Last thirty days have been quite eventful for Pakistan cricket. We have seen an elected chairman taking charge of the Pakistan Cricket Board, a new T20 skipper being handed the reins, country’s leading wicket-taker getting sidelined over a suspect bowling action and the advent of the prestigious ICC World Cup trophy.

PCB Chairman Shaharyar Khan has now pretty much settled down in his job and has already made evident his plans regarding a revamp of domestic cricket besides reorganisation of the game at the grass-roots level. Both are positive, futuristic moves and key steps towards bringing Pakistan once again at par with the top teams of the world.

Our domestic cricket, despite a busy schedule, needs streamlining on professional lines to make it fiercely competitive for the youngsters and upcoming players. There’s talent in abundance in this region but it lacks the sort of grooming which could make the young guns mentally tough and match-fit. The revamping will, surely, take time but since the direction has been set, the results will come Inshallah.

As for school cricket, it used to be big in Pakistan in the early days and produced a number of talented players who represented the country with aplomb. India and Sri Lanka, too, have benefitted tremendously from school cricket and I firmly believe that if we successfully revive it, there’s no reason why we can’t become world beaters again.

I would also like to appreciate here Shahid Afridi’s appointment as the new T20 captain. The all-rounder is a fighter to the core and his never-say-die approach can be instrumental in lifting the morale of his teammates who are still smarting from the successive Test and ODI defeats in Sri Lanka.

Afridi enjoys a cult status among the Pakistani fans and they always expect him to win the matches single-handedly for Pakistan. But cricket is a team game and, while Afridi has looked a bit rusty with his own form of late, I know from my experience of dealing with him as a selector that he can really inspire the team as a leader when the chips are down. He displayed that panache in the 2011 World Cup when he led the team to the semis without losing a single game before the nerves got the better of them against arch-rivals India.

The fact that Afridi has been given a longer run as skipper this time — till the 2016 World T20 — will also add to his confidence as captain which augurs well for Pakistan.

While efforts are being made on every front by PCB to equip and rejuvenate the players for the tough battle against the Australians next month, my advise to the team will be to shrug off the Sri Lanka nightmare and look ahead to the contest with renewed confidence and a positive mindset. Of course, the performance of the players will be the key there, but we must take heart from the fact that the weather conditions, the crowds and the pitches in the UAE are hugely conducive to Pakistan and that give us a clear edge over the Aussies.

There is no doubt that sidelining of leading wicket-taker Saeed Ajmal is besetting for the team, but as often seen in history, it may well prove to be a blessing in disguise if a rookie spinner or a newcomer can take the Australians by surprise with his repertoire and guile. Yes, Ajmal’s is a huge loss, indeed, but if the Australians can survive Shane Warne’s retirement and there’s life for Sri Lanka post Muralitharan, Pakistan can surely find a match-winner to fill Ajmal’s shoes. It won’t be easy, but such things have happened in cricket and they can happen again.

Finally, a word about the prestigious ICC World Cup 2015 trophy. It is an impressive piece of work and its arrival has generated a fair bit of enthusiasm among the fans and the players. The trophy, currently on a global tour, will eventually return to Melbourne where the World Cup final is scheduled to be played. The Australian city is a familiar venue for Pakistan and a historic one where they beat England in the final to lift the glittering trophy in 1992. History, they say, repeats itself and if Pakistan team works hard and stay focussed, they can bring the trophy home once again.

The writer is a former Test cricketer and chief selector

Published in Dawn, September 20th, 2014