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| November 25, 2005 | Friday | Shawwal 22, 1426 |
Inzamam made the difference, says Vaughan
FAISALABAD, Nov 24: England captain Michael Vaughan heaped praise on his Pakistan counterpart Inzamamul Haq after the second Test ended in a draw on Thursday.
Inzamam, whose lowest score so far in the series was 53 in the first innings of the opening Test in Multan, was named Man-of-the-Match after hitting two centuries in the same Test for the first time in his career.
“Inzamam played two fantastic knocks and he was the difference between the two sides,” Vaughan told the after-match presentation ceremony.
Vaughan was pleased to escape with a draw.
“It’s always good to go to the last day of a Test with all three results still possible,” he said. “We had to fight hard today but full credit to both teams.
“We really fought on that first day when we lost the toss. Pakistan put us under a lot of pressure by getting a decent score and we batted really well to get close to them.
“We are happy to get out of it (with a draw). We’re still 1-0 down going to the last Test in Lahore but we’ll look to play a similar game and if we get a chance to win we’ll try to take it there.
“The cricket is tough for us out here but we are enjoying our time and hopefully in Lahore there will be one result, an England win, and it will be 1-1.”
Inzamam was delighted after his ton in the second innings broke Javed Miandad’s Pakistan record of 23 Test centuries.
“This was a big test match for me because I broke Javed’s record,” he said.
“I am also very happy because the boys are playing really well. Sometimes we get into difficult positions but the team are very determined and they always fight back.”
Inzamam praised express fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar, who took five wickets on a flat pitch here.
“In both Tests so far Shoaib has bowled really well,” said Inzamam. “He has worked really hard and has given more than 100 percent.”
Inzamam said Pakistan would not use negative tactics in Lahore next week to win the three-match series.
“It is a nice feeling to be one up with no possibility of us losing the series. But we have no intention of playing for a draw,” he said.
“We will continue to play positive cricket and try to win the final Test.”
Weather and bad light could play a part in deciding the outcome of that Test, with a 10.00am start and 5.00pm close. Some 75 overs were lost in the second Test due to bad light on all five days.
“I don’t know what the situation is in Lahore but the weather conditions will definitely have a big role to play in that match,” said Inzamam.—Reuters
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