Karachi: It is not yet clear whether former Test captain Javed Miandad will be available for the national training camp, starting in Lahore from Wednesday, for the New Zealand tour.
The Pakistan Cricket Board has asked Miandad to work as a batting and fielding consultant with the team in the camp and also go to New Zealand but at the same time it has put forth some clear conditions for the batting great.
The conditions include that Miandad will work under head coach Waqar Younis and will have to share his plans for the team with the Younis.These conditions have been rejected by Miandad, who also works as director general of cricket in the Board.
Hence, there is uncertainty over his availability and even Team manager Intikhab Alam has no clue about that.
"I really don't know the situation about Miandad because the Board is in contact with him," Alam said.
He said Younis would reach Lahore from Australia to join the camp on Wednesday.
"He will be there from day one in the camp to supervise things as he is the head coach. If Miandad is available, it would be beneficial for the players as he is an experienced pro and great batsman," Alam said.
Miandad has written a letter to the PCB Chairman, making it clear that the conditions put forth before him were not acceptable to him considering he is much senior than Younis.
Alam said a lot of emphasis would be on fielding during the camp since it is their weak point.
"The camp will allow us to group together for the coming tour which will be a testing one as conditions in New Zealand are never easy for touring sides."
Alam, a former Test captain, had no doubt that senior players hold the key to Pakistan's success in New Zealand and in the 2011 World Cup.
"Look, when we won the 1992 World Cup, Imran Khan and Javed Miandad led from the front and were ably backed by the younger players and similarly in the 1999 event, Wasim Akram and other seniors such as Saeed Anwar, Moin Khan and Inzamam led by example.
"So I think the seniors hold the key to how we do in the World Cup but we are certainly on the right track with our preparations," he said.
The manager said the good thing was that there was more discipline in the team and the players were responding to the hard work put in by the coaches' panel.
