Pakistan is entering transformation phase: Younis

ABU DHABI, Nov 19 (APP): Abdul Razzaq’s stunning knock in the second one-day international against South Africa has turned the fortunes of Pakistan cricket and given them self-belief, according to Younis Khan.Pakistan had lost three games on the trot two Twenty20 Internationals and an ODI when Razzaq’s came up with what many have described as one of the best innings played in limited overs cricket in Abu Dhabi.He scored 63 of the final 65 runs to lead Pakistan to a stunning one-wicket win and his innings changed the complete makeover of the team, giving them a new lease of life and lifting their spirits to new heights. Razzaq returned home after the ODIs, but Pakistan’s performances continued to climb and evidence of their new-found self-belief was could be seen in the first Test, where Younis played a stellar knock, along side captain Misbah ul-Haq, on the final day to stall South Africa’s bid for a win. “Its always make a difference when senior players are performing and juniors are supporting them,” he told Sports Correspondent Ehsan Qureshi in an exclusive interview here at Sheikh Zayed Stadium on Friday. Pakistan is now entering transformation phase,” he added. “Razzaq’s amazing ton in the second ODI here made the difference. It boosted the confidence of the guys and showed them that they could perform well against a formidable team like South Africa,” he pointed out. He said Muhammad Hafeez missed a few opportunities for big scores, but he remained quite consistent while the younger players supported the seniors. “Pakistan fought well before going down 2-3 in the ODI series,” he said. Commenting on drawn first Test at Sports City International Cricket Stadium Dubai, he said it was Morne Morkel’s five-wicket haul with the second new ball that made the difference. “Had we reduced the South African first innings lead,  it could  have made a big difference to the outcome of the first Test. “Our performance against South Africa was great considering the fact that Pakistan were without bowlers like Muhammad Asif and Muhammad Aamir,” he maintained. Responding to a question about his match-saving, unbeaten century on his return to Test cricket and the pressures he faced, Younis said: “To be frank I was bit under pressure after the dismissal of Azhar Ali. “Being a senior I always like to perform under pressure and I am happy that my knock benefited the team, and I with Misbah was able to save the game for a Pakistan. I have been  under such  situations in the past and know how to handle the pressure,” he added. “Azhar was shaping up well, but his dismissal on the second new ball before lunch on the fifth day was a setback for us,” Younis Khan remarked. “I had to slow down and concentrate on defending because fall of another wicket could have proven dangerous for us,” he recalled. “After Azhar departed, my plan of scoring a 100 runs in the first session evaporated and we went on the back foot,”  he reminded.  He complimented his skipper Misbah-ul-Haq for his solid batting. “Being senior men, we realized the situation needed a big partnership from us and thankfully we succeeded in our objective of saving the game. “We had not given up on a win and we were planning to launch a bid for the target. I did try to do that after reaching my century, but [Graeme] Smith used his spinners well, particularly Paul Harris, who bowled very tightly at times to slow down  the run rate,” he said. Younis opinioned that Graeme Smith’s current team is very solid and experienced with the presence of great players Jacques Kallis, AB de Villiers, Mark Boucher, Ashwell Prince, Hashim Amla, Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel, and forcing a draw against them was a victory for Pakistan. “We could have gone for the win, but it was quite a difficult task. South Africa is a very good bowling side,” he said. To another question about the performance of off-break bowler Saeed Ajmal, he said he is a good bowler, but  needed to  add new weapons to his armory and become a bit more innovative.  “We missed [Danish] Kaneria because he is an experienced bowler. Our bowlers did a good job, despite the side-strain injury to Wahab Riaz on the first day. “South Africans are great tacticians and they keeping working against you all the time. “We will be entering the Abu Dhabi match in a much better frame of mind because the draw has boosted our confidence.”