February 2, 2006	Thursday	Muharram 3, 1427

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KARACHI, Feb 1: A delighted Pakistan captain Younis Khan paid tribute to his pace bowlers for their incisive bowling which contributed to India’s four-day defeat in the third and final Test at the National Stadium on Wednesday.

“They were truly outstanding in this game, especially Abdul Razzaq and Mohammad Asif who shared the bulk of wickets to ensure Pakistan victory,” Younis told a post-match media conference after Pakistan won the crucial Test by a record 341 runs and the three-match series 1-0.

Younis, who deputized for regular Pakistan skipper Inzamamul Haq in this Test, felt the difference between the two teams was variety that the home side had.

“Both our teams are similar in look. But we had the edge coming into this game because India fielded three left arm seamers while we had a mixture of variety and pace,” he said.

Younis observed express pace of Shoaib Akhtar supplanted the lateral movement generated by both Razzaq and Asif which proved crucial for Pakistan.

“India’s three-pronged pace attack of Irfan Pathan, Zaheer Khan and R.P. Singh looked similar and once we neutralized them, runs came easily,” he added.

Younis was all praise for his team-mates for fighting it out despite crashing to 39 for six on the first morning.

“Had we been bowled out for around 100 that morning, the result of this Test could have been different,” he emphasized. “Especially the way Kamran Akmal battled through the difficult part of the innings and scored a brilliant century which ultimately played a decisive in role in our victory.”

Younis praised Razzaq for his all-round display and said that the all-rounder has answered his critics in no uncertain manner. “Razzaq was simply outstanding with bat and the ball, in particular.

“I must add here that he had answered his critics who questioned his presence in the team,” the skipper said. Younis also had kind words for the beleaguered former Indian skipper Saurav Ganguly.

“In my view Ganguly must be respected and supported as a player. He batted really well in both innings here and has still a lot to contribute to his team.”

A disconsolate Indian captain Rahul Dravid conceded that his side was comprehensively outplayed in the final Test. “Definitely, Pakistan deserved to win after such a wonderful comeback after that first morning. But we should have bowled much better in the second innings than we did,” he said.

“Both Razzaq and Asif bowled very well in conditions suiting them.” Dravid refused to comment on the individual performances of his team.

“ It’s a team game and I don’t believe in discussing individuals when things go wrong. We firmly believe that every player needs to be supported all along,” he stressed.