LAHORE: As one of only five Pakistan players in the squad for the Independence Cup to have experienced the thrill of playing in front of a home crowd, Shoaib Malik knows he has a big responsibility upon his shoulders.

And the former Pakistan captain has taken it upon himself to guide the young squad when they take on the World XI side in the three-match Twenty20 series starting from Tuesday at the Gaddafi Stadium.

“Playing before a home crowd is a feeling that can’t be described in words,” Malik told reporters on Sunday. “The young players are gunning to go out and perform but as a senior member of the side I feel it’s my responsibility to help them face up to the pressure of performing at home.”

Malik, captain Sarfraz Ahmed, Sohail Khan, Imad Wasim and Ahmed Shehzad are the only members in Pakistan’s 16-strong squad who have played at home.

“The World XI is a strong, well-built unit but our confidence is high,” Malik added. “Many people questioned the quality of cricketers that would feature for World XI but the Pakistan Cricket Board has done a great job.”

Malik was optimistic that the players would not disappoint what is expected to be a raucous home crowd as Pakistan celebrates the return of international cricket.

“Our youngsters have done well recently so we’re looking forward to this and it is a good chance for them to prove their mettle,” he said. “Winning or losing is part and parcel of the game but we want to give our home crowd good competitive cricket.”

He added that he hopes to continue representing the country as long as he is performing while he informed his Indian tennis star wife Sania Mirza wouldn’t be able to attend the matches due to her busy schedule.

Published in Dawn, September 11th, 2017