'Intense, Exciting Fare In Offing'

Some intense and exciting cricket is on the cards whenIndia and Pakistan renew their duels this week. The history of cricketingbattles against our neighbour over the years are indicative of this.

After a long wait of 15 years, a rousing welcome awaitsthe Indian team when they travel to Pakistan tomorrow. The last time I rememberany host country looked forward to welcoming a cricketing nation was when I wasthe member of the touring Indian squad to South Africa in 1992. The SouthAfricans were witnessing international cricket after a gap of 23 years and Indiawas the fortunate one to be a part of that history.

The reception that we received on our arrival in Durbanwas fantastic. I felt that the entire city had lined up en-route from theairport to the hotel and one could see the enthusiasm and the genuine love ofthe people. The series was termed as the 'Friendship Tour' and the relationshiphas only become stronger between the two countries after that tour.

I am sure the team could expect a similar kind of a reception from the people ofPakistan and I feel that I am missing something special here.

A young boy of 15 years travelled with the Indian teamon our last visit but this time around, he is the only member in the squad tohave had the experience of playing in Pakistan on a full tour. Sachin Tendulkar'sinputs on the conditions prevailing will be invaluable to the team.

A lot of water has flowed under the bridge since thattime and he has grown to an iconic status not only in India but also all overthe world. Knowing him, I am sure he would step-up his game which he has alwaysdone whenever we have played our arch rivals.

Although, a few of the other players have also touredPakistan, some as part of a three-match one-day series while the others at theIndia 'A' and under-19 levels; this tour will have a sense of anticipation,caution and purpose.

Our batting has been the mainstay and again this serieswill revolve around our batsmen to put runs on the board or to back themselvesin getting the required runs in the event of a run-chase.

I feel the conditions in Pakistan would not bedrastically different from those prevailing in the north of our country andgoing by the wickets that were prepared in the recently concluded one-day serieswith New Zealand in Pakistan, it is going to be a run-feast.

If the two young fast bowlers L. Balaji and Irfan Pathan can carry their one-dayform of the recent VB Series in Australia to this Samsung Cup, along with ZaheerKhan and Ashish Nehra, now fully fit, our fast bowling department looks in ablehands.

With Murali Kartik assuming the role of a seniorspinner for the first time on tour, I am confident that he will live up to theexpectations of carrying this responsibility with the other young off-spinnerRamesh Powar.

I also think the other all-rounders (not part-timebowlers) Saurav Ganguly, Sachin, Yuvraj Singh, Virender Sehwag and HemangBadani's contribution with the ball will prove crucial to our success in thistournament.

A lot of advice has come about as to how India needs tohandle the pressure of playing Pakistan on its home soil from various quarters,but I know for a fact that Ganguly, John Wright and the team management whichincludes Rahul Dravid and Tendulkar would ensure to keep everyone's focus on thejob at hand and back their abilities and remind everyone about our lastencounter against Pakistan in the World Cup.

When Shoaib Akhtar or Zaheer take the new ball, readyto bowl the first delivery in this historic series, all eyes will be on cricketwhile all other issues pertaining to security and other concerns will be put torest.

While a billion Indians and a few million in otherparts of the world would be hoping for an Indian victory, one Indian, yourstruly, will be eagerly awaiting to get back into action soon to join histeam-mates in this historic journey.

PTI