Miandad discusses coaching future with Afridi

 

 “It's the right time to look ahead for the future and start preparing for the next World Cup. We have to look for players who could be there in 2015 (World Cup) and, if they have potential, we should start giving them proper chances.” -Photo by AP Dawn News updates

ISLAMABAD: Former Pakistan captain Javed Miandad will consider an offer to become the national team’s batting coach after the tour of West Indies.

Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Ijaz Butt and one-day captain Shahid Afridi tried to persuade Miandad to take up the job after India defeated Pakistan in the World Cup semifinals last month.

“I had detailed meetings with Mr. Butt and Afridi, but I told them that I could not travel with the team to the West Indies,” Miandad told The Associated Press on Thursday.

The Pakistan team leaves for the West Indies next week for one Twenty20 match, five ODIs and two tests.“I think the tour of West Indies is not a tough one,” Miandad said. “After this tour I might consider taking up the coaching assignment.”

Pakistan has made wholesale changes from the World Cup, dropping out-of-form wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal and allrounder Abdul Razzaq for the tour.Fast bowler Umar Gul has requested to be rested, while experienced batsman Younis Khan will also sit out the ODIs.Miandad retired from test cricket in 1993 after scoring a Pakistan record 8,832 runs from 124 matches.

He also scored 7,381 runs in 233 ODIs, playing his last limited-overs game against archrival India at the 1996 World Cup. His six World Cup appearances is only matched by Sachin Tendulkar, who won the 2011 tournament with India defeating Sri Lanka in the final.Since his retirement from international cricket, Miandad has coached the national team three times and is presently serving as the PCB director general.

Waqar Younis, a former test fast bowler and captain, is the head coach of Pakistan. Another ex-test fast bowler, Aqib Javed, is the bowling consultant.However, it is Pakistan’s batting which has been struggling in international cricket for more than a year and critics believe the team needs a batting coach.“I believe that once a batsman is selected for the national team you can’t change his technique,” Miandad said.“You can only teach him the finer points of the game, like how to handle various bowlers on different pitches.”

Pakistan has picked uncapped batsman Usman Salahuddin, allrounder Hammad Azam and fast bowlers Aizaz Cheema and Junaid Khan for the tour of West Indies.Miandad believes selectors have made the right decision by picking promising youngsters from the domestic circuit to give them international exposure.“It’s the right time to look ahead for the future and start preparing for the next World Cup,” he said. “We have to look for players who could be there in 2015 (World Cup) and, if they have potential, we should start giving them proper chances.”