World Cup nightmare will never leave us: Inzi

World Cup nightmare will never leave us
Jun 13, 2007 | Inzamam-ul-Haq

I am pleased to hear that Bob was not murdered, all the boys will feel the same as I’m sure his family will also. But this verdict will never take away one of the toughest periods in our lives. It was a nightmare.

Those final 10 days in the Caribbean were the hardest of my life. We went through hell. I was always hopeful and confident that Bob died naturally and that the Jamaican doctors made a mistake. It seems likely that the doctors there have said something wrong, maybe, but I don’t know the full facts.

I don’t really want to make blame, but I am annoyed that we all had to go through this, for nothing. It was unnecessary and very hurtful for Bob’s family.

I don’t know what has happened there but I can tell you it wasn’t good for the players or for Pakistan cricket. Actually when they started talking about ‘murder’ it was not a good thing for the world of cricket, not just Pakistan. It took over the whole World Cup.

It was hard and painful enough to lose a good friend like Bob as he was a great human being but to then be caught up in a murder investigation was very, very difficult for all of us. And as captain I probably felt the pressure most.

I was one of the few who saw Bob lying in his room and it was very upsetting. We had become close as captain and coach over the three years he had spent with the Pakistan team.

We were already very down and depressed after losing to Ireland. We knew we had let our country down and that we would be leaving the World Cup. Then to go through all that we did with police interviews and with the world’s media after us it was very, very tough. As I said, they were the hardest days I have known.

We felt at times as though people were pointing the finger at us and that was not fair. It was unbelievable, not right.

There was a lot of pressure on me because the team did not qualify for the second round and then Bob died. It was very hard because not only did Pakistan lose at the World Cup, but I had lost a very close friend in Bob

I needed a long time afterwards to get away from it all. After a two-month break I now feel relaxed again, the stress is gone and day by day things have become better.

Since the World Cup I have spent a lot of time with family. I went to the north of the country as it’s too hot in Lahore with the temperature at 49 and 50 degrees.

I started practice again two weeks ago. For six days a week I go to the gym and in the evenings when the weather is cooler I go to Lahore Gymkhana to practice my cricket. The club has good practice facilities, good bowlers, good pitches – they are a good club and it gives me all that I need for practice. Sunday is a rest day.

Before the World Cup we were playing a lot of cricket and it was tiring. Then after all that happened at the World Cup I felt I need that two-month break. Now I’m mentally focused and feeling refreshed and very ambitious to play more Test cricket. I’m confident that I will and I’m working hard to make it happen.

I’m aware that I need a few runs (21) to pass Javed Miandad (to become Pakistan’s highest run-scorer) but I am looking further ahead than that. I want to score at least another thousand Test runs and get to 10,000. The summer that Pakistan has coming up later in the year is all the motivation I need with tough series against South Africa at home, India in India and then Australia at home. Hopefully the selectors will feel that my experience will be useful to the team. Inshallah.



http://inzamam.bigstarcricket.com/b...icle_2286.shtml

Good to read that Inzi still wants to play test cricket and looking at the opposition, I think we'll need him.

As for the Woolmer episode, I dont think any of us can imagine what these guys went though during those dark days shortly after the World Cup loss to Ireland and the interviewing, fingerprinting, the media glare watching their every move.

According to PCB, it has

Nice to read all that...hopefully he comes back fitter and ready to score a ton of runs!

If he is there in the middle, we have a realistic chance to beat the next 3 opposition teams...without him, I am afraid we might see the re-occurence of the 2002 Sharjah series against Aussies!

I hope selectors realise this otherwise Pak cricket will really need some divine intervention to pull it from the doldrums

inzi go home and rest aab naya loogoon ko khelnay dou. Don't worry inzi hum sub tumhay yaar rakhaingay as a captain a batsman and @loo.

I'm chartering a plane for you and your fellow Inzi-haters (not Inzi critics, but the haters) for a one-way trip to Siberia - and you are pilot! (I'm hoping you cant fly!)

hehehehe why is he your Relative.

More to the point - did he run away with one of yours???

YOu hit it where it hurts the most

''Owned'' of the century

yaar please aloo kay sath kaun bahgay ga and poor aloo can't even run. He can only walk.

nearly 9000 test runs without running? damn he is even better than i thought

I say! That makes him even a more of a legend than (dare I say) BRIAN LARA! That is how great and powerful the man was. He did not even need to run to get 9000 runs.

Hasan may be bitter than Inzi could score centuries against his team when Ambrose and Walsh were still there but Lara couldnt do the same when Wasim and Waqar were around (in tests anyway)

you forgot to mention the thrashing Inzi's team handed to Lara's last december.

that was one for the archives.

inzi should be back in our team, we need him and i belive he should be able to retire in a respectful way which our other past greats did not recive for exaple wasim,waqar and anwar

When will this guy stop crying? And speaking.

Every interview, article he contributes to he's always playing the victim.

Well ok inzi you are a bichara victim. Cricket has given you all this grief. Surely you need some rest. Go and have a long rest and don't think about cricket....

did u even read the article "Mr Not Imressed At All" ?

That's PUNJABI stage show EFFECT

I was thinking in the style of Tariq Tedi at the time...