January 20, 2006	Friday	Zilhaj 19, 1426

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FAISALABAD, Jan 19: Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer is anticipating a different ball game after the disappointing drawn first Test in Lahore in the second match of the three-Test series against India.

The former England batsman hoped the Faisalabad Test would not be a repeat of the weather-plagued first Test in which batsmen prospered.

“Indeed, the Lahore match was very disappointing since bad light prevailed on and off. And obviously we were disappointed just sitting in the pavilion watching nothing happening.

“And then every time we go out there (Virender) Sehwag just smashed everything on a flat pitch,” the coach said while referring to the Indian opener’s blistering knock of 254.

“It was a depressing Test match in many ways up there in Lahore. But it would be nice to get some sunshine that will make the difference to the pitch here.”

The Lahore Test, which yielded 1089 runs for the loss of only eight wickets, was drastically hit by inferior light conditions with the result that many as 220 out of 450 overs were lost altogether to the fickle weather.

“The first Test was always destined for a tame draw after the amount of time lost. Hopefully, we are praying for a decent game during the five days here and play some hard cricket,” Woolmer stressed.

Commenting on the pitch, the Pakistan coach remained skeptical. “In this part of the world during the winter it’s very difficult to prepare the sort of pitches you really want to because the square is overuse.

“And secondly, the type of weather conditions you get here. Even today although the sun shone, it was a watery kind of sunshine. We need to get the sun beating down so that the pitch itself dries out sufficiently.

“In my opinion it will be a fairly slow pitch which might turn later. I think there is little more in this pitch than it was the case in Lahore.”

Woolmer conceded Sehwag was the biggest cause of concern for Pakistan. “It is certainly a worrying factor for us since the man already averages over 112 against us. At the same time, I don’t think we bowled as well as we might have done.

“We didn’t have any sort of rhythm in our bowling. Obviously, we shall all be sitting down and discussing more details what we can do to him and study the types of deliveries to get rid him of quickly enough,” Woolmer said.