ISLAMABAD: Former skipper Rameez Raja feels that despite all the gloom that has engulfed Pakistan cricket in recent times, the national team can still lift themselves out the current mess. “The squad is not going to change much from now and the World Cup. They have got the nucleus for the World Cup team. They need to up their fitness a little. I think they need to win few matches to get their confidence going. It will take some time, but I think this is what will happen in the World Cup also,” Gulf News quoted Raja, as saying.Commenting on the fact that Pakistan are missing four key players Kamran Akmal, Mohammad Asif, Mohammad Amir and Salman Butt – the last three serving International Cricket Council (ICC) suspensions over spot-fixing – Raja said: “Well, what you don’t have you shouldn’t be missing. The resources may be depleted, but this is one-day cricket. You get lot of scope from the bench strength and there is strong bench strength in Pakistan. They just need to get their act together. Playing against a professional side, they need to be as professional as the South Africans.”He also ruled out a change in captaincy. “There should be no change of captain before World Cup. I think we have experimented a great deal with change of captaincy. I don’t think it can ever work like that,” Raja said.
“Afridi and Abdul Razzaq are key exponents in one-day cricket, so they need to be in good form. Somebody like Umar Akmal, who was dropped in the last two games, must be reconsidered because he has got tremendous talent and needs to be guided. Yes, if Pakistan can fine- tune their effort and their strategy and their playing XI, I am sure they can be competitive. I won’t say they can win hands down against South Africa. It needs a mental and technical lift. But it can still happen,” he said.Regarding Pakistan’s batting woes, Raja said: “The poor batting display has little to do with technique and lot to do with the mental aspect. They look extremely calm when out there with the ball for they know they can rely on three or four heavyweights. In batting they lose their calm – Voanews
