MANCHESTER, England, 31 May — Pakistan team manager Yawar Saeed yesterday held a lengthy meeting with the Lancashire cricket officials, the Greater Manchester Police deputy commissioner and match referee Brian Hastings to review security arrangements for the second Test at Old Trafford, but denied that he had requested for any police escorts or extra security for his team following the riots in Oldham.
Yawar told Arab News‚ that it was incorrect to say Pakistan had made any request to the Lancashire officials or Manchester Police to provide the team with extra security for the match and while traveling from their hotel to the ground.
“We did not request for any security. The meeting was called by the Lancashire chief executive and Manchester police officials and they have taken security measures on their own count as they don’t want any problems during the Test in the crowd.”
He insisted that he had as a precautionary measure met with the Pakistan High Commissioner and Khurshid Ahmad, secretary of the Pakistan Cultural Association in Oldham on Tuesday and they had assured him the players had nothing to worry about, despite the recent riots.
In the wake of the riots in which some 500 Asian youths fed up with being goaded by right wing National front white extremists went on the rampage earlier this week in Oldham, which is located in the suburbs of Manchester, there is a real concern that right-wing extremists will try to create trouble in the ground. Police also believe Asian and white outsiders traveled from other parts of England, including Bradford and Huddersfield, to inflame the situation at the weekend.
However, a Greater Manchester Police spokeswoman said extra officers will be on standby when England take on Pakistan in their 2nd Test at Old Trafford today.
“We will have plenty of resources at the cricket ground. At the ground there will be a relatively average number of officers and there may be extra officers if needed.”
She says riots in Oldham do not necessarily mean there would be trouble at the Test, which thousands of young Asians are expected to attend.
Deborah Simpson, of Lancashire County Cricket Club, said it was working closely with the police in organizing security for the match.
“There is a plan to divide the fans into different sections to avoid trouble. But we are confident everything will go well. We had a potentially much worse situation in the 1999 World Cup, when India and Pakistan played here.
More than 45,000 tickets have been sold for the match, which has been marketed as a home fixture for Pakistani supporters living in the North West.
Former Pakistan captain Imran Khan has also called for calm among the Asian community in the Oldham area following the riots and said he did not believe the match would be disturbed by trouble between the Asian youths and right-wing extremists.
Pakistan ditch final training
session for fun park
The Pakistan team yesterday took a different approach to build up for the second Test against England by choosing to take a day off from nets and instead concentrating on developing a strategy for the match by holding a lengthy team meeting.
The Pakistanis were scheduled to have nets at Old Trafford, but decided to call it off and instead while in the morning the players went off too Blackpool to do some sightseeing, later in the afternoon they came back to a long team meeting in which not only was the team to be finalized but also strategy for the Test was part of the discussion. Waqar Younis said the nets were called off since the team had had lots of net sessions on the tour but little real match practice for the Test matches. “We just felt that it would be better to take a different approach and instead allow the boys to relax and than have a team meeting and put our heads together on we are going to approach this match, which is very important for us.”
He insisted that no amount of nets could compensate for real competitive cricket and unfortunately that had been lacking on this tour either due to weak opposition put up by the county sides or the weather. “This tour has not provided us with the ideal match practice for the Tests, but their is nothing we can really do about it. I am hoping that if we stick together and play as a team to a plan, it would do us much good rather than having nets everyday.”
However he made it clear that individually the players had been given the option of having nets if they wanted too. Wicketkeeper and batsman Rashid Latif took the opportunity to go to a nearby ground with former Pakistan batsman Asif Mujtaba and have a knock in the nets. He said it was mainly because he was playing for Pakistan after a long time and still required to have maximum practice in the nets.
Waqar said playing a spinner was definitely an option for him as the Old Trafford pitch was unlike the one at Lord’s. “It is expected to get dry as the match progresses and the rough surface will also rough up the ball. Saqlain should play.”
Pakistan probable: Saeed Anwar, Abdul Razzaq, Younis Khan, Inzamam ul-Haq, Yousaf Youhanna, Faisal Iqbal, Azhar Mehmood, Rashid Latif, Wasim Akram, Saqlain Mushtaq, Waqar Younis and Mushtaq Ahmad.
England: Marcus Trescothick, Michael Atherton, Vaughan, Graham Thorpe, Nick Knight, Alec Stewart, Ian Ward, Dominic Cork, Robert Croft, Darren Gough, Andrew Caddick.
Pakistan can bounce back at
Old Trafford: Stewart
England captain Alec Stewart believes that Pakistan has the capability to bounce back at Old Trafford, which is a ground which he says suits them more than the home side.We can’t lose the series against Pakistan, but any games we go into we try to win. This one will be no different. We know that they’re a good side and will bounce back, and I suggest that if there’s one ground in England that they could choose to play us on it would be Old Trafford,” he said.
“There’s always been reverse swing there in the past, which they enjoy; the wicket can turn, and they’ve got quality spinners, and there’ll be strong Pakistani support in the area. So it is not going to be easy going for us. I just hope the confidence we have shown as a team in the past few months sticks here also.”
Wasim, Waqar make their last Test appearance on English soil
Having hounded and terrorized England in 1992 and ’96‚ Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis make their last Test appearance on English soil here at Old Trafford today.
The once fearsome pace pair failed to bowl Pakistan to victory at Lord’s as they had done on the 1992 and 96‚ tours, but Old Trafford offers them both a chance to redeem themselves and also silence critics who now question if they are worth their places in a Pakistan side, with several emerging players.
