I am a great admirer of Pakistan cricket – Geoffrey Boycott

England’s former cricketer, Geoffrey Boycott, has expressed that he admires Pakistan team because they keep throwing extremely talented players in international cricket, although the Green Shirts are often involved in controversies.

The Green Shirts faced one of the biggest controversies of the history of the game in 2010, when three of their players, Salman Butt, Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif, were found involved in spot-fixing. The situation looked extremely bleak for Pakistan cricket at that time, with some former cricketer calling for the Green Shirts’ suspension from international cricket.

However, Pakistani cricketer proved their mettle and raised the level of their game afterwards, qualifying for the semi-finals of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 and the ICC World T20 2012. Over the last two and a half years, Misbah-ul-Haq and company have lost just one Test series. His team’s whitewash against England in United Arab Emirates last year will be remembered as one of the greatest victories of Pakistan cricket.

Boycott expressed that Pakistan cricket has faced numerous controversies over the years but the country keeps producing extremely talented cricketers.

While speaking about the upcoming series between Pakistan and South Africa, the former England cricketer said coping with the threat of the home team’s bowling attack is going to be a massive challenge for the Green Shirts, with Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel and Vernon Philander at the top of their game at the moment.

“I like Pakistan. I like the fact that whatever trouble they have, whatever happens, if they are fighting among themselves, or politicking, or what have you, switching captains, there are always some young kids with talent who come along. Unknowns come along and play well,” said the former opening batsman. “But the fact is, when you are playing with the best seam-bowling side in the world, that’s going to be tough.”

Boycott further added that the conditions in South Africa are totally different from Pakistan and Misbah’s men will find it hard to acclimatise.

“Especially in their own backyard. The pitches here are a little bit quicker than in Pakistan. Remember, Pakistan pitches are a bit like Indian pitches. It’s easier to play the seamers,” he added.

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Posted by Yasir Hashmi on Jan 24 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.