The weather is cooler and the air is fresher here and that
has allowed Pakistan’s players to carry out one of their longest training session
here at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium on Sunday since arriving in
Sri Lanka for the World Cup.
Team officials are pushing their players to work harder in
the training sessions as they want them to adapt themselves to playing in
higher altitude.
“Pallekele is almost 2000 feet above sea level which at
times can make the job a bit tougher for the players, especially when they are
used to playing and training in places like Colombo,” Intikhab Alam, the
Pakistan manager, told Arab News here.
“It’s more demanding than training in Colombo. We have asked
our boys to train harder because we want them to adapt themselves to the
conditions here so that they can give their best in the upcoming matches
against New Zealand and Zimbabwe here,” added Intikhab, a former Pakistan
captain.
Pakistan will meet the Black Caps here on Tuesday followed
by their fifth World Cup game – against Zimbabwe – on March 14.
Intikhab said that Pakistan didn’t do any batting and
bowling practice and instead just focused on training and a fielding session on
Sunday.
“We are focusing on improving our fielding because we have
to really improve in that area ahead of our upcoming matches,” said Intikhab.
Pakistan will hold another training session ugh as the one
held on Sunday on Monday (today) but Intikhab said that it won’t be as the on
Sunday. “We have a match on Tuesday and want the boys to be physically and
mentally ready for it.”
Pallekele Stadium is a stunning facility that can house
35,000 spectators. It’s about a 30-minute drive from Kandy city to get to the
stadium. Pallekele was supposed to host a couple of warm-up games ahead of the
World Cup last month but the matches were shifted from here to Sinhalese Sports
Club (SSC) in Colombo because of heavy rains.
Pallekele Stadium is one of Sri Lanka's three venues
developed for World Cup 2011. It was built by the government-owned State
Engineering Corporation of Sri Lanka and is designed along the lines of the
SuperSport Park in Centurion, South Africa.
“It’s
a lovely facility, isn’t it,” said Intikhab, who came to Sri Lanka for the
first time way back in 1964. “The ground is beautiful and the wickets look to
be quite good. It’s certainly a very good cricket venue, especially for one-day
cricket,” he added.
