'Pakistan cricket will stage a comeback', says Inzamam

Karachi [Pakistan], Feb. 5 (ANI):Inzamam-ul-Haq, chief selector of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), firmly believes that the country' cricket, which is passing through a difficult phase at present, will once again rise at the world stage. Pakistan has been facing a lot of criticism following its recent whitewash in the Test series against New Zealand and Australia before going down 1-4 in the five-match ODI series. "Yes, currently we are passing through a difficult phase but Pakistan cricket will stage a comeback," the Dawn quoted Inzamam as saying at a function in Lahore. "From the sub-continent, Pakistan are the only team who [over the years] have won maximum number of matches away from home. During my playing days, wherever I went - Australia, West Indies, New Zealand - fans rated Pakistan high in world cricket," he added. When asked if he could have proved himself better as national team head coach, instead of chief selector, Inzamam, a member of the 1992 World Cup-winning team, said that though he had coached Afghanistan's national team which gave him valuable experience, the job of team selection was also important. Defending the team management's approach of asking for specific replacements during the tour instead of calling up players of higher profile, he said, "Everyone knows when I was captain [in a contest away from home] I always had my say in picking the team as I believe that a captain should have more say in team selection. While leading his charges away from home he is in a better position to assess the situation." The 42-year-old also insisted that the team should learn from the mistakes they committed in New Zealand and Australia and should go on with a positive mindset to West Indies. "Our team's grey area is [batsmen's] strike-rates which are comparatively on the lower side. Therefore, from now onwards I will not only check how many runs a batsman has scored [in domestic circuit] but also his strike-rate which has become very significant in modern cricket, particularly ODI format," the chief selector underlined. Pakistan will travel to West Indies for two T20s, three ODIs and three Tests beginning March 31 at Queen's Park Oval in Port of Spain. (ANI)