The coaches of West Indies and Pakistan were giving Zoom interviews on Saturday and there was one common thread. Now the talk is about how the Test matches will pan out rather than whether they will happen at all. This is progress.
Phil Simmons and his West Indies squad are already in Manchester, where he said “the facilities are second to none” and that his players feel secure. There are many challenges ahead and he thinks one of the biggest will be boredom since the squad must lead a hermit-like existence during their stay in England. The first Test starts at Southampton on 8 July with two more to follow at Old Trafford, starting on 16 and 24 July.
“It may take a while for boredom to set in; at the moment the guys just want to play and practise. Fortunately we have some characters here – like Jason Holder [the captain] – who keep everything lively.”
He revealed “the guys have been playing dominoes, which can be an explosive form of entertainment” as well as cards and golf simulation. They have been in lockdown for two months; now, at least they can train together.
On the cricketing front Simmons is more concerned about the batting – which is weakened by the absence of Darren Bravo and Shimron Hetmyer – than the bowling. He spoke glowingly of the 22-year-old pace bowler Chemar Holder and pointed out that the far more experienced Shannon Gabriel, a travelling reserve recovering from injury, could elevate himself to the Test squad if he gets fit and performs well over the next three weeks.
Misbah-ul-Haq is now Pakistan’s chief selector as well as their head coach. He acknowledges that England will be at an advantage in their matches since they will have had three games under their belt when that series begins in August. “But we should have four weeks of good practice and though we will miss the atmosphere of a crowd we do play more often than most in empty stadiums in the UAE.”
He was cagey about any quid pro quo between his board and the England and Wales Cricket Board. “Our first concern is about restarting cricket. It is not in our minds that the ECB has to do something in return. Getting the players back playing is most important. But there is a bigger picture …”
That includes the yearning for international cricket to return to Pakistan. This prospect may be enhanced by the current warm relationship between the ECB and the Pakistan Cricket Board; that same element of cooperation applies with the ECB and Cricket West Indies. It just so happens the CEOs of Pakistan and West Indies, Wasim Khan and Johnny Grave respectively, are English and highly regarded at Lord’s (and the Oval).
Misbah took the opportunity to send his best wishes to Shahid Afridi, who has contracted Covid-19 after volunteering to help in one of the poorer areas of Pakistan. AThen he returned to more conventional territory. He also possesses a paceman of great potential, Naseem Shah, a 17-year-old fast bowler with four Tests under his belt who “has already proved that he is quick, he has control, he swings the ball and has a good bouncer … He will emerge as a big star”.
That is the sort of talking point we all crave.
