Misbah raps misfiring batters

ADELAIDE, Australia: Misbah-ul-Haq admitted on Friday that Pakistan lacked the sort of batting credentials that a team needed to make the cut for World Cup last four.
“Batting has been now a problem for almost three, four years. We are not up to the mark, not up to international standards. We need to really improve that,” Pakistan’s captain told reporters after his team flopped in its World Cup quarter-final against Australia here at Adelaide Oval.
Pakistan’s brittle batting was the biggest reason for the defeat as they could manage only 213 after Misbah elected to bat first on a good, hard track.
“We just lost the way in the middle overs. I mean, we were really going well at one stage, but after 20, 23 overs, suddenly started losing wickets, and that’s been the trend throughout the World Cup. We are getting starts but we are not converting them into bigger scores, and after six batsmen keep doing like that, it’s really difficult for your bowling lineup to just defend totals like that every day, especially on batting pitches like we were playing today.
We need to really learn about this. We’ve got only one hundred throughout the tournament, and this is not how you win tournaments like World Cup. You need batsmen who will score hundreds, and I think we as a batting unit failed to do that.”
Poor fielding was another reason why Pakistan were unable to counter the Australians.
“Fielding is another aspect where all the other international teams are really going up to a higher level, and we really need to improve that, and obviously that comes with the fitness. I think we need to really improve that, otherwise we’re going to suffer in the future.”
Misbah rued the fact that he got out while going for a big shot against spinner Glenn Maxwell, without making a big score for his team.
“That was part of the plan. We had to target the fifth or sixth bowler. But just missed that shot. This is how this game goes on. You as a batsman need to convert these shots into big innings, otherwise your team just keeps losing. So that’s a big disappointment for me, but now the game is over.
The fact that there is no international cricket in Pakistan means that the Green-shirts lag behind other top teams when it comes to exposure.
“you need more exposure always,” Misbah said. ”If you’ve got more chances, you’ve got more exposure, that could really enhance your skills, enhance your confidence level, and you could really become a better player. Pakistani players need more cricket. What I have been already suggesting to the cricket board, that we need our league, as early as possible, we need more cricket for these youngsters to just improve their skills. Without exposure I think it’s not possible.”
Misbah predicted that the Australia-India semi-final in Sydney will be a tough encounter.
“I think both sides are really playing good cricket. It is going to be really a tough match. They’re both in form, and India also have got a chance because they are playing in Sydney where the pitch is good for spinners.