Daily Times

Recently appointed head coach as well as chief selector of the Pakistan cricket team, ex-Pakistan batsman Misbah-ul-Haq has said that he wants to build a team that is capable of playing ‘attacking’ cricket, while dominating teams on the way. “I have been saying this forever that there is some confusion in the way we thinking about being defensive and aggressive,” Misbah said after his appointment. “I always believed that your strategy is based on the resources you got. Ideally, you obviously try and wish to have resources that you can just dominate and knock out the opposition. Being a coach, I will try to build a team that plays aggressively and wins easily. But then at certain times you have to assess the strength of the opponent and make your strategy accordingly.”

During his playing days, there was a perception that Misbah’s batting style was like a throwback to the old days, where risk-averse cricket that consumed a lot of deliveries was commonplace. However, he was still one of the most efficient batsmen that Pakistan have had in recent times.

“For example, recently during World Cup England was considered un-matchable with players are playing the pure form of modern cricket,” he continued. “But at the same time New Zealand were the other way around playing with conservative approach from 80s. Despite their batsmen not clicking, they formed a strategy according to their resources and they were in the final with England playing the next level of cricket. So it shows that you have to work around your resources and plan accordingly. My priority as coach to have a team that plays an attacking cricket and dominate and that’s the way forward but at certain times you have to re-look your strategy.”

Misbah also shed some light on who will have the final say when it comes to team selection, between him and the captain. “There has been a practice that final authority on picking the playing XI is with the captain and it will remain the same. The captain who is operating in the field needs to have full confidence in the team. Before reaching a final decision, there will be huge debate and discussion and sometime regardless of the depth in understanding there might be a difference of opinion in 15 or 16 picks or XI but at the end you either get convinced or make other convince and move on,” he said.

Aiding Misbah with the team as bowling coach will be Waqar Younis, and Misbah was all-praise for the fast bowling legend, saying that he could not wait to have someone like him with his expertise on board.