Trying to help Pakistan is important for cricket, says England’s Collingwood

Former England captain Paul Collingwood, part of the World XI squad which will tour Pakistan next week, is hopeful the series "can be a significant step" in bringing international cricket back to the country.

“You can only imagine how demoralising it must have been for Pakistan’s players during the last few years and it’s an opportunity to show and prove that they can hold big fixtures in their own country once again,” he wrote in a column for the ICC website.

“Playing away from their home would have done nothing to help them improve their game in the long-term and it must have been so frustrating.

“Despite that, I have to say I’m not surprised that they still topped the ..ICC Test Team Rankings last year and won the ICC Champions Trophy 2017, because when it comes to cricket, they’re a hugely-talented nation.

“Sometimes, you don’t know what you’re going to get in terms of performance and that’s why they can be such a dangerous opposition.. Getting those home games again – although there is a little way to go – would be a big thing,” he wrote.

Reminiscing about his previous tour to Pakistan, Collingwood fondly recalled the passion of Pakistani fans. “I’ve had a taste of it myself because I toured there with England just after The Ashes in 2005. It’s a very passionate place and the atmosphere in the grounds can be deafening, particularly in Karachi.

“I’m sure that once we get out there, the locals will want Pakistan to win, but they will see the bigger picture and they will be behind us too,” he said.

The 2010 T20 World Cup-winning captain said he cannot wait to play on Pakistan soil again, but regretted he would not be able to do much sightseeing because of the ‘head of state’ security which would accompany the team.

“I’m just looking forward to playing three really competitive games of cricket and for it to be as normal as possible,” he wrote, adding that he was “really proud” of getting selected in the World XI squad.

“Trying to help Pakistan is important for cricket – and no-one can pretend the money isn’t great - but, added to that, playing them in their own back yard also really floated my boat.

“I’ve not played international cricket since 2011, so to play in games with full international status against the full Pakistan side is very, very exciting and it’s great to be involved,” the 41-year-old cricketer remarked.

“We’ll have three great matches and hopefully we will have helped in a small way,” he added.

The World XI will play Pakistan at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore on September 12, 13 and 15.

World XI squad: Faf du Plessis (captain, South Africa), Hashim Amla (South Africa), Samuel Badree (West Indies), George Bailey (Australia), Paul Collingwood (England), Ben Cutting (Australia), Grant Elliott (New Zealand), Tamim Iqbal (Bangladesh), David Miller (South Africa), Morne Morkel (South Africa), Tim Paine (wicketkeeper) (Australia), Thisara Perera (Sri Lanka), Imran Tahir (South Africa), Darren Sammy (West Indies).