Pak eyeing WC silverware having exorcised ghosts of nightmare Oz tour: Afridi

St.LUCIA - Pakistan T20 skipper Shahid Afridi believes that he has injected confidence in the team and helped the players gel better after the disastrous tour of Australia and the whole controversy that followed.

Afridi said since he was given the responsibility to lead the squad, he has been working to end the squabbling among players, adding that issues seem to be over now and that the team has arrived in West Indies leaving all the controversies behind it.

“We have been going through some difficult times with guys being suspended and fined, but this time it’s a new captain. The first thing I was thinking was to keep the guys united, the communication gap between the players was too much, so I tried to make it as close as possible,” The Sydney Morning Herald quoted Afridi, as saying.

“We are all professionals, we can’t carry these things. We are all here with fresh minds, we’re here to play good cricket,” he added.

Afridi said his team, which has a perfect blend of youth and experience, could pull a surprise victory against the mighty Australians in the opening match of the ICC World T20 Championship.

Afridi said his spinners can rattle the powerful Australian batting order.

“In the West Indies the pitches are like the subcontinent, so I think this could be an advantage,” the flamboyant all rounder said.

Meanwhile, coach Waqar Younis has said that he plans to inject the same killer instinct in the current squad that the 1992 World Champion side possessed.

“I will try to induct the same kind of aggression and fire in the team, which was Pakistan’s trademark in the 1990s, as it is necessary for us to win and retain the title,” Waqar said. (ANI)