The Hindu : Sachin is the key: Zaheer Abbas

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Mar 23, 2003

Sport

Sport - World Cup

Sachin is the key: Zaheer Abbas

New Delhi March 22. Former Pakistan captain Zaheer Abbas has said that if Sachin Tendulkar played another of his masterful knocks in the final of the World Cup, it will be difficult for the Australians to defend their title.

Lavishing praise on the master blaster, Abbas said here on Friday that if Tendulkar could carry his bat, India could well put up a score of over 300.

``Even though the Australians are a strong side, it is beyond them to stop Sachin if he starts accumulating runs,'' said Abbas.

One of the most successful captains of his time, Abbas made 2,572 runs in 62 one-day Internationals with seven centuries and 13 half centuries at an average of 47.63. He had a fantastic strike rate of 84.80 in the shorter version of the game. He also made 5,062 runs in 78 Tests.

Asked about Pakistan's dismal performance in the World Cup, Abbas held the team and ``not some individuals'' responsible for the debacle in South Africa.

On India's win over Pakistan in the league match at Centurion on March 1, he said a team would win some matches and lose some and that there was no point being disappointed by it.

Abbas, who runs a business in Karachi, admitted that he was contemplating joining politics, but refused to divulge details on whether he would align himself with some present parties or form a new one.

The 56-year-old Abbas also refused comment on whether he would join another former Pakistan skipper Imran Khan's party.

Asked about the Indo-Pak tension and its effect on cricket between the two nations, Abbas said, ``we are ready to play cricket with India, but they do not agree with us.''

He further stated that India should understand that matches between the two teams would lead to greater interaction and many younger players could get some valuable tips from the senior cricketers.

Remembering his playing days, Abbas said even though he had to face a lot of pace bowlers during his career, it was the Indian spin quartet of S. Venkatraghavan, Erapalli Prasanna, Bishen Singh Bedi and Bhagwat Chandrashekhar that he feared the most. — UNI

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