah has given you life, do that part first then enjoy the rest of life and Chill out...

Shahid Afridi

Interview with Inzamam-ul-haq

Interview with Inzamam-ul-haq

Inzamam

Cricket: Inzamam-ul-Haq tells Donald McRae he is confident of repeating his success from last winter on his final tour of England.

"If you don't mind," Inzamam-ul-Haq says politely, "I think it is much better if we find a nice place to sit down. Somewhere in the shade where we can just relax." As we amble over to a tranquil spot under a leafy tree, the famously languid and comfortably proportioned Pakistan cricket captain casts a leisurely eye over his team-mates toiling away in the nets on a steamy afternoon.

Inzamam

"They work and we sit and talk nicely," Inzamam murmurs approvingly, as he settles down on a bench with the look of a man sinking into his favorite armchair. "I have done my work for the day," the 36-year-old says of a laid-back fielding session and a spell in the nets, where he spent as much time bowling innocuous spin as he did wielding a bat with the kind of indolent brilliance that has characterized a career spanning 109 Tests at an imposing average of 51.34.

Even at his most low-key and languorous, the brief sight of Inzamam practicing his batting is a rare treat for, with his remarkable eye and fluid technique, he appears to have a ridiculous amount of time to play each ball before swatting it away elegantly into the meshed fence.

Inzamam

"I only do it for a short time, nice and slow," Inzamam says sagely. "When we start the first Test against England [this Thursday at Lord's] I try for another long innings. Today it is more important to prepare quietly."

Out of that quietness, however, emerges an unusually expansive Inzamam, who was such a decisive performer when the two countries met last winter. In Pakistan's convincing 2-0 series victory, Inzamam scored 431 runs in five innings at an average of 107.75. His lowest score was 53 and he hit a century in each innings of the second Test - to equal and then break Javed Miandad's previous Pakistan record of 23 Test centuries.

Inzamam

"This was the sweet moment," he says with almost coltish enthusiasm. "Miandad is a big player and so for me it is wonderful. I would even say it is unreal - but thanks to Allah. To score two centuries in one match is something I had never done before. And each has something special. With the first I come up to Miandad's record and then in the second innings I go past to 24 centuries. I was so happy you would not believe it."

Inzamam has since scored his 25th century, against India. He also led Pakistan to series victories at home against the Indians and away in Sri Lanka. England, meanwhile, are in the midst of an injury-riddled slump. "This summer England has not had such good results," Inzamam agrees, "but Sri Lanka performed very well against them. England struggle because of injuries and they are definitely missing Michael Vaughan. The combination they had for the Ashes is broken. When they had Simon Jones and Vaughan in the side they had some good combinations in batting and bowling."

In an effort to avoid sounding excessively confident, particularly with Andrew Flintoff also absent this week, Inzamam opts for some dutiful diplomacy. "England is still a good side and, at home, they are difficult to beat. And Kevin Pietersen is a very dangerous player. When he is at the crease it is hard to stop him scoring quick runs. I also think they played some good cricket in Pakistan. In all the Tests they were good for maybe four days. It is just on the fifth day they crumble."

Inzamam highlights Islamic unity as a significant force in Pakistan's increased consistency under his captaincy (the Hindu leg-spinner Danish Kaneria is the only exception). "Like every Muslim we pray five times a day and this helps our spirit. If we have a problem we discuss it when we get together to pray."

But Bob Woolmer, as coach, surely also exerts a profound influence. In a similar way to his handling of a South Africa side crammed with born-again Christians in the 1990s, Woolmer brings a light touch to such earnest faith. "Bob has come from the outside, but he is very good for us. My personal opinion is that the relationship between a coach and his team should be relaxed and friendly. This is important, because if a player is feeling uncomfortable, then it will be easy for him to go talk personally to the coach and be open. Bob feels the same, and so the boys are very comfortable."

Inzamam

Inzamam laughs when reminded of Woolmer's revelation that, after he had discovered to his horror that Pakistan were by far the most unfit team he had coached, his burly skipper suggested a new work ethic should only be implemented gradually. "Let's do everything slowly," Inzamam pleaded.

"I don't mean to tell Bob what to do," he says now, "but he takes it well, because he's a very good human being. He understands us and so he does not try to change us in one day. He also makes us think about our diet, even though we all love Pakistani food - especially the curries. We now know that during a series we cannot eat any curry. We have to go for pasta and light food, because if you eat heavy curries it's not so easy to perform."

And yet it is reassuring to hear that Inzamam is not about to resume the misguided diet which almost ruined his career in 2003. "I never do that again," he promises while patting his stomach gently. "Just before the World Cup I work harder than I ever did. I lose a lot of weight - 17 kilograms!" He shudders. "Can you believe it? It was too much. I didn't score any runs without those 17 kilograms. And that's when I got dropped from the Test team. It hurt me so much that I say I'm not willing to play again. But after three months I realize that I'm only 33 and have many years ahead of me. So I decide to come back.

"Then we play Bangladesh in Multan Inzamam's home town and we are in big trouble. Everybody is praying when I get to the crease. The pressure on me is really hot. But I always do quite well when the pressure is big and I play one of my greatest innings. It's not like my 329 against New Zealand, it's only 138, but those runs are maybe the most important of my career."

Inzamam

Beneath the surface of this story, a more tangled pain lurks. For years Inzamam brooded while his weight and apparent lethargy were ridiculed. In 1997, in a match against India in Toronto, he even attacked a spectator who called him a mota aaloo (fat potato). If it has long been a delight to hail Inzi as the perfectly rounded riposte to the grinding professionalism of modern sport, his comic image as the slowest runner between wickets in Test cricket has unsettled a shy man whose talent is as subtle as it is sumptuous. "Those jokes hurt me - especially in the past. It is not easy when people laugh at you. I don't mind positive criticism, but when it is negative and personal it is quite hard. But I feel more relaxed now."

Inzamam has also discovered a kind of serenity in captaincy - even if the task of leading Pakistan is one of the toughest in world cricket.

"It is difficult because we have 150 million critics in Pakistan and whenever we play a series there are maybe five TV channels that cover the cricket. And each channel has five big experts telling us where we are going wrong. I try to ignore them, because I know that if you are winning then you enjoy the captaincy. And that's what happening, thanks to Allah. I get more confidence and happiness leading this team."

Fourteen summers ago, in 1992, at a time when he never even dreamed of captaining his country, Inzamam made his Test debut in England. "It was at Edgbaston and I was very nervous. I was only 22 and now I'm the old man. So it's very special to be back in England because everything start for me here. In between a lot of good things have happened, with some big scores and tremendous matches. I feel it a lot now, because I am sure this will be my last tour of England. I thought about it for two months before we come here. Even when I was playing in the back garden with Ibtisam [his seven-year-old son] I was looking forward to England."

Inzamam, a father of three with a four-year-old daughter and another son aged one, rocks with laughter when asked to relive those sunlit afternoons. Did he have to pretend to be Freddie Flintoff while Ibtisam crafted an imaginary match-winning innings for Pakistan?

"We played lots of matches. He loves batting and I did a lot of bowling. He is very good and the first thing you notice is that he bats left-handed. I bat right-handed but bowl left-handed. So he scores many runs against me."

And what happened when Inzy himself was given a chance at the crease? "I score a few," he grins, "but sometimes he gets me out."

That feat proved to be desperately difficult for England in Pakistan. With the big man in such a jocular mood, and watched by his family on tour, England may be subject to more hefty pain in the coming weeks. The giant shadow of Inzamam should stretch "nice and slow" across the rest of a fading English summer.

Inzamam