‘Three weeks preparation cannot be done in one week’ says Misbah

Karachi: Pakistan men’s team head coach Misbah-ul-Haq has admitted that it is difficult to cover the preparations of three weeks into one week.

Green Shirts are scheduled to play their first T20I against New Zealand on December 18 but they have started to train on Wednesday as the squad was in a 14-day quarantine period and were not allowed to practice and train in managed isolation.

“We are trying to cover the time we lost in isolation but it is very difficult for players as they cannot cover the preparations of three weeks in a single week,” Misbah said while talking to a group of journalists from Christchurch.

“Players are responding well in training sessions as they are trying to return to their best ahead of the T20I series,” he added.

Misbah credited his troops for making sacrifices in these tough times which is not just good for international cricket to go forward but for New Zealand Cricket too.

“It is important for everyone to take the sport forward and has to make sacrifices just like Pakistan cricket gave here in New Zealand,” he added.

Misbah accepted that the bowlers in the team don’t have experience of that caliber but still, they are pacers who have been playing consistently.

“It’s a new learning curve for bowlers wherever they go but still Shaheen Shah and Wahab Riaz have the experience, Haris Rauf has played in Australia. Yes, experience of high stature isn’t in the team but they are getting into that groove where they can surprise on the given day,” he added.

Misbah believes that the series against New Zealand would be difficult but they can match up with the Kiwis as they have quality in bowling but admitted it would be a challenging task for batters.

It must be noted that the team is under training and is playing intra-squad practice matches at the events center in Queenstown. They will travel to Auckland on December 15 for a T20I series against New Zealand, starting from 18 December.