Flower expects Multan young guns to deliver

LAHORE: Multan Sultans will open their campaign against defending champions Lahore Qalandars on February 13.

Their head coach Andy Flower on Wednesday talked to PCB Digital about his side’s preparations.

“Shan [Masood] started the captaincy of Multan when I started with Multan and he did an outstanding job. And since [Mohammad] Rizwan has taken over, he has also been outstanding as a leader. So that’s a good starting point.

“We have a really good and solid coaching staff with good local knowledge. It has been particularly brilliant to have Mushtaq Ahmed and Abdur Rahman by my side and get their input and direction,” said Andy.

“We're happy with the way the draft went and the replacement draft that's just happened. Getting the quality of someone like [Kieron] Pollard in that replacement draft is really important,” Andy added.

“I'm really looking forward to working with Usama Mir. I know Mushtaq Ahmed, our spin bowling and assistant coach, really likes him, and so I am really looking forward to what he can do for us this season. If you have good local players, that gives you the best chance in the tournament. It is not all about the overseas players at all. It's about having good, strong, talented local player,” he said.

“Shan and Rizwan . . . are a great combination and good strong Pakistani men that help us as a team stay strong. Shahnawaz Dhani is super exciting and always great fun to be around,” he added.

“I am very excited to see Ihsanullah do his things. We saw him as an emerging talent last year, so we used him briefly. He bowls with genuine pace. He attacks a bit like Dahani, so that is going to be very exciting, not only for us, but also for Multan and Pakistan fans. He’s a very exciting prospect who bowls a real pace,” he said.