Salahuddin Ahmed (Sallu) Photo © CricInfo

There have been changes galore in the Pakistan cricket set up after the under-performing display in New Zealand. Javed Miandad has been relieved as the team coach. The laid-back Inzamam-ul-Haq, after his disastrous maiden effort as captain, has been relegated to his original slot of vice-captain. Waqar Younis has come back from the cold and been entrusted with the top job. The choice may have surprised many but the fact is that at this stage of transition, Waqar perhaps is the best option, if indeed not the only one, due to his seniority and vast experience.

This is not to say that Inzamam would not have made a good captain. But Inzamam is the key batsman around whom the entire line-up revolves. On his broad shoulders rests the mantle of being the side's main bulwark in batting and probably the PCB may have taken this into consideration while deciding not to burden him with the additional responsibility of nurturing a bunch of raw youngsters through the rebuilding phase.

Not so long ago, Younis was said to be out of consideration for the captaincy because his place in the team was no longer taken for granted. So, in a way, this decision of the powers-that-be is an afterthought, but a very welcome one for Younis. I believe that he wanted the captaincy very much. That it has dropped in his lap even at the fag end of a brilliant career is a just reward, for he has served Pakistan cricket through the '90s as well as anybody else. Younis does have the requisite credentials. For his sake and the sake of Pakistan cricket I hope he makes a success of the job.

Pakistan has a history of doing well in Sharjah, and there is a reason for it. On the docile batting tracks that are almost exact copies of the kind they find at home, most of our batsmen thrive and put up big scores on the board. With this psychological advantage, the bowling also does a good job of containment to seize the day. That has invariably been the record. This time, though it is deprived of the experience of Wasim Akram, Moin Khan, Yousuf Youhana, Shoaib Akhtar and Azhar Mahmood, Pakistan would again be hoping to emulate the winning performances of the past.

Before the trying away series against England in the early part of the summer, Sharjah is a good opportunity for the youngsters to establish their credentials. The likes of Imran Nazir, the Farhat brothers, Imran and Humayun, Shoaib Malik and to some extent Shahid Afridi would do well to grab this opportunity with both hands and show some consistency for a change.

The batting would obviously revolve around Inzamam and in the absence of Youhana, Younis would be required to stay at the crease and contribute meaningfully in every outing to make the tail wag in case the top order stumbles. The failure of the upper order is, however, not really likely because for the fit-again Saeed Anwar the desert oasis has been a happy hunting ground, and Shahid Afridi and Imran Nazir too would relish the ideal batting conditions.

The onus would, however, be on bowling. It remains to be seen whether Younis, Saqlain Mushtaq and Abdur Razzaq, backed by Mohammad Sami, Shahid Afridi, Shoaib Malik and rookie pacer Kashif Raza can do as good a job of containment as the previous Pakistani attacks. Again, one hopes that Younis and Saqlain would use their tremendous experience and undoubted skills to lead by example. This attack may lack experience but it would prove risky to underestimate it.

The induction of three youngsters - Afridi, Imran Nazir and Shoaib Malik - would mean that the fielding standards would improve. With this nimble-footed trio manning the key positions, especially Imran Nazir at point, I think the opposition would find it difficult to take singles at will, and that would increase the pressure as the required rate for the batting side creeps higher.

Overall, this is a promising outfit and though it has to face worthy opponents in the star-studded Sri Lankans and a buoyant New Zealand, I feel that they will live up to their true potential. Especially with the expatriate Pakistanis shouting themselves hoarse in support of their heroes and vociferously applauding their every feat.

Ed: Salahuddin Ahmed (Sallu) is a former Test cricketer, and has served as a PCB selector nine times; his last stint (1999-2000) was as chief selector.

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