Big boost to Malek and Pakistan

Abu Dhabi: The 3-0 sweep against the West Indies in the Fortune Cup could not have come at a better time for Shoaib Malek and Pakistan, who are starved of international cricket and crippled by a variety of factors.

Though it was a sweep, Pakistan did have some anxious moments and to describe it in rival skipper Chris Gayle's words, "We beat ourselves."

While there is no doubt that the West Indies' younger and inexperienced players let down the team, this certainly cannot take the sheen away from the Pakistani triumph.

Shoaib Malek was himself under tremendous pressure over his leadership qualities while his team had played only 15 one-dayers in 2008 coming into this event, ten of them against weaklings Bangladesh and Zimbabwe.

With Australia, South Africa and New Zealand refusing to play in Pakistan citing security reasons, Shoaib's squad had virtually little international cricket and no Test cricket. The ban on Mohammad Asif over use of drugs, Mohammad Yousuf's absence after the star joined the ICL and finally the sacking of coach Geoff Lawson left Shoaib Malek leading a team woefully short of cricket and confidence arriving here last week.

Setback

But the final setback came when the man, who was to play a major role for Pakistan here, Shoaib Akhtar, was out with a calf injury. However the handful of seniors along with the younger lot put their hands up and Shoaib's job became easier as Pakistan lifted themselves out of trouble in all three matches.

"Before the start of this series, I had asked the players to play to potential and show commitment," Malek said at the post event press conference. "They have done that quite well and I am pleased they have given their best here," he added.

Looking forward to the Indian tour of Pakistan starting in January, Malek said, "This win here will not only help us step up the ODI ranking from 6th to 4th and that is good. This success is also a huge boost. However the way India is playing we have to put in extra effort and work hard," he said.

While their fielding efforts continue to nag Pakistan, the failure of their openers Salman Butt and Khurram Manzoor will also be a matter of concern.

For Gayle and the West Indies, the failure to win a single match despite their batsmen scoring a century in every game, will be a worrying factor. Gayle scored two of them to win the man of the series award but apart from that he was riled with the lack of commitment by the younger lot.

"We have to go back to the drawing board," is what he said.