Pakistan one-day captain Azhar Ali said Sunday his aim was to create a sufficient pool of players for the national team within three years so that Pakistan remained resourceful after the departure of senior players.
Talking in a news channel, the cricket team captain said he had never dreamt of being the captain of the national side but he always kept himself ready for any responsibility or role within the team.
He said he had captaincy experience in the domestic cricket too which would help him at international stage.
Azhar said that after being the captain he had to shoulder more responsibilities and he wanted to set criteria for the other players by own improved performance so that they could follow the example and produce their best efforts in the field.
He said he would try to continue his batting form and also to bring improvement in his performances.
“I have also played as an opener in the past too and also working on improving my leg-spin bowling to help the balance of the team. I will try to keep the things simple and clear for the players in the field.” He added.
He refuted the claims that opinion of captain and team management is not being given importance by the selectors for the team selection.
He said he always tried to give honest opinion in selection matters and selection committee’s decision however is the final one only but everybody has to play his role and responsibility for the preparation of a successful and winning combination.
He said he would always welcome the positive criticism but the media should publish the news about the players after verifying the facts as many a time media spreads baseless and false news about players.
“Pakistan people do not show patience while talking about cricket. They should understand that Pakistan are going through restructuring phase and to make a winning unit takes time. When we would provide the opportunities to young players then we should also be prepared for unexpected results. We are working on long-term goals but also trying to achieve short-term targets,” he said.
He said Pakistan wanted to be part of the Champions Trophy Tournament and they would achieve this target.
He said youngsters had shown temperament which was an important trait to prove their abilities and had given impressive performances.
Azhar said Pakistan need to adopt the changing pace, level and style in the batting to become at par with their competitors.
He hoped that as soon as the best available talent in the bowling department got rid of their injuries and regained full fitness the problem would be automatically solved.
