Zaheer Abbas: Only a Pakistani victory will boost morale

09/09/2010

Only a victory in front of fans with cricket hospitality tickets in the upcoming ODI series with England will be enough to boost Pakistan's morale, according to Zaheer Abbas.

The legendary batsman, who scored more than 5,000 runs in 78 Tests for Pakistan and was known as the Asian Bradman, said the tourists' confidence could be boosted by a win.

He claimed this would help the team get over the disappointment of losing the Twenty20 series 2-0 and the Test campaign 3-1, as well as the recent match fixing allegations.

Speaking to the Associated Press, Abbas commented: "Victory is the only solution to lift the morale of the team."

His thoughts echo those of Pakistan's limited-overs captain Shahid Afridi, who stated that one success for his team in front of cricket hospitality customers would be a major boost.

"One victory and [morale] will be very high," he remarked.

The England v Pakistan ODI series kicks off tomorrow (September 10th 2010) in Durham.

Posted by Liz Johnstone