Pakistan’s journey in Under-19 cricket from 1988 to 2012 – Part Two
Continued from the previous part...
The 14-man squad included 11 players who went on to play Test cricket for Pakistan. However, the likes of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Danish-Kaneria-c1314 and others failed to live up to the expectations.
In 2002, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Azhar-Ali-c46890 but the team had a miserable tournament, not even qualifying for the semi-finals.
The Green Shirts rose to the occasion in 2004, when they lifted the trophy in http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Khurram-Manzoor-c71388, Mansoor
Amjad, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Riaz-Afridi-c84793.
A couple of years later, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Anwar-Ali-c45231 were also part of that world cup winning campaign.
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/South-Africa-c757 in the semi-final.
In 2010, Pakistan qualified for the final of the tournament in http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Raza-Hasan-c84407, who were part of the squad, have already found a place in the senior team.
The present side under http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Zia-ul-Haq-c98603 have also been extremely impressive.
Having qualified for the last eight of the event, Pakistan’s coach, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/England-c56013, India and Australia will not be a walk in the park for the
Green Shirts.
"In reality, all of the teams have prepared well for this tournament. Bangladesh, India and Pakistan have always had good teams at the Under-19 level. Therefore, I think the upcoming matches are going to be quite tough and we will get to see some really
good cricket," the former first-class cricketer expressed.
Imam-ul-Haq, the left-handed top-order batsman, who has been doing brilliantly in the recent past, claimed at the start of the tournament that his team is here to win. The 16-year-old cricketer, who is the nephew of the former Pakistan captain, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Inzamam-ul-Haq-c64383,
is keen to prove his individual mettle on the world stage.
“I will try my best to perform in this World Cup, which is a really good opportunity not only for me, but for all the players,” the top-order batsman vowed. “I really don't think we have any extra pressure of expectations on us. We are here to win the World
Cup and we will try our best to do that.”
Pakistan’s junior squad is full of talented young players, who are bright prospects for the country’s future in the game. It remains to be seen whether they are able to clinch the tournament for the third time but let us hope that the selectors are able
to find some players, who can go on to represent the nation at the ultimate level of the game.
Disclaimer: Any views and opinions expressed in this article are solely of the author and do not represent Bettor.com's official editorial policy.
Tags: