SYDNEY, Oct 29: Former Pakistan captain and fast bowling icon Waqar Younis has painted a bleak picture of Australia’s cricketing future, predicting further hardship for Ricky Ponting’s team as they desperately attempt to hang on to their world champion status.

As India ended the opening day of the third Test against Australia in Delhi at a comfortable 296 for three, Waqar believes the tourists are on slide and may be in a freefall for years. The high-quality swing bowler says lack of a quality spinner has brought Australia back to the pack.

“This is first time the Australians have got a little exposed with no Glenn McGrath, no Shane Warne and [not] playing in your own country with bouncy tracks,” Waqar, who took 373 wickets in 87 Tests, said at launch of ICC women’s World Cup in Sydney on Wednesday.

“You don’t really have any spinners and that’s the biggest drawback at the moment for the Australians. I don’t really see anyone in the lineup who’s going to do really good as a spinner.

“We’re used to Warne coming up and taking six, seven, eight wickets. That’s not going to happen (and) it’s not going to happen in near future so Ponting’s got to think differently now,” the former paceman, who represented Pakistan in 262 One-day Internationals to capture 416 wickets, added.

Asked if he thought Australian cricket was heading for a sustained down period, the master of reverse swing said: “It looks like it.”

He also has concerns over Pakistan’s cricketing future in the wake of coach Geoff Lawson’s sacking and paucity of international cricket being played in the country due to political unrest.

He believes Lawson was hard done by but the ending was inevitable.

“He [Lawson] hasn’t really done that badly if you look at it. He may have lost few games

but he didn’t really have enough time to prove himself. When

we change the chairman

entire things changes and that’s exactly what happened.”

—Agencies