Pakistan fully capable of beating Sri Lanka: Mohsin

Friday, 7 October 2011 00:02 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Lahore, Oct 6(ANI): Mohsin Khan, Pakistan’s interim coach for the upcoming series in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) against Sri Lanka, has said that his side is ‘fully capable’ of beating the ‘tough opposition’.

“Though Sri Lanka is one of the best teams in the world today because of their balance and professionalism, Pakistan is also a well-balanced side fully capable of beating them in the tough series,” the Dawn quoted Mohsin, as saying.

He said that while the Pakistan squad has a good combination, team spirit and unity, Sri Lankans are a very balanced team and a tough opposition.

“They (Sri Lankans) have top-class batsmen like (Mahela) Jayawardene, (Kumar) Sangakkara, (Tillakaratne) Dilshan and other and a very decent pace attack, besides a very organised spin-attack. So altogether they are a very balanced team and a tough opposition,” the new head coach said.

When asked about the reason for showing so much faith in the current Pakistan team against a strong side like Sri Lanka, Mohsin said: “I feel this Pakistan team is full of talent in all the departments.”

“In batting, Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq, and Hafeez are solid players who can be the inspiring force for the talented young batsmen in the line up. Also, all-rounder Shoaib Malik’s experience will help the team a lot,” he pointed out.

“World-class bowler like Umar Gul and hard working pacers, such as Wahab Riaz and Aizaz Cheema, coupled with the talent of Junaid Khan, form a very effective pace attack for Pakistan which gives me great hope for the upcoming series,” he added.

Moreover, Saeed Ajmal and Abdul Rehman have proved to be world-class spinners in all the formats of the game, whereas wicketkeeper Adnan Akmal has been doing a brilliant job behind the wicket as well to complete the combination, Mohsin said.