Pakistan coach Waqar Younis confident of victory over England

Waqar believes Pakistan are better suited to the conditions in the UAE

Waqar Younis is confident that Pakistan can beat England in the UAE, The Dawn reports. The 43-year-old feels that the pitches on offer will be crucial to Pakistan’s chances of coming out on top.

Pakistan are set to face Zimbabwe away in a short series comprising of two T20Is and three ODIs before heading to the gulf nation where they will come up against a rejuvenated England side. Pakistan have done well in the recent past in Test matches, especially at their new ‘home’ the UAE having beaten Australia 2-0 and then drawing the 3-Test series against New Zealand 1-1.

Though the Zimbabwe tour is hardly a week away, the coach of the Pakistan team is in no doubt as to which the bigger series is.

“We are focused on the Test series against England more than the Zimbabwe tour,” Younis said. “I just want the boys to replicate the performances they gave against Australia and New Zealand last year.”

Younis is buoyed by the team’s recent performances and expressed confidence that his side can get the better of England citing the familiarity with the conditions as the key reason.

“I am confident we can win this series against England if we play the way we did against Australia and New Zealand. Our players are used to the pitches in the UAE and if we look at the number of centuries scored by Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq or Azhar Ali in Tests, I think we can do well,” he said. “They have some quality players but I think conditions in the UAE are different for them while for our players it is like a second home since we have not been able to play in Pakistan.”

Off-spinner Saeed Ajmal was overlooked for the tour, but Pakistan still possess a potent threat in the spin department in the form of Yasir Shah and Zulfiqar Babar. Younis is counting on the duo to be a success against England while he also threw his weight behind Pakistan’s pace battery.

“I think our spinners, particularly Yasir Shah and Zulfiqar Babar have done very well in recent matches and we are counting on them to continue their form,” said Waqar. “I think our spin resources are more than adequate and the pitches there will assist them. Dubai is a bit different, but we also have dependable resources in the pace department.”