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Zainub · #1 (**permalink**) 03-10-2004, 03:23 PM

Arbab Niaz Stadium, Peshawar: 258 for 7 (48.1) (Shoaib Malik 80, Younis Khan 77, Panyangara 3-28) beat Zimbabwe 252-4 (50) (Taylor 73, Ebrahim 71*, Taibu 46*) by three wickets

What can I say? Is there anything to say at all? Conceding 253 against Zimbabwe and then sliding to 80 odd for four in reply before eventually winning by just 3 wickets. Pakistan are a side consistent in inconsistency and unpredictability. Rest assured in this department we will not change this quickly.

We should have played better today, and won more convincingly, there is no doubting that fact but I'm sure that the entire team management are more relived then concerned about the nerviness that was displayed by the crop of youngster we tried out. In the end we did well to avoid an upset - hopefully players like Rao Iftikhar, Salman Butt, Bazid Khan and Misbah Ulhaq have come out from this game with the realization that each game is equally important. And there never should be room for complacency. And that if you get your chance you don't let it go waste.

I'm pleased to see Shoaib Malik and Younus Khan back among the runs - it is always nice to see seasoned campaigners come back into form. It was interesting to say the least to witness the experiment with the gloves, Younus Khan did Ok, if nothing spectacular, and for a man who was only keeping for the third time in his entire international career (and only the first for an entire innings) to not concede any byes was a commendable effort indeed.

Bowling wise Malik and Afridi continued to bowl exceptionally well, and in the two we have two spinners who will ensure 20 overs between them without going for more than 90 runs and taking 3 wickets on average (by my calculations any way). Sami bowled well with the new ball but without luck, and he should be in better frame of mind than Naveed ul Hassan going into the match against Sri Lanka at Karachi next Wednesday. Naveed had a good time in England, but I'm afraid he was guilty of bowling too short today - you cannot expect to get away bowling the line and lengths he did today on the wickets in the sub continent even if it is Zimbabwe you are bowling at.

Zimbabwe did not disgrace them selves, and they can take out positives from the bowling of new ball bowler Panyangara and off spinner Utseya. Well done to them as well. Over all I'm expecting a much improved performance with Razzaq, Akhtar and Inzi returning for the next game but house hold names like Yasir Hameed and Yousuf Youhanna (and does any one know why he was batting at 7?) should also look to improve on their returns so far.