LAHORE: While expressing relief that his team are not being tagged as favourites keeping extra pressure off his players in the World Cup, Pakistan team head coach Waqar Younis on Saturday said the workload would be divided among his pace bowlers to keep them fully fit during the extravaganza.

“I am happy we are not being considered as favourites in the World Cup because it creates extra pressure on the boys to deliver. Last time [in 2011], we were not favourites and we played excellent cricket and made the semi-finals,” Waqar said, while talking to reporters at the Gaddafi Stadium here on Saturday.

While acknowledging unity and harmony in a group is the master key to all successes, the head coach underlined keeping the players fit during the next couple of months would be equally challenging for him.

“Yes, maintaining full fitness is a big challenge but unity is most important for any team as a group cannot achieve anything without unity,” he underlined.

“Some of our fast bowlers have faced injury issues during the last three months with Junaid Khan being the latest on the list. But I think it is part of the game, and we have to manage it properly.

“We will look to divide workload among our bowlers to keep all of them fresh during the next two and a half months; this technique [of dividing the workload] will also help us play in the World Cup with the best possible combination,” the 87-Test veteran stated.

In the past, Junaid and Wahab Riaz suffered injuries resulting in setback for Pakistan team. However, the scenario brought to the fore two pacers — Rahat Ali and Mohammad Irfan — who did well in the last series in the UAE.

Coach says workload to be divided among pacers to keep them fit

“Though it may seem we are going [into the World Cup] with several injuries, I don’t think it is too many for which people are fearing,” Waqar said.

He said Pakistan had high hopes from their players, noting the likes of Irfan, Sohaib Maqsood and Umar Akmal plus seniors like Younis Khan and Mohammad Hafeez all had the potential to change the match in their favour.

While refusing to make any clear prediction about possible winners of the World Cup at this stage, Waqar however said “obviously, the teams who used to play on bouncy tracks like Australia, South Africa and New Zealand are more favourites”.

“The team’s four-day training camp was organised here in Lahore just to bring the players together, otherwise, the weather here is not similar to what we will find in Australia and New Zealand,” the coach added.

Commenting on captain Misbah-ul-Haq and Shahid Afridi — the two veterans who have already announced to retire from ODIs after the World Cup — Waqar hoped the two key players would try to produce their very best for Pakistan to win the World Cup.

“As both are leaving cricket after playing for so many years, they must have something in their banks; hopefully they utilise that stock for the team to make their exit [from ODIs] memorable,” he said.

“I have high hopes from both Misbah and Afridi. During the last four days [at the training camp] I found their body language very positive, indicating both the experienced campaigners want to end their ODI career on a high.”

To a question, the head coach said he would not disclose how many fast bowlers Pakistan would field during the World Cup, adding, such decisions could be taken to maintain team balance, according to the match and playing conditions.

About the bio-mechanics test of Hafeez’s bowling action, expected in Brisbane, Australia, Waqar said he had asked the PCB to get the off-spinner cleared before Pakistan’s crunch World Cup opener against India (Feb 15).

Waqar said though some of our people were sceptical about his team’s expected show in their first match against India — against whom Pakistan never won in a World Cup match — he was taking it all in a positive way. “Win against India in the opener will give a big boost to our morale,” he said.

In cricket, stressed Waqar, a team had to strike form at the right time irrespective of the strength of the opposition in consideration. In this regard, the 262-ODI veteran recalled, how lowly Kenya stunned Sri Lanka in the 2003 World Cup and how pushovers Zimbabwe shocked mighty Australia in the 2007 World T20.

An all-time pace bowling legend, Waqar to a query admitted that World Cup had not been kind for him as he missed the 1992 edition, but he was happy man because Pakistan had won it. Later, he recalled, he remained with the Pakistan team in different roles — as player in 1996, 1999 and 2003 and as coach in 2011 — but Pakistan could not win any title.

The Pakistan team is scheduled to leave on Tuesday for New Zealand, where they will play a two-match ODI series before starting their World Cup campaign.

Published in Dawn January 18th , 2015

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