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Rediff.com  » News » India's confidence will be the key: Atherton

India's confidence will be the key: Atherton

By Faisal Shariff in Durban
February 28, 2003 18:01 IST
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Inzamam-ul Haq has lost 12 kilograms of weight. He is hungry for runs and his appetite should be ravenous when Pakistan takes onĀ old cricketing foe India on Saturday.

But Michael Atherton urges Indian bowlers not to worry. The former England captain and opening batsman says the form of Pakistan's No. 1 batsman is a good thing going for them.

"Inzy is a bit out; he is struggling for confidence. He has scored only 10 runs in four outings. So you should hope that his poor run continues. If they look at the tapes of Inzamam's dismissals they will very well know where he has been getting out; I am sure they can work it out for themselves."

Overall, says Atherton, Pakistan's batting line-up looks short of confidence.

"Yousuf Youhana is a good player. But he, too, has been getting out in similar ways. Youhana looked in good touch against the Dutch, played nicely. His running between the wickets looks a little iffy; maybe, you should look for the run-out."

Atherton believes that India should not go into the match on the back foot. Confidence is the key against a team like Pakistan.

"Wasim is a good bowler and has the ability to swing the ball on any surface, so does Waqar Younis. With Shoaib that makes for a pretty fearsome trio. But India has some fantastic batsmen as well. They should just be confident and should win this game easily," says Atherton.

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Faisal Shariff in Durban