November 17, 2006	Friday	Shawwal 24, 1427

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LAHORE, Nov 16: Bob Woolmer, the Pakistan coach, has warned his team to expect a West Indies backlash when the second cricket Test starts in Multan from Sunday.

Talking to reporters during a practice session at the National Cricket Academy here on Thursday, Woolmer said that West Indies were capable of bouncing back in the three-match series despite suffering a heavy defeat in the opening Test at the Gaddafi Stadium two days ago.

"West Indies are a good side and they can still make a comeback in the series. The fact that Pakistan won comprehensively makes no difference because we have to start from scratch in Multan," the coach stressed.

Woolmer said that Pakistan have to keep the momentum going for the rest of the series. "We cannot afford to get complacent. This is a dangerous notion since I never believe in taking things for granted. The Lahore win was heartening because it came after the lads went through a tough three-month period," he observed.

He reasoned that the one-day cricket factor contributed to West Indies' defeat. "It's always hard for teams to change gears. The West Indians have not played Test cricket since July. They came to Pakistan after playing in the triangular tournament (in Malaysia) and the ICC Champions Trophy in India. I'm sure they will give us a hard time in the coming games," he pointed out.

Woolmer commended the performance of Umar Gul and Shahid Nazir, who claimed 15 wickets between them in the first Test, but added that leg-spinner Danish Kaneria was unlucky not to pick up more than three wickets.

"Danish is a very fine bowler. He bowled extremely well but luck deserted him on a number of occasions. I expect him to play a leading role in the remaining matches because he is a match-winner," he further said. "Umar Gul and Shahid Nazir were superb and deserved to be patted on their backs for an outstanding job."

Meanwhile, Woolmer hit back at Sarfraz Nawaz's claims in a local daily that he was involved in match-fixing scandal. "Only a person like Sarfraz can make such ridiculous remarks. There is no truth whatsoever in what he has written about me in his column.

"I would like to remind him that Gary Kirsten (ex-South African opener) has not said anything of that kind in his book because I have read it myself," he maintained.

AP adds: Pakistan cricket coach Bob Woolmer knows only too well how dangerous West Indies captain Brian Lara can be with the bat.

“I was the coach at Warwickshire (1994) when he scored 501 not out and scored eight centuries in a row,” Woolmer said Thursday.

Lara's fluent 122, his 33rd test century, was not enough to rescue the West Indies from a nine-wicket defeat Tuesday in the first test of the three-match series against Pakistan.

“I know what Mr. Lara can do. He is my favorite player and probably the best batsman over the last decade,” Woolmer said.

Lara is the world's leading test scorer with 11,688 runs from 129 test matches, and is third behind Indian batsmen Sachin Tendulkar (35) and Sunil Gavaskar (34) in scoring centuries.

“When he scored 501, he was bowled first ball and it was a no-ball,” Woolmer said of Lara's feat for Warwickshire. “Then he got dropped on 23 by the wicketkeeper who said 'I suppose he'll score a hundred' and he got 500.”

Lara got a life on 48 in the first test when Mohammad Hafeez failed to hold onto a sharp one-handed catch at point before Lara went on to score his century.

“So when I see him dropped I don't like it,” Woolmer said.

Woolmer, who took over as coach of Pakistan in 2004, was impressed with the talent Pakistan has in medium fast bowling.

“If we ask 30 bowlers from all the different teams in Pakistan to come down, we probably find two more who can do the similar job,” Woolmer said.

“I think Pakistan has an abundance of riches in medium fast bowling and certainly conditions in Punjab are very good,” he said.