Rawalpindi, Mar 16: Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf today egged on his team, aiming to square the series against India in the second One-Dayer at the Pindi cricket stadium here. The President, who is also the chief patron of the Pakistan Cricket Board, watched the proceedings from the VVIP enclosure. General Musharraf, in his olive green fatigue, was seen applauding the Pakistani batsmen as they plundered the Indian bowling. TV crews repeatedly focussed on the president as and when the Pakistan batsmen hit the Indian bowlers to the ropes and beyond them.

Gen Musharraf will host the Indian team for tea tomorrow at his presidential palace in Islamabad. Indian High Commissioner Shiv Shankar Menon will then host a dinner for the team.

The President is also expected to watch either of the two One-Dayers in Lahore on March 21 and 24. It had earlier been reported that Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee will join Gen Musharraf at either of the One-Dayers. However, the reports were denied by both Islamabad and New Delhi.

Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani had recently said a visit by Vajpayee to watch the match would be good for the relations between the two countries.
The India-Pakistan series, being played after a gap of 15 years, is part of the confidence building measures taken by the two countries to improve the relations, which reached its lowest after the December 13 attack on Indian Parliament. Bureau Report