Former Pakistan coach Waqar Younis expects the team's fast bowlers to
shake off the effects of two days in the field and be ready for action
again in time for Wednesday's second Test against Sri Lanka at Dubai
Sports City.Umar Gul, Aizaz Cheema and Junaid Khan bowled 88 overs between them in
Sri Lanka's second innings of the opening match of the three-Test series
as Pakistan battled in vain to force a win.But while Waqar accepted the workload in hot conditions would have left
the trio jaded he was confident they would all be ready to go again at
the Dubai International Cricket Stadium after three days of rest and
recovery."It was hot in Abu Dhabi and that will have taken its toll on the
bowlers," he said. "But three days is long enough (for them to recover)
and they will make sure they are nice and fresh when they come for the
next game."I'm sure they won't do much bowling over the three days between
matches. The team might be doing some more fielding practice instead,"
he added, a comment on the seven catches put down by Pakistan in Sri
Lanka's second innings.The two teams have two scheduled days of practice at the ICC Global
Cricket Academy, another part of the rapidly developing Dubai Sports
City community, ahead of Wednesday's start of the Test.Despite the frustrations of the dropped chances for Pakistan and the
resultant failure to force a win in the first Test after securing a
first innings lead of 314, Waqar was heartened by the team's display."Overall, Pakistan did extremely well," he said. "They bowled very well
in the first innings to bowl Sri Lanka out for 197. That was a great
effort, especially by Junaid Khan and Aizaz Cheema. Both of them bowled
their hearts out and put Sri Lanka on the back foot but Kumar Sangakkara
(who made 218) was too good."Umar Gul looked like he needs another game (to get into his best
rhythm) but Junaid Khan and Aizaz Cheema were very positive and they
were unfortunate not to pick up more wickets because their bowling
deserved more."Waqar, who stepped down as coach in September after 18 months in the
role having taken Pakistan to the semi-finals of the ICC World Twenty20
and the ICC Cricket World Cup, did not rule out a return to coach the
team in future.Now in the United Arab Emirates as part of the TEN Sports commentary
team for the series, Waqar said he was willing to leave the door open to
a possible return in due course."The job of the coach is very time-consuming," he said. "I've just
finished and I need a bit of time to settle down (but) then I'd think
about it (again)."Waqar admitted he was still getting used to watching the Pakistan team without the pressures of being the coach."It is a bit strange not to be part of the team," he said. "I think it
shows in my commentary a bit when I talk about the players because I
still have a feeling for them."It does get a bit frustrating watching them but in this role there's
not the same pressure and that's the beauty of commentary," he said
