Pak new T20 skipper hopeful of good environment in dressing room

Karachi: Pakistan’s new T20 captain Mohammad Hafeez has said he is looking to improve his individual form after getting the extra responsibility, adding that his main focus was to carry the team with him.

Hafeez, who has also been made Misbah ul Haq’s deputy in Tests and One-Day Internationals, said: “I am thinking about all 15 players in my team.” “I am trying to give them extra confidence. Unfortunately, after one or two poor performances, we start thinking that a player does not deserve to be in the team. I am against all that and will try to create a good environment in the dressing room,” he said. Meanwhile, Hafeez, while praising Misbah, for his leadership qualities, hoped for success against Sri Lanka in tough conditions. “A tour of Sri Lanka is always tough. But the best thing is that we are going to play four practice matches prior to our departure. We have not played international cricket since the Asia Cup and these matches will help us go into the tour with practice and momentum,” Hafeez told The Express Tribune. “Jamshed was in very good form during the Asia Cup and we had become a settled opening pair. But we are going in with a 15-man squad and all of them are fit. Ahmed Shehzad was outstanding in the Bangladesh Premier League.. “Umar Akmal and the experienced Shoaib Malik are also there plus I am in good form too. So we have enough players to make our presence felt despite Jamshed’s injury,” he said. ANI