We can beat South Africa – Misbah-ul-Haq

Misbah-ul-Haq, the Pakistan captain, is confident that his side will deliver the goods in the upcoming series against South Africa but thinks that his batsmen will have to raise their game against one of the strongest bowling attacks of the world.

Pakistan are scheduled to play three Tests, five One Day Internationals (ODI) and a couple of T20 Internationals against South Africa, with the first Test to be played from February 1, 2013, at Johannesburg.

The Green Shirts have been doing quite well in international cricket since their debacle during the controversial tour of England in 2010. They recently defeated India at their own backyard in the ODI series by two games to one and leveled the T20 series.

Misbah has the services of some high-class bowlers in shape of Saeed Ajmal, Junaid Khan, Umar Gul, Abdur Rehman and Mohammad Irfan. However, Pakistan’s batting seems to be a worry as they can crumble under pressure, especially on pitches which offer bounce and pace to the fast bowlers.

The middle-order batsman is geared up for the series against the world’s number one ranked Test team of the world. Last year, Pakistan outclassed England by 3-0 in United Arab Emirates and Misbah expects his team to deliver the goods against Graeme Smith and company as well.

“The coming series in South Africa is the biggest challenge of my career. But I am confident that we can topple South Africa in the Test series,” claims the Pakistan captain. “People didn’t rate us highly even when we played England last year in the UAE. But we surprised everyone.”

Pakistan’s captain however, understands that the hosts have the services of some terrifying pacers like Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel and Vernon Philander. Misbah admits that the batting line-up must show resilience, if Pakistan are to give a tough time to the Proteas under trying circumstances.

“We have the ability to beat South Africa. But the batsmen will have to stand up and deliver. I know we have two or three batsmen who can stay at the wicket even in the different conditions in South Africa,” he added.

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Posted by Yasir Hashmi on Jan 19 2013. Filed under Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.