Bangladesh tour of Pakistan 2007-08

Malik eager to take on Bangladesh

Cricinfo staff

April 8, 2008

	Shoaib Malik and his Pakistan team-mates will be playing international cricket after a gap of a little more than two months © AFP

"It is good to play cricket rather not playing and after the postponement of the Australia team's tour to Pakistan, we will be playing Bangladesh in a make-shift series and for us it is satisfying that we are playing international cricket rather than not being part of it," Malik told APP.

It's been a little more than two months since Pakistan last played international cricket, when they thrashed Zimbabwe by a 5-0 margin, and Malik was keen to get things rolling. "We have been deprived of high-quality international cricket after the postponement of the Australian tour and now it's time for the team to re-start its journey from where it left by experiencing the flavour of competitive cricket.

"The team was in a lay-off for a few months and playing Bangladesh we will know where we stand and definitely this series is a tough challenge for us like any other top cricket competition," he said. "For us it a serious cricket affair and as a captain my ambition is to maintain winning ways in this event."

Malik said Bangladesh should not be labelled as underdogs. "I do not believe in this phenomenon [of the underdog], look at the track record of Bangladesh they are known for their giant-killing acts and we do not want to a victim of a similar fate.

"It is time to gear up for a cricket activity which demands a higher display of skills and hard work and we must avail this home series for the build-up of our team for the coming events like the Asia Cup and Champions Trophy in the next few months."

Meanwhile, Malik wanted younger players to be given a run in the series. "We successfully did this experiment against Zimbabwe in a home series and we should induct a few young players in the side to replace the injured or out-of-form players."

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