Posted on behalf of Farhan Nisar.

An exclusive interview of Former Pakistani captain and wicket keeper Rashid Latif conducted by Farhan Nisar for KheloPakistan in Lahore. Part one was posted a week ago .Rashid spoke openly about his career and all his experiences around cricket, including match-fixing. Here is Part two of the eagerly awaited converstaion.

With the Australian series still being discussed, the two T20 games against Sri Lanka are the only games that are 100% guaranteed for Pakistan to play in this format before the T20 World Championship. With that in context these are not now two ordinary games but a massive launchpad for new skipper, Mohammad Hafeez, to start his reign. 

In life in general, preparation and practise makes things perfect. Pakistan have the players within their armoury to emulate 2009 and win another major World competition. With Dav Whatmore and his team at the healm, one thing is for sure the team will have undergone a proper fitness regime and will be hungry for success. 

This brings me to my real concern and team composition. Getting the team balance correct is going to be the key in Sri Lanka. Pitches there are usually batsman friendly but have good assistance for spin bowling too. Making sure the batting line-up is strong and long enough, and also ensuring that the side has the right bowlers to win you the competition is the key. Though playing your best players in their best positions is the key, I sincerely believe that cometh the hour, cometh the man.

Posted on behalf of Farhan Nisar.

Exclusive interview of Former Pakistani captain and wicket keeper Rashid Latif conducted by Farhan Nisar for KheloPakistan in Lahore. Rashid spoke openly about his career and all his experiences around cricket. Widely regarded as one of Pakistan's greatest keepers ever, Rashid played 37 Test matches for Pakistan which included 130 dismissals. Also a veteran of 166 ODI's, he helped himself to well over 200 dismissals in the 50 over format.

KheloPakistan.com’s Imran Asghar met up with Pakistan U-19 player and opening bowler Ehsan Adil. Ehsan is still 19 years of age and represented the youth team in South Africa recently. His performances were highly noticed and Ehsan won many plaudits. Hailing from Sheikhupura, Ehsan recently made his domestic cricket debut by representing Faislabad Wolves. 

Ehsan can be described as a confident young man that aspires to reach the very top. He hopes to emulate the long list of great Pakistani Fast bowlers and becoming a household name. In the meantime he is now preparing for the Junior Asia Cup after making the World Cup probable list.

The Pakistan cricket board announced the squad for all 3 formats of the game for the 2012 tour to Sri Lanka and included some of the finest - talented players in the country along with that some made there comebacks and here's how they all did it.

World Cup 2007; Pakistan lose to Ireland and get knocked out of the tournament. What followed was most of the squad was dropped but soon enough given a re-call. One person had been made a permanent scapegoat and that was Azhar Mahmood. 

Azhar, now 37 is performing admirably in domestic cricket Worldwide. The ability of bowling upfront and then at the death was always there but the rejuvenation of promoting himself, along with the support of his Kent skipper Robert Key, from a solid lower-middle order bat to number 3 has been a masterstroke. 

Azhar has recently played all forms of the game for Kent as a English qualified player. His also performed excellently for the Auckland Aces and Dhaka Gladiators in T20 cricket Worldwide. He is now making a name for himself in India, in the IPL, for Kings XI Punjab. 

Azhar's absence from the Pakistan side has been now 5 years. During this time there have been several occasions when Pakistan required his nouse and experience, but with Abdul Razzaq about there was little chance of a comeback. Lately things have changed, with the ban of Pakistan's first choice opening bowlers and the lack of real depth Pakistan need a bowler who can bowl upfront to give the side a impetus to launch a platform. 

KheloPakistan.com recently met young Pakistan Fast bowling prospect Rahat Ali and had a exclusive conversation. Rahat, from Multan in Punjab, has been a consistent performer in the Domestic circuit recently and has caught the eye of many pundits. At the time of doing the interview Rahat was hoping to get the recognition that his performances deserved; he has since been invited to the Fast bowlers camp at the NCA in Lahore, under the watchful eye of Pakistan National team coach Dav Whatmore.

[quote] 

KheloPakistan.com: You have a great domestic record, with a handful of Five fors recently, which one is your favorite?
Rahat Ali: Few weeks ago I claimed 5 wicket haul in just around 4-5 overs in a Pentangular cup game against Federal area XI, they had star batsmen like Umer Amin, Hammad Azam and Awais Zia; I guess that spell has got to be my favorite.

KheloPakistan.com: In modern day cricket, a bowler must have variety. A yorker, slower ball, bouncer and swinging the ball both ways, any that you lack in?
Rahat Ali: I have got good Yorker as well as the slower ball, but we don’t usually bowl bouncers here on the flat tracks. Although I have got good pace and can also bowl accurate shorter ones, hopefully I will make use of that skill once I get an opportunity to represent Pakistan on some lively tracks.

KheloPakistan.com: Pakistan have many left armers, Wahab, Junaid and Sadaf to name a few; do you think you can break into the Pakistan reckoning?
Rahat Ali: Yes why not? I believe I am good as any you have named, they all are good bowlers within their own right. From the others around, my teammate Rizwan Haider also bowls left arm medium, he is more of an all-rounder though; good clean hitter and controlled bowling are his forte.

Opening the batting is a vital art of batting & a difficult one. The openers have a duty to provide a strong start & a base from where the rest of the order can capitalise from. Openers come in all different types nowadays defensive or attacking. They set the tone for the rest of the innings. The start is crucial to lifting the confidence, spirit in the dressing room & winning the first tussle with the opposition always provides an important edge going into the rest of the match. It is very much a specialist job. Here we look at some of Pakistan's finest.

Saeed Anwar
A role model for many a left hander Saeed Anwar was a stylish genius full of grace, elegance & magical touch. Saeed dominated bowlers  & more often than not got the innings off to a flying start, but more importantly & effectively converting the starts that he got into bigger more meaningful scores for the team cause. Saeed held the highest score in an ODI for approximately a decade. Saeed was the leading run scorer for the Greens in 1996, 1999 & the 2003 World Cup. Saeed also claimed 28 man of the match awards in his career in the one day format which was the highest by anyone from his country, a record which has just been over taken this year by one of his former  opening partners. Saeed was an educated player too so a well polished individual in different walks of life. One of the first names when putting pen to paper in a Pakistan all time XI.

There have been numerous reports about Pakistan starting their own version of a major Twenty20 tournament. Pakistan, at large, is a cricket-loving country and has been deprived of seeing not only International stars but National too. Players like Shahid Afridi and Saeed Ajmal are world-class performers. They would enlighten any tournament with their presence. 

The name that is doing the rounds is the 'Pakistan Premier League' (I will call it PPL as it has no name as of yet). The PPL has many pluses to it. Such a league comes with an enormous reputation and is followed worldwide. Here are some of the positives and negatives that the PPL would/might bring to Pakistan and its cricket in large. 

Finance: The financial implications of such a tournament are absolutely monumental. Players in the recent Faysal Bank T20 were paid the equivalent of £20-£25 per match. A top player in the PPL might come close to the £1million mark. The financial security is not just for the players and officials but for the general public too. Merchandise selling, food and drink, and hotels are some of the business opportunities that will arise from the PPL. 

Poor administration: If there are poorly made decisions then this can be detrimental to Pakistan. The financial implications are a massive incentive but Pakistan cricket’s big need at this moment is exposure to games getting played within Pakistan. 

He was young, he was a bolt, and he was the light at the end of the tunnel. Pakistan prides itself for being home to the game’s greatest bowlers of all time; Mohammad Amir was not an exception.Though, exceptional he was when it came to outwitting his counterparts at the other end of the wicket.

On 7th June 2009 when a young man at a tender age of 17 made his T20 debut at The Oval, drought of fast bowlers in Pakistan came to an end as they began to unearth a lethal combination that had been their hallmark in the 80’s,90’s and the early 2000’s. Bowling has never been a worry for Pakistan but after the two W’s retired, in spite of abundant talent, the bowling was either inconsistent to sustain at the top level or lacked the killer instinct. More importantly it lacked the traditional principle of Pakistani attacks hunting in packs.

Nobody knew the glistening teenager would leave the world’s best batsmen perplexed in the days to come. His debut marked the initiation of filling of an enormous space left after Wasim Akram’s retirement. Aamer had all the ingredients of being Akram’s successor. His first tournament in Pakistani colors culminated to an amazing climax as Pakistan lifted the World Twenty20 trophy at Lord’s.