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Former Pakistan cricketers hail India for tri-series win
Former captain Javed Miandad says Dhoni led his young side well and used his bowlers intelligently.
- Press Trust of India
- Updated: March 05, 2008 11:20 AM IST
Read Time:3 min
Karachi:
India stunned Australia on Tuesday by winning the first two of the best-of-three finals, leaving the hosts ruing their second successive series defeat in the triangular event.
"In the end, the class of Sachin Tendulkar came through in telling fashion giving us another example that the little master's career is far from over even now," former Pakistan captain Javed Miandad said.
Tendulkar blasted a hundred and 91 in the finals to set up the sweet victories for his side after a particularly abrasive Test and one-day series.
Miandad said Tendulkar was the main difference between the two sides. "He scored runs when it mattered the most in not easy conditions to bat in. There was a lot of pressure on him and he came through. You could see he was very keen to win this series."
The former Pakistan skipper said Dhoni led his young side well and used his bowlers intelligently.
"The decision to use a natural wristy swing bowler like Praveen Kumar on the Australian pitches was a wise decision and it paid off."
Miandad said the Indians had exposed some chinks in the Australian armour.
"But I do not think this is the start of a bad run for the Aussies. They still remain a tough nut to crack and will bounce back soon," Miandad said.
Former wicketkeeper Rashid Latif said India deserved to savour their victory as it had been a good last few days for them.
"They also won the ICC Youth World Cup in Malaysia, so it is a double celebration for them. But I like the way their selectors are showing more faith in younger players for the one-day version of the sport," he said.
Latif said Australia only had themselves to blame for the defeat. "I just felt maybe at times their focus was more on other things like sledging and confrontations with the Indian players. They did not concentrate single-mindedly on their cricket."
"You could see the Indians were more hungry and focused to win the finals. Maybe the Australians were a bit complacent at times and it backfired for them," Latif said.
Former Test bowler Rashid Khan said India's victory was more due to their mental tenaciousness than anything else.
"I think the incidents in the Test series made them more determined to win the tri-series.
"But there is no doubt they have found a good sensible and composed captain for one-day cricket in Dhoni and their policy of having different captains for Test and one-day cricket is paying of well for them," Khan sad.
He also advised the Pakistan board to study the Indian concept on captaincy and see if it can work in Pakistan.
Former Test spinner Tauseef Ahmed said Australia did not play like the world champions and deserved to lose the series.
"India had far more variety in their bowling and they did the right thing by including a leg-spinner for the finals. For Australia to win, their batsmen had to click all the time as their bowling is one-dimensional now. I think Australia could face more tough times as India has shown they are fallible," he said.
Former Pakistani cricketers on Wednesday praised the gutsy performance of Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his men, who beat world champions Australia to win the tri-series in style.India stunned Australia on Tuesday by winning the first two of the best-of-three finals, leaving the hosts ruing their second successive series defeat in the triangular event.
"In the end, the class of Sachin Tendulkar came through in telling fashion giving us another example that the little master's career is far from over even now," former Pakistan captain Javed Miandad said.
Tendulkar blasted a hundred and 91 in the finals to set up the sweet victories for his side after a particularly abrasive Test and one-day series.
Miandad said Tendulkar was the main difference between the two sides. "He scored runs when it mattered the most in not easy conditions to bat in. There was a lot of pressure on him and he came through. You could see he was very keen to win this series."
The former Pakistan skipper said Dhoni led his young side well and used his bowlers intelligently.
"The decision to use a natural wristy swing bowler like Praveen Kumar on the Australian pitches was a wise decision and it paid off."
Miandad said the Indians had exposed some chinks in the Australian armour.
"But I do not think this is the start of a bad run for the Aussies. They still remain a tough nut to crack and will bounce back soon," Miandad said.
Former wicketkeeper Rashid Latif said India deserved to savour their victory as it had been a good last few days for them.
"They also won the ICC Youth World Cup in Malaysia, so it is a double celebration for them. But I like the way their selectors are showing more faith in younger players for the one-day version of the sport," he said.
Latif said Australia only had themselves to blame for the defeat. "I just felt maybe at times their focus was more on other things like sledging and confrontations with the Indian players. They did not concentrate single-mindedly on their cricket."
"You could see the Indians were more hungry and focused to win the finals. Maybe the Australians were a bit complacent at times and it backfired for them," Latif said.
Former Test bowler Rashid Khan said India's victory was more due to their mental tenaciousness than anything else.
"I think the incidents in the Test series made them more determined to win the tri-series.
"But there is no doubt they have found a good sensible and composed captain for one-day cricket in Dhoni and their policy of having different captains for Test and one-day cricket is paying of well for them," Khan sad.
He also advised the Pakistan board to study the Indian concept on captaincy and see if it can work in Pakistan.
Former Test spinner Tauseef Ahmed said Australia did not play like the world champions and deserved to lose the series.
"India had far more variety in their bowling and they did the right thing by including a leg-spinner for the finals. For Australia to win, their batsmen had to click all the time as their bowling is one-dimensional now. I think Australia could face more tough times as India has shown they are fallible," he said.
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