Former leader keen to keep playing

Inzamam favours one captain for Tests and ODIs

PTI

April 6, 2007

Inzamam-ul-Haq, who quit ODIs, feels one man should captain in both forms of the game © AFP

Inzamam-ul-Haq, who stepped down as captain after Pakistan's humiliating exit from the World Cup, feels it's a good move to have one captain for both the Test and one-day sides for practical reasons. Inzamam, 37, said he was not in favour of having separate leaders for both Pakistan sides as other countries had experimented with in the past.

"I just feel that when you have one captain the players are also comfortable in both formats of the game as they know their captain's style and thinking," Inzamam said. "It is not easy adjusting for players to playing under different captains in different forms of the game."

Inzamam, who has also retired from ODIs but has made it clear he wants to continue playing Test matches, said he was not surprised by allegations leveled against him after Pakistan's poor performance in the World Cup. On the charges that he was an autocratic captain and ran a one-man show, Inzamam said in Pakistan's cricket history there were quite a few captains who were strong and did things their own way.

"Imran Khan is a prime example," he said. "He was a very strong captain compared to others. So if I tried to be strong what is wrong with that? But to say I didn't consult the selectors or other players while taking decisions is wrong. I always believed in seeking other opinion before deciding on something important regarding the team."

Inzamam said he had also wanted to announce his retirement from Test cricket but some of his friends advised him against doing this. "I was terribly disappointed after what happened in the World Cup and I wanted to announce my total retirement," he said. "But my friends said I can still contribute a lot to the team in Test cricket."

He said he was keen to play in Tests but everything depended on the selectors. "I am prepared for anything now," Inzamam said. "But my conscience is clear that I spent all my energy and time in trying to bring success for the country. But one bad tournament and everyone has turned against and I am being accused of things I have never done."

Inzamam said some people had even started to involve him in the match-fixing scandal and were claiming the Justice Malik Mohammad Qayyum report had fined him for his role in match fixing in 2000. "But this is not true, I and some other players were fined because the judge felt we were hiding some facts about the case," he said. "I was never directly punished for any match-fixing."

Inzamam also said he was assured by the Pakistan board and selectors that fast bowlers Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif would be available for the World Cup after being cleared of their doping issues. "But their not being available was a big set back and we had to rethink all our plans for the World Cup," he said.

© PTI

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Players/Umpires

Inzamam-ul-Haq

Series/Tournaments

ICC World Cup

Teams

Pakistan