'We shouldn?t lose early wickets'

We face the West Indies in the semi-finals and they seem to be getting better and that is not good news, writes Inzamam-ul-Haq.

So, we are into the ICC Champions Trophy semi-finals where we are up against the West Indies. I am glad to see the West Indies team showing glimpses of their old form. When I was first introduced to the game, they were THE team to beat in international cricket. Even today, the Caribbean remains special even though their cricket has seen many ups and downs in recent times.

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My immediate concerns, however, stem from the continuous improvement shown by them in this tournament. They seem to be getting better with every game. That is not good news for Pakistan.

There is no question of taking them lightly.

Any team that has Brian Lara in their ranks ought to be treated with utmost respect. There haven’t been many batsmen better than the West Indies captain in the game. On his day, he can win any match on his own. My team-mates know that as does our coach Bob Woolmer who has actually worked with him during his Warwickshire days.

Lara is not the only big gun in the Windies armoury. Ramnaresh Sarwan is a special talent whose record in both forms of the game speaks for itself. Then you have Chris Gayle, Wavell Hinds, Ricardo Powell and the vastly experienced Shivnaraine Chanderpaul, who, the other day saw his ream home against the South Africans.