Our Previous Record In Australia Won't Put Us Under Pressure : Misbah-ul-Haq

Pakistan's head coach and chief selector Misbah-ul-Haq said that our previous record in Australia would not put us under pressure

ISLAMABAD, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th Nov, 2019 ) :Pakistan's head coach and chief selector Misbah-ul-Haq said that our previous record in Australia would not put us under pressure.

"If anything, it'll be an opportunity and motivation to win because whatever we couldn't achieve in the past, we can do now and it's time to correct history," he added.

"It's a young team and it means business. This team wants to take the challenge. We want to give our best, play good cricket and think about winning." "We have some positives to take from the last tour, too. We came close winning the Brisbane Test (in 2016) but dropped catches and the last-wicket partnership in the first innings became the difference between losing and winning. I'm hopeful we'll do better this time," Misbah-ul-Haq said in an interview with cricket.com.au.

"No doubt Steve Smith is a top player in Test cricket, especially after his performance in the Ashes and the way he played against us in the T20s," Misbah said. "He's a tough opponent. He has less weak areas where you can bowl and get him out, he's an immensely important player for Australia and the backbone of their batting.

"For us, it'll be important to get his wicket early in the innings because once he's set, he can play the sort of innings that can take you out of the match," Misbah said.

"We've got to be consistent, bowl to him in good areas and make him play early in the innings.

"If you bowl to him at the fourth-stump line and make him play from there, there can be a chance for a nick," Misbah said.

"We know Yasir hasn't done well in these conditions, but three years is a long time. He now has experience of playing in Australia," Misbah said.

"He's coming on this tour on the back of some good performances in first-class cricket, where he's bowled long spells. He's worked a lot on his bowling, keeping the conditions in mind. We'll make the final game plan and see how effective Yasir is in it.

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Misbah said "There is a world of difference between Babar of 2016 and Babar now, he's now a matured and experienced player.

"In 2016, he was very new and didn't have much experience in Test cricket. Also, he was batting at number three. Now he's batting in the middle-order and has the experience of three (more) years on his side.

"He did well in South Africa and batted beautifully against fast bowling, there is improvement in his batting," Misbah said.

"He plays good shots on the back foot, which will be handy in these conditions. He's scored runs in T20s as well as in the tour match so he'll be coming into the series on the back of some good form. He's our key player," Misbah said.

"I had a meeting with the regional coaches (and) there was a unanimous opinion that Imran Khan has been bowling really well," said Misbah.

"In the past, he used to struggle with his comeback spells and he used to drop pace. He's worked really hard on his strength (and) is much fitter than before." "The best thing about Naseem Shah is the control he has on his bowling," said Misbah. "He has a very good bowling action and knows which deliveries to bowl. He can bowl with a very good control.

"He knows his stuff and bowled really well in the first-class matches he played this season. He's bowled well here too and is the standout bowler for us. The way he's been bowling, he can be a match-winner for us," Misbah said.

Misbah said there's an opportunity for his young attack to surpass the achievements of those legends and win a series on Australian soil.

"In these conditions, you've got to have good bowling options," he said. "You've got to have a bowling attack that can give you 20 wickets.

"Our bowlers are in form and in good rhythm (and) we're hopeful that we'll give a tough time to Australia."