LAHORE – Pakistan coach and former captain Waqar Younis said he could understand the agony former captain Shoaib Malik has gone through in his love match with Sania Mirza with Ayesha Siddiqui playing the villain’s role.
Talking to journalists here during the camp training, Waqar said that he felt sorry for Shoaib Malik.
Backing Malik amidst the controversy surrounding his marriage with Indian tennis ace Sania Mirza, Waqar described the whole ‘drama’ as ‘sad’ and ‘disappointing’.
“It is their personal matter and I really don’t know the inside story but what I have seen in the media and the way the Indian media has portrayed the issue, it is sad and disappointing,” Waqar said.
Ever since the controversy came out in open late last month, several former and present Pakistani cricketers have expressed sympathy for Shoaib.
On the team’s training, Waqar said he was surprised to see the thrill and eagerness to learn among the players during the ongoing training camp for the T20 World Cup to be held at the West Indies where Pakistan will be defending its title.
“I have been receiving tremendous response from the players since day one of the training camp, and it has stunned me absolutely,” Waqar said.
“May be it is the result of the fines and punishments handed to seven leading players by the Pakistan Cricket Board recently in the aftermath of their poor show in Australia,” he added.
Waqar said he has worked with the national squad in the past, but never seen such a committed response from the players.
“Though I have had my association with the national team in the past as bowling coach and as a player, I have never seen this kind of interest and commitment from the players,” Waqar said.
Commenting on Pakistan’s chances of retaining the World T20 title, Waqar put his weight behind the spinners in the squad, and said they would play a crucial role in helping the team defend the title.
“We have variety in all types of bowling but I think we have an edge in the spin department and we will be hoping our spinners will play a key role in team’s success to defend the title,” he said.
He pointed out that slow bowlers like Shahid Afridi, Saeed Ajmal and Mohammad Hafeez could inflict heavy damage on the best batting line up in the world.
Source: http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Sports/08-Apr-2010/Sad-to-see-Indian-medias-bias-on-Malik-issue-Waqar
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