When the current academic year commences, children in government-aided schools in and around Delhi will study a rather special subject – the life and times of Sachin Tendulkar. The new textbooks for those in the 10-12 age group include an interview with Tendulkar, in which he talks about his own childhood and what it takes to be a special player.Krishna Kumar, an education official, said that the move to include a first-person account of Tendulkar’s life was part of an effort to make education “a more pleasurable experience”. “Sachin is an icon in India and kids draw inspiration from him,” he said. “So we thought that having a chapter on him will interest kids, and at the same time make them understand that dedication and determination make a successful person.”By all accounts, the kids think it’s all right. “I read the interview the day I got the book,” said Nikhil Sharma, who is only 10. “I learnt many things about his schooldays. I always wanted to know the things Sachin did as a kid, and the chapter is really interesting.”In the interview, Tendulkar, who was a cricketing prodigy long before he was out of short pants, describes himself as a mediocre boy and an average student. He also says that he was very naughty, always wanting to “escape to the playground”.The “mediocre boy” has already rewritten one-day cricket’s batting records, and is now just one behind Sunil Gavaskar’s tally of 34 Test centuries. According to him, “strong determination, continuous practice, good understanding of the game, constant improvement of one’s abilities and courage to strike the ball with conviction” are central to his success. Something tells you that this is one lesson that will hold the kids enthralled, rather than reading comics under the desk.
Madisons from Northamptonshire go for a hat-trick of titles as the ECB’s Indoor Six-a-Side Club Championships reaches the National Finals stage later this month.The winners in 2000 and 2002 take on Canterbury in the semi-finals at MCC’s Indoor School at Lord’s on March 16.The other semi features Sudbrook from Wales, beaten semi-finalists in both 2000 and 2001, and Lancashire side Walkden – making their first appearance at Lord’s having been beaten regional finalists in both the same years.The National Final follows the same afternoon, with presentations and a reception in the Long Room.
After returning from a strenuous tour of England where the Pakistan team drew the short Test series but lost the NatWest final to Australia, some of the boys are enjoying a rare spree of rest and recreation. The 1st week of August will mark the start of a training camp to prepare the team for the Asian Test Championship followed by a 3-Test cum ODI home series against the visiting Black Caps.A 25-man ‘probables’ squad is to be announced at any time. I am sure the experts in the PCB know fully well the shortcomings of the team and would try to eradicate them during the forthcoming camp. The two most conspicuous weaknesses that often become instrumental in recent debacles are poor standards of physical fitness and fielding. The third, possibly the most important, needing immediate attention is not being mentally tough and the lack of a killer instinct.A horrible 9 wickets defeat at the hands of Australia in the NatWest final was the anti-climax of their superb performance in the earlier part of the tournament. While the team lacked any sign of a killer instinct both in batting and bowling, the Aussies proved to be a thoroughly professional outfit. They had planned to fight the last battle with meticulous care and executed their plan brilliantly.This was certainly not the first occasion the Pakistan team having emerged victorious in the earlier encounters flopped when it came to the all-important finish. The failure to conquer the peak seems to have become a psychological barrier for the team. There is a general belief that teams from these parts leave too much to fate. Though the part played by ‘lady luck’ in victories and defeats cannot be denied, it does not mean that the players should not apply themselves correctly and put in their best. Luck has its own mood and should better be left at that.Scanning the recent past, one finds that there have been at least three top tournaments in which Pakistan have credibly won the earlier matches but crumbled in the finals, letting the top honours slip away. World Cup 99 was the most important event where Pakistan’s defeat in the finals deprived the country of sharing the signal honour of winning the world cup twice with the West Indies.This was followed by the loss of the ARY Gold Cup at Sharjah and then the NatWest Trophy in England. While in World Cup 99, Pakistan did lose a few matches leading up to the final, it had a clean sweep in the ARY Gold Cup. In the NatWest Series, it marched alongside Australia gaining equal points to reach the final.Discussing the three events in a little more detail, one finds in the World Cup 99, Pakistan emerged with a sparkling success in its pool by winning four out of five matches. It defeated the West Indies by 27 runs, Scotland by 94 runs, Australia by 10 runs and New Zealand by 62 runs. In the 5th Pool match, however, it suffered a shocking defeat at the hands of minnows Bangladesh by 62 runs, a debacle that continues to haunt cricket lovers in Pakistan till today.Jumping into the Super-Six Stage, Pakistan lost two of the three matches. It defeated Zimbabwe by 148 runs but lost to South Africa by 3 wickets and India by 47 runs. By inflicting a glorious 9 wickets defeat on New Zealand in the semi final, Pakistan landed into the finals of the prestigious event.Though Australia and South Africa were the hot favourites, Pakistan made it to the final leaving South Africa behind. Reaching the final of the World Cup for the second time was a great achievement. This was perhaps the juncture where the team was required to bring into play the best of its skill together with the full weight of its physical as well as mental strength. It failed to do so. Overpowered by the ghost of Australia’s super-strength, Pakistan’s batting line crumbled for a paltry 132, a total too small for the bowlers to defend. The bowling arsenal of which Pakistan was always proud, thus failed to play its magic. Pakistan lost the coveted honour by 8 wickets. It was a clear case of breaking down under pressure.In the final of ARY Gold Cup at Sharjah, Pakistan suffered a 77 runs defeat at the hands of Sri Lanka. With full domination over the tournament Pakistan had reached the final undefeated. Surprisingly, the fact that Pakistan had defeated Sri Lanka twice in the league matches also failed to act as a morale booster. Pakistan obviously lost the battle of nerves.Coming back to the NatWest Series, Pakistan was absolutely at par with Australia before start of the final. Both the teams had defeated England thrice, lost once to each other and secured equal points. In the earlier encounter in which Pakistan defeated Australia, the team was able to pile up a total of 291 runs.As for bowling, the one-man demolition squad of Waqar Younis (6 for 59) devastated the Aussies for 254 runs, thus hoisting a 36 runs victory for Pakistan.With such performances in the league matches, what could be the reasons for Pakistan to lay down arms in the final without putting up a fight? The team was out for a petty 152 runs in 42.3 overs. Not being able to play the full quota of 50 overs in such a crucial match was perhaps the worst example of casual and careless batting.Look at master-batsman Saeed Anwar (highest scorer with 27) unnecessarily lifting a ball to mid-off and getting caught on a poor shot. And then the 5-star bowling squad led by superstars Waqar Younis and Saqlain Mushtaq completely failing to claim a wicket. The only wicket that Australia lost was on a run-out. Pakistan suffered a humiliating defeat by 9 wickets.What does such a repeat of debacle in a final indicate? The team is not deficient of talent or prowess in batting or bowling. Fielding is poor but it only makes a marginal difference. Though it needs definite improvement, the weakness did not prevent the team from reaching the finals. By my understanding of the game, the reasons are psychological. The team lacks mental strength to fight and win the last battle. Overpowered by reputations of its opponents, it succumbs to pressure. It is shy of grabbing a target, which happens to be close but looks too far.I would advise the PCB to start some psychological training in the National Cricket Academy to handle such problems. By doing so, we will not only build up the mental strength but also save many talented players from extinction. For example, there is nothing wrong with players like Shahid Afridi except for temperament and lack of self-control. Once treated by a psychologist they can turn into gems for the future.
Things aren’t anywhere near as bleak as they were a couple of months ago, but this season is still set to be a brutal one for West Ham United.
Nuno Espírito Santo has got his team playing much better football than they were under the previous regime, and has lost just one of his last seven games in charge.
However, the East Londoners still sit in the Premier League relegation zone, three points adrift of 17th and in need of a better second half to the season.
Fortunately, if reports are to be believed, West Ham are looking to strengthen the team next month and have even been linked with someone who has shades of Declan Rice to them.
West Ham target Rice-esque star
With their Premier League survival far from guaranteed, it’s not been surprising to see West Ham linked with a host of talented players in recent weeks.
Transfer Focus
Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.
For example, Norwich City’s American striker Josh Sargent has been touted for a move to the London Stadium, as has former Brentford star and England international Ivan Toney.
However, as talented as the two strikers are, and as much of an impact as they could have on the East Londoners, they couldn’t really be described as Rice-esque, unlike Charlie Cresswell.
Yes, according to a recent report from Hammers News, West Ham have reignited their intense interest in Charlie Cresswell.
In fact, the report has revealed that the club are so worried about their defence, that talks are already expected to take place ahead of the window opening next month.
The report does not mention how much the Toulouse centre-back might cost, but reports from earlier this year claimed that the French side wanted in excess of £18m to sell.
It could be a complicated transfer to get over the line, but given Cresswell’s ability and potential, it’s one West Ham should pursue, especially as there are shades of Rice to his game.
How Cresswell compares to Rice
Now, the first thing to make clear is that while there are similarities between the two, Cresswell is not as good a player as Rice, at least not at the moment.
It would be absurd to suggest otherwise, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t shades of the former West Ham star in the defender’s game, such as his temperament.
During his time in East London, the former Irons star was a model professional and even before he was handed the armband, a genuine leader in the team, someone who never appeared intimidated.
Fortunately, the same can be said about the Toulouse star, and in fact has, with respected analyst Ben Mattinson describing the 23-year-old as a “proper leader at the back” during his performances for England’s U-21s, who he helped win the European Championships this summer.
This ability to stand out at club and international level – albeit in the youth side – is another key similarity the former Leeds United gem shares with the now Arsenal star.
As is the fact that he’s able to combine his temperament off the ball with an ability and desire to fully commit to tackles, blocks, interceptions, and other less glamorous aspects of the game.
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This is also reflected in his underlying numbers.
Cresswell’s Scout Report
Statistics
Per 90
Percentile
Goals
0.18
Top 1%
Goals + Assists
0.24
Top 1%
npxG: Non-Penalty xG
0.12
Top 1%
Shots on Target
0.52
Top 1%
Aerials Won
3.73
Top 4%
Shots Blocked
1.12
Top 7%
Clearances
7.12
Top 11%
Assists
0.06
Top 14%
Goal-Creating Actions
0.15
Top 16%
Blocks
1.49
Top 20%
All Stats via FBref
According to FBref, he ranks in the top 7% of centre-backs in Europe’s top five leagues for shots blocked, the top 11% for clearances and the top 20% for blocks overall, all per 90.
Finally, the Preston-born monster has also shown an ability to help out in attacking situations, already scoring three goals and providing one assist in 16 league appearances this season.
Ultimately, while he might not be on Rice’s level at the moment, Cresswell certainly shares some of his characteristics.
Therefore, West Ham should be doing all they can to sign him next month.
West Ham star was their best signing since Bowen, now he's "shambolic"
It’s been a roller-coaster of a season for the West Ham star, who once looked as good a signing as Bowen.
Hamilton Masakadza fired Zimbabwe off to a rapid start, held the middle order together and remained unbeaten till the last over of the innings. A few hours later he was named Man of the Match and Man of the Series having played a big part in his team coming from behind to level the T20 series against Bangladesh 2-2.Masakadza’s unbeaten 93 in Khulna on Friday sealed a hat-trick – the top three scores for Zimbabwe in T20s belong to him. He also holds the record for most runs in a bilateral T20I series, and in the second game became the first from his country to complete 3,000 runs in Twenty20 cricket. Zimbabwe will hope his form continues with the World T20 coming up in just over a month.Masakadza needed only 58 balls to almost score a T20 century thanks to five sixes and eight fours, most of which came on the leg side. But there was beauty in his brutality as well.He used singles to feed an 80-run partnership with Richmond Mutumbami, but let the big-hitting Malcolm Waller take most of the strike during their 61-run third-wicket stand. Then when he saw Elton Chigumbura miss a few, Masakadza took the lead in their unbroken 31-run fifth-wicket stand to power Zimbabwe to 180 for 4.”I thought [my innings] went almost exactly like I wanted it to go,” Masakadza said. “We started off playing quite a few shots in the Powerplay. Then, just tried to support the guys in the middle and play some more big shots in the death overs.”Masakadza’s regret was more about failing to get a bigger total for Zimbabwe than missing out on a hundred. “I think I didn’t get as many as I would have liked to in the end overs. I didn’t clear the ropes as much as I wanted to. Other than that it set up the team quite brilliantly. I was more disappointed at not getting 190-odd. We were in a good position to get to the score.”In the first two T20s, Zimbabwe made good starts with the bat but their middle order gave it away at crucial stages. That shortcoming was addressed in the third T20 with Waller playing finisher. Zimbabwe had laid the foundation today as well and a set batsman was able to make sure they got to a formidable total.Masakadza said all the team needed to win was the middle order to take advantage of a fast start, and their self-belief had shot up after winning the third T20.”We were always confident, especially the way we played in the first game. We lost after posting 160 on the board but I thought the way the batsmen had gone, especially to start with, we just needed the middle order to click. We knew we could get over the line.”The momentum definitely helped after the third game. Obviously the guys got more confident with what they were doing. They had a little bit more belief after getting the first victory.”Masakadza said the 2-2 result would go a long way in helping the side overcome their 2-0 loss to Afghanistan earlier this month.”I thought the guys showed a lot of character to come back from 2-0 down. It is a big positive for us. We needed to put what happened against Afghanistan behind us. I think the guys showed good will power to make this comeback. It was very good for the team.”
Eight Ranji players belonging to Bihar Players Association (BPA) protested in front of the Indian board’s office demanding that Bihar be allowed to take part in the domestic cricket season.The cricketers sat on a hunger strike at the BCCI headquarters where its working committee meeting was on, but were taken away by the police.”We have met BCCI chief Sharad Pawar twice. He assured us that the matter will be resolved in a month’s time but nothing has happened,” said Mrityunjai Tiwari, BPA president. Sunil Kumar, Dheeraj Kumar, Raju Vals and Nikhil Ranjan were among others who took part in the protest.The Bihar Cricket Association (BCA) became defunct in 2000, when the previous BCCI regime under Jagmohan Dalmiya granted affiliation to Jharkand, a new state carved out of Bihar.The present regime under Sharad Pawar took the decision of restoring the affiliation to the BCA. But the implementation of the decision was subject to approval by the Jharkhand High Court where the JCSA has filed a suit on the matter. “The matter is in the court but what is our fault,” Tiwary said. “All we want is to play cricket.”
The three teams taking part in the DLF Cup will be hoping that historydoesn’t repeat itself. The last time they played each other in athree-cornered contest, way back in 1991-92, Australia went on to beatIndia in the World Series final. Yet, none of the teams went on to makemuch of an impression at the World Cup that followed, shunted out of thesemi-final places by the likes of New Zealand and the new boys, SouthAfrica.Some sections of the Australian media are already querying the value ofthis tournament. The spectre of injuries, with the Ashes just two monthsaway, and skepticism over the BCCI’s plans to promote the game innon-traditional centres had much to do with that. India and West Indieswill, however, see it as a tremendous opportunity to test themselvesagainst the very best. And with the exception of the rested AdamGilchrist, Australia have arrived here with as strong a team as they couldhope to field.Rustiness could well play a part. India and West Indies last played inearly July, and their one-day series – won 4-1 by the rejuvenatedCaribbean outfit – was as far back as late May, while Australia last gottheir flannels dirty on their tour of Bangladesh in April.Shortly before that, they had suffered the humiliation of being unable todefend 434 against South Africa, an eventuality that would have beenalmost unthinkable had a certain GD McGrath been in the line-up. Australiaremain a formidable side without him, but even at the ripe old age of 36,he’s the X-factor that can never be discounted. McGrath’s presence willalso give Brett Lee even greater freedom to let rip, and it will also beinteresting to see how the lanky Stuart Clark – impressive in his role asMcGrath’s replacement – goes against the shot-happy Indians, both East andWest.The batting is intimidating on paper, with the likes of Ricky Ponting andAndrew Symonds capable of turning a match in the space of a few overs. Andfor Michael Clarke, who launched his Test career so memorably againstIndia two years ago, it’s another chance to rediscover the sort of formthat made him one of the game’s most exciting young talents.India also have a couple of young ‘uns on the road to redemption. Aftersome stellar displays with both bat and ball last season, the wheels cameoff for Irfan Pathan in the West Indies. So too Suresh Raina, who caughtthe eye with some superb knocks before it all went awry in the Caribbean.India will be hamstrung in the initial exchanges by the illness that hasruled Yuvraj Singh out of at least one game. Yuvraj was in resplendentform last season, going from mercurial talent to genuinely consistentmatchwinner with some sublime efforts in pressure situations.His absence will be offset by the return of Sachin Tendulkar, the mostsuccessful batsman in the history of the white-ball game. If he andVirender Sehwag can revive the chemistry at the top of the order, evenAustralia’s famed bowling line-up could be in for a struggle. Tendulkarmay also play his part with the ball, as India explore their options aheadof the Champions Trophy on home soil. If Brett Lee’s assessment that theball will swing is correct, then India are likely to have Munaf Patel or SSreesanth sharing the new ball with Pathan, leaving the newly consistentAjit Agarkar to operate as first change.With so many part-time slow bowling options, Ramesh Powar may struggle toget a game in tandem with Harbhajan Singh, except in the unlikely event ofLes Burdett, the Adelaide curator, preparing a square turner.For a team that has always prided itself on its array of fast-bowlingtalent, West Indies also have one of the one-day game’s better slowbowlers in Chris Gayle, whose height and accuracy makes him so hard to getaway. Gayle though will be a second line of attack, with Fidel Edwards andJerome Taylor expected to provide shock value with the new ball. IanBradshaw and Corey Collymore form a steady support cast.With the last hurrah not far away, Brian Lara will also be keen to imposehimself with the bat. Gayle’s destructive capabilities in that regard areperfectly complemented by the maturity with which Ramnaresh Sarwan andShivnarine Chanderpaul bat these days. Their game-breaker, though, couldbe the ebullient Dwayne Bravo, whose allround skills and composure insweaty-palm moments had much to do with the pasting that India got in theCaribbean.If the rankings are any guide, it should be a tussle between Australia andIndia, with West Indies providing the nuisance value. Yet, as Bravo andhis mates showed not so long ago, rankings don’t count for much when youtap into the inspiration that can elevate your skills to a higher plane.And what better way to ambush Australia than to catch them cold, comingstraight out of a hibernation that would put a hedgehog to shame.
England have named an unchanged squad for the second Test against Australia, starting on Thursday at Edgbaston. Despite their comprehensive 239-run defeat at Lord’s the selectors have resisted the urge to tinker with the 12-man squad, instead sticking with the policy of continuity which has served the team well over the past two years. Chris Tremlett, the Hampshire seamer, retains his place in the squad but is again likely to be the paceman to miss out on the final XI.Despite all the pre-match optimism England were soundly beaten at Lord’s, with only Steve Harmison and Kevin Pietersen performing to their best. There had been speculation that Paul Collingwood, the Durham allrounder, would be drafted into the squad following three consecutive hundreds in county cricket but England will retain the same balance to their team as they had at Lord’s.David Graveney, the chairman of selectors, said: “The selectors met on the Monday after the Lord’s Test and looked at the way we played and identified the obvious plus points including bowling Australia out twice, Harmison’s bowling, and Pietersen’s batting.”Obviously there were areas we needed to improve on in order to win the game, but the conclusion of the selectors was that we wanted to stick with the same squad for the second Ashes Test.”We don’t believe that there’s any need to change the team, clearly we are disappointed that the result of the first Test went against us, but we still have strong belief in the squad that was selected.”England squad Marcus Trescothick, Andrew Strauss, Michael Vaughan (capt), Ian Bell, Kevin Pietersen, Andrew Flintoff, Geraint Jones (wk), Ashley Giles, Simon Jones, Matthew Hoggard, Steve Harmison, Chris Tremlett.
This was a day as historic for India as it was disappointing for Pakistan, and predictably it led to a chaotic and emotional press conference, attended by Inzamam-ul-Haq and Javed Miandad. All manner of speculation on Shoaib Akhtar’s injury, his disruptive influence in the team, the ineffectiveness of the bowling, the poor fitness levels of the team and everybody’s favourite chestnut, the need for specialist coaches came in for questioning.
Inzamam-ul-Haq On the series defeat After Multan we came back well to win at Lahore where, for the first time, the bowlers performed close to their potential. But injuries to our bowlers really wreaked havoc with the line-up. Umar Gul’s loss in particular was a crucial blow.On the non-performance of big players and the line-up for Pindi If a player does not perform he should not be playing for the Pakistan team. It is as simple as that. I wanted to change the team for this game but in the end I had no choice at all, because there were so many injuries. Even some of the players in the team were not 100% fit. Changing the bowling attack made the difference for us.On the bowling Our bowlers didn’t perform at all and they have been generally poor throughout the series. We had bowling pitches to help us but to let the Indians pile up 600 runs on this track was a very poor effort. No bowler could take more than 7 wickets over the series for us. Bowlers win you Test matches and it just didn’t happen for us here.On the excessive injuries There were too many injuries in the camp for such a crucial series, and the bowling attack was never settled at all. It is worrying that our fitness has been so poor and I have identified this before and do so again now – we simply have to work hard and concentrate on this aspect.On the batting in Pindi It just wasn’t very good. We should have been much more responsible. Even though the ball was seaming around on the first day, we could have scored above 300 if we had batted a bit more cautiously .On the pitches The pitches that offered some help to the bowlers, as the Indians showed, throughout the Test series. We just didn’t bowl well on them. We all believed that the bowling was our strength and even the media hyped our attack up.On Shoaib Akhtar’s injury and differences between him and Inzamam There is nothing wrong between us, but I was also surprised at the way he batted today.On Shoaib Akhtar’s alleged phone call to Rashid Latif regarding differences with Inzamam If something like this has happened then we will take action against it. This sort of behaviour can cause disruption within the team. I think this series has highlighted the lack of professionalism in our side and action will be taken against something like this. There will be an inquiry into the matter and action will be taken.On reports that the team doctor was not happy with the excessive bowling in the nets There were contradictory reports about this but I will say one thing. Over the last two or three series none of my fast bowlers have been able to complete a whole series. They keep breaking down at some point. And there was a big fuss everywhere about the number of no-balls and wides that they were bowling in the one-day series. Now if I am not going to fix that during the nets then when I am going to do it? In their rooms while they are sleeping?
Javed Miandad On his alleged statement about Irfan Pathan I denied it at the press conference in Karachi [before the first one-dayer] and I am doing so now again. I never made any such statement.On the bowling Most of the frontline bowlers have been performing well for us until recently. They just didn’t perform well enough here.On the lack of strategy and planning Of course we always plan before we play a match and we keep to a strategy. But every player knows what type of wicket he is playing on and what he should do to benefit from that wicket, as a bowler or as a batsman. They are all Test players with a fair bit of experience now, and to tell them how to play all the time should not be necessary. We had a plan for Lahore and we went out and executed it well; in Multan and Pindi we didn’t. We just didn’t perform as well as we are capable of in any department.On the batting throughout the series No one, and especially the media, expected our batting to do well, but it performed better than the bowling. Mostly the batting was okay – obviously when you are facing totals of 600-plus then the pressure plays a big factor and so we failed a couple of times.On the opening partnership and Imran Nazir’s non-inclusion I don’t think Taufeeq Umar and Imran Farhat had that bad a series. Imran [Farhat] got a century so you couldn’t keep him out of the team and even Taufeeq looked good on a couple of occasions before getting out. Imran [Nazir] is still in our broader plans, obviously. Neither I nor Inzamam can exclude him from the team – if he performs, he will come in and if he doesn’t then his performance will take him out of the team.On comparing this Indian team to past teams Past Indian teams have also been very good. But this team has played together for a couple of years and is doing really well now. They have a very mature batting line-up and their bowling, which sometimes let them down in the past, is now much better. They have six or seven batsmen who average over 50 in Test cricket so that says a lot about their team. They are not invincible but they are very good. Their attitude is good, but a true marker of any team’s attitude is when they are losing or not doing well.On specialist coaches This is a matter for the board but I have no problem with it at all.
When the World Cup fixture list appeared and Pakistan saw they had a match against the Netherlands in the delightful surroundings of Paarl, they would have welcomed the prospect with relish. Now, however, they will be approaching the game with rather more anxiety after their thrashing at the hands of England on Saturday just down the road in Cape Town.Group A was always going to be tight, with Australia the favourites. Then it was thought that Pakistan, India and England would battle it out for the other two places in the next stage of the tournament. When England forfeited four points to Zimbabwe the equation took on a new element, for presuming that Zimbabwe pick up another eight points from matches against the Netherlands and Namibia, one more win would put them right in the shake-up.The fact is that Pakistan’s batting has taken on a fragile appearance that was ruthlessly exposed by England. They might have an impressive hand of match-winning bowlers, but the batsmen have to back them up and that has not been case recently.It is perhaps fanciful to imagine that Pakistan’s batsmen will fail to prosper against the Dutch collection of medium pacers but, given a receptive pitch, it is possible that they could make it very difficult for a side lacking confidence.The problem for the men in the dazzling orange kit is that they will find it extremely hard to score enough runs to put pressure on the Pakistani batsmen. That will be a consoling thought for Pakistan, but there will be another fear lurking in the back of their minds. The weather.Should rain prevent Pakistan from taking the expected four points from this match, and prevent them from enhancing their run-rate, their fate would rest with others as well as themselves. They would have to beat India and Zimbabwe in their remaining matches, and hope against hope that England can do to India what they suffered themselves.They will be encouraged to know that the forecast is fine for the Winelands area of the Cape, but forecasters have been known to get it wrong. Just as Pakistan did on Saturday. At least the Pakistanis can take heart from the fact the Dutch will want to play whatever the weather. Against Australia, there would have been every reason for Roland Lefebvre, the Dutch captain, to take a look at conditions and claim the two points for an abandonment. He decided not to do so but gain the experience from playing the game.Even so, Pakistan must hope that there is a bright blue sky and that this is not the day for the bright orange flags to be waving in celebration at the end.