Miandad for bouncy pitches to Champions Trophy-bound Pak batters

Former Pakistan captain Javed Miandad has insisted on laying bouncy pitches at the National stadium in Karachi ahead of the team's second phase of the training camp starting on Saturday, to prepare the batters for the South African conditions during the Champions Trophy.

Former Pakistan captain Javed Miandad has insisted on laying bouncy pitches at the National stadium in Karachi ahead of the team's second phase of the training camp starting on Saturday, to prepare the batters for the South African conditions during the Champions Trophy.

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Miandad confirmed that he had asked the stadium curator Ehsan Arian to prepare seam-friendly pitches in the main ground so that the batsmen could practice on turfs similar to those found in South Africa.

"The players will be mentally prepared for the conditions during the Champions Trophy in South Africa by practicing on such surfaces," Miandad said.

Miandad, who is the Director of Cricket in the Pakistan Cricket Board, is also the batting consultant of the national team and had earlier planned similar pitches in the first phase of the conditioning camp in Lahore.

However, his plans did not materialise as coach Intikhab Alam insisted on dedicating the camp to physical training and counselling sessions with psychologist Maqbool Babri.