da jogodeouro： Praises Younis Khan’s captaincy
da spicy bet： Cricinfo staff25-Jan-2006
Inzamam could be back for Karachi © Getty Images
Inzamam-ul-Haq has said his sore back has been troubling him for a whilebut is hopeful of playing in the final Test at Karachi, beginning in threedays’ time. On course to his third successive hundred at Faisalabad,Inzamam first retired hurt and then batted with a runner on the secondday. He didn’t take the field for the final two days.”My back has been hurting for quite a while,” he added, “There are threedays left. I’m taking treatment from the doctor and physio and am hopefulthat I can be fit enough for the Test.” His absence had paved the way forYounis Khan to lead the side and Inzamam had a few good things to sayabout the on-field tactics. “I think Younis captained very well,” hecontinued. “He changed the bowlers around and set good fields. But on thiswicket, it was tough to get a well-set batsmen out. We managed fivewickets but Dhoni and Irfan batted well.”Inzamam defended Pakistan’s decision to not declare, saying that theydidn’t have the required safety net. “At lunch we had 58 overs left andthe score was around 237. If we had more than 300, there was a chance ofus declaring. But it was tough to declare on such a track without anyhelp.”He echoed Rahul Dravid’s sentiments with regard to the quality of thepitches, and hinted at the sort of pitch that one might get to see inKarachi. “The previous two series had good pitches, and especially inPakistan we had quick wickets. We were hoping for some help for the fastbowlers. Hopefully in Karachi, where the weather is fine, we will get tosee a good pitch.” He wasn’t too harsh on his bowlers and felt that theyhad managed a better line and length here compared to what they had doneat Lahore.
