SA-like pitch in Pak ahead of Champs Trophy

[Savak]

SA-like pitch in Pak ahead of Champs Trophy

Press Trust Of India

Posted on Aug 30, 2009 at 17:52

Karachi: Former captain Javed Miandad has ordered a new grassy track at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore so that the Pakistani batsmen get the right kind of practice before landing in South Africa for the ICC Champions Trophy beginning next month.

Since he was appointed the batting consultant of the team, Miandad has been working on methods to prepare the batsmen.

For starters, he has ordered the preparation of grassy three-foot wide pitches at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore where the 10-day national conditioning camp for the Champions Trophy begins from Tuesday.

"The idea is to get the batsmen to play on surfaces similar to those in South Africa. Cricket is all in the mind and if a player is mentally focused. he can succeed anywhere," Miandad said in an interview to PTI.

"The playing conditions and pitches at the Wanderers and Centurion grounds are conducive to pace bowling and our batsmen need to be prepared to cope with the conditions there," Miandad said.

The Pakistan Cricket Board has appointed Miandad, also Director of Cricket Affairs in the board, to help out the batsmen after a string of batting failures on the recent tour of Sri Lanka where Pakistan lost both the Test and one-day series.

"Cricket is a mind game. If a player is not confident, he will always struggle. They are always solutions to tackle different conditions," Miandad said.

Miandad, who has coached the team thrice in the past, said he didn't think players like Mohammad Yousuf, Misbah-ul-Haq, Younus Khan, Shoaib Malik, Shahid Afridi or Kamran Akmal had any major technical problems in their batting.

"They just need fine-tuning and my job is to prepare them mentally for the conditions in South Africa and for the type of bowling they will face in the Champions Trophy," he said.

Miandad said he had no intentions of trying to step on the toes of captain Younus Khan or coach Intikhab Alam.

"I have been given a specific task and I will do everything after keeping the captain and coach in the loop," he said.

Miandad also encouraged the young players to open up and seek advice from former players.

"It is unfortunate that our players are shy of asking seniors for help even when they are struggling. I remember when (Australian batsman) Dean Jones was struggling against Abdul Qadir, he flew to Sydney to meet Ian Chappell and discuss where he was failing. Chappell told Jones to play Qadir out of the crease. One simple tip and next match Jones scored a century. That is how important sometimes tips from seniors can be for the juniors," he said.

Link: http://cricketnext.in.com/news/salik...3595-13-1.html

[hasanb]

Im not a very big fan of Miandad the coach or Miandad the administrator, however this seems to be a very good move by him.

[Boi]

Excellent move.

[iafzal]

but we have been hearing for years that we cannot prepare bouncy and grassy pitches in Pakistan?
it seems we will be doing just that in a manner of few days. must be the biggest miracle in pakistan cricket.

[Inswinger]

Good move but one has to wonder why it took so long.....

[hasanb]

Originally Posted by Inswinger Good move but one has to wonder why it took so long.....

and how it will be done so quickly...maybe he'll just get them to bat on the outfield

[Omar Malik]

I'll believe it when it ACTUALLY happens!

[Juggernaut]

Originally Posted by Omar Malik I'll believe it when it ACTUALLY happens!

Same here

I don't know how reputable the source is but any time the Indian press write something perceived as negative by Pakistani fan's we reject it as baseless.

Why not the same for this article?

[Khalil]

Stupid idea.

The Wanderers and Centurion Park wickets have bounce because they located on a very high altitude i.e 2,000 meters above sea level.

The atmospheric pressure at such high altitude is significantly lower than the atmospheric at sea level. This means there is far less air resistance on these grounds which allow the ball to move quicker through the air and the bounce being much higher.

The wickets on these stadiums were never 'green mambas'

[Nazir_ Rules]

its still a good move, hopefully it will prepare our pakistan team.

[Imy]

green wickets are good move, Pak cant play on green wickets so in practice one should focus on what they cant do well right

[Zaid23]

pak shud prepare the same pitch they did for 3rd odi in lahore betwen pak and Sl odi series in january.....in which pak got out for 75 and umar gul was the highest scorer with 28 runs !!!

[Khalil]

Originally Posted by Imy green wickets are good move, Pak cant play on green wickets so in practice one should focus on what they cant do well right

The ICC championship will only be played at the Wanderers and Centurion Park, the 2 high altitude stadiums that are known for bounce and pace through the air.

The wickets of these 2 grounds are always brown and well shaven and these wickets offer very liitle lateral movement.

[AZ]

Khalil makes a good point...we need to get them practicing on bouncy tracks rather than ptiches where the ball is ducking in and out like a Roberto Carlos free kick...you could practice all your life on a green pitch, you will never be a good 'green wicket' batsman...we need to get bowlers bowling at them from 18 yards or so on cemented pitches

[waqar_ahmad]

If Miandad thinks that someone like malik does not have any technical flaws, then he is wrong. Some pakistani batsmen need much more than fine tuning

[Inswinger]

If I recall correctly the coaches had the batsmen practicing on marble blocks before our 07 tour of South Africa so they could adjust to the bounce.

[Da Best]

Originally Posted by waqar_ahmad If Miandad thinks that someone like malik does not have any technical flaws, then he is wrong. Some pakistani batsmen need much more than fine tuning

Well said. Batsmen like Misbah have huge technical faults in there batting, not to mention Butt. They seriously need to play on proper pitches, plus we have an aging middle order, Younus is 30+, Yousuf is 30 + and Misbah is 30+. So I feel if these current middle order of which are 30 +, and have technical faults, they need to throw out the dead rubber asap.

[Golden arm]

I have not seen a green pitch in south africa, so I really don't like idea of practice on green pitch.
I think better idea could be to be to arrange camp at abbotabad, at some bouncy pitch so exactly simulae conditions in south africa.
Abbotabad is at almost 5000 feet, much cooler in summers and can really help players to get great stamina.

[Extreme Pace]

I doubt if the pitches would be "green". They are most likely to be flat decks with lot of pace and bounce.

[Xohaib]

Ufff understand what miandad wants.
He wants to get there technique right irrespective of what is the kind of pitch.
technique is same for all pitches.

[Couch Cricketer]

Originally Posted by Extreme Pace I doubt if the pitches would be "green". They are most likely to be flat decks with lot of pace and bounce.

India has the deadest of Pitches for ODI's but you remember the pitch we got in the Champions Trophy against SA.
Or the pitch we had against IRE in the world cup (it didn't have that much movement but compared to other pitches in the tournament was different)

[sali]

I think our batsman have more problem with swinging deliveries than bounce. Minadad is not suggesting that the batsman will see grassy wickets in CT, he is just trying to create maximum swing and correct their foot movement. I m sure batsman will also have problem with swing in SA if they played with the same technique. I m sure he would be using tennis balls with bowling machine and tennis racket to simulate the bounce. I know this a common practice before teams go to Australia and SA.

[haroonrasheed320]

its all in the mind, the pitch has grass or mud on it you need to be determined to be the best

[kamranO]

Originally Posted by Savak SA-like pitch in Pak ahead of Champs Trophy Press Trust Of India Posted on Aug 30, 2009 at 17:52 Karachi: Former captain Javed Miandad has ordered a new grassy track at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore so that the Pakistani batsmen get the right kind of practice before landing in South Africa for the ICC Champions Trophy beginning next month. Since he was appointed the batting consultant of the team, Miandad has been working on methods to prepare the batsmen. For starters, he has ordered the preparation of grassy three-foot wide pitches at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore where the 10-day national conditioning camp for the Champions Trophy begins from Tuesday. "The idea is to get the batsmen to play on surfaces similar to those in South Africa. Cricket is all in the mind and if a player is mentally focused. he can succeed anywhere," Miandad said in an interview to PTI. "The playing conditions and pitches at the Wanderers and Centurion grounds are conducive to pace bowling and our batsmen need to be prepared to cope with the conditions there," Miandad said. The Pakistan Cricket Board has appointed Miandad, also Director of Cricket Affairs in the board, to help out the batsmen after a string of batting failures on the recent tour of Sri Lanka where Pakistan lost both the Test and one-day series. "Cricket is a mind game. If a player is not confident, he will always struggle. They are always solutions to tackle different conditions," Miandad said. Miandad, who has coached the team thrice in the past, said he didn't think players like Mohammad Yousuf, Misbah-ul-Haq, Younus Khan, Shoaib Malik, Shahid Afridi or Kamran Akmal had any major technical problems in their batting. "They just need fine-tuning and my job is to prepare them mentally for the conditions in South Africa and for the type of bowling they will face in the Champions Trophy," he said. Miandad said he had no intentions of trying to step on the toes of captain Younus Khan or coach Intikhab Alam. "I have been given a specific task and I will do everything after keeping the captain and coach in the loop," he said. Miandad also encouraged the young players to open up and seek advice from former players. "It is unfortunate that our players are shy of asking seniors for help even when they are struggling. I remember when (Australian batsman) Dean Jones was struggling against Abdul Qadir, he flew to Sydney to meet Ian Chappell and discuss where he was failing. Chappell told Jones to play Qadir out of the crease. One simple tip and next match Jones scored a century. That is how important sometimes tips from seniors can be for the juniors," he said. Link: http://cricketnext.in.com/news/salik...3595-13-1.html

If the pitch would be like spinning track what would our player do then instead of one pitch they should practice on all kind of pitchesss

[Xohaib]

There are no spin pitches in SA.
Most likely bouncy tracks.

[kamranO]

Originally Posted by Xohaib There are no spin pitches in SA. Most likely bouncy tracks.

dont you remember kumble was successful in pak india wc03 match that pitch was spinning or bouncy track

[IAJ]

Originally Posted by Extreme Pace I doubt if the pitches would be "green". They are most likely to be flat decks with lot of pace and bounce.

Well you will get bounce and the ball will seam around on a green wicket.
Finally they are trying to do something with the problem and you are obviously not satisfied!

[Waseem]

It's a very good move regardless of what sort of pitches we will see in South Africa.
Batmen will learn how to play moving ball and that's all they need as long as they play some actual games on these pitches rather than using them for practice only. They need to learn not only to defend and leave but also score on these kind of picthes as well so there is no point just practicing.

[najam2007]

Go miandad ......you are the Man , he got the power to prove the board and thworld of cricket that he was a street fighter if all the **** players just listen to his advice and learn how to tackle the tense situation !
I will pray for them to be a champ!
INSHALLAH

[dani2k]

Originally Posted by Juggernaut Same here I don't know how reputable the source is but any time the Indian press write something perceived as negative by Pakistani fan's we reject it as baseless. Why not the same for this article?

Because now it suits you! So who is to be blamed for double stndards?

[Juggernaut]

Originally Posted by dani2k Because now it suits you! So who is to be blamed for double stndards?

The poster's themselves.

Except for you not one of them has answered my question.

I think they just keep ignoring it because they realise its double standards to accept this story and reject all others coming out of India. They're just conveniantly avoiding it.

[dani2k]

^^ Well said and precisely my point.

[saj786]

this will separate men from the boys