Shinwari vows to perform well against India

Pakistan superstar pacer Usman Khan Shinwari has set his goal of picking up a five-wicket haul against India in the upcoming clash.

Talking to the media in Dubai following a crushing victory over Hong Kong, the pacer said, “Performing in an India-Pakistan match can take one's career to the next level. Every player wishes to perform in this fixture. My goal is that too, if I got three out today then I would like to take five wickets in the match against India”.

Pakistan defeated Hong Kong on Sunday by eight wickets thanks to a brilliant performance in every department of the game. Pakistan will next face India on September 19.

Speaking about his fitness, Shinwari said he is completely fine. “There is no problem with my fitness, my toe was bleeding a bit so I came off the field. Alhamdulillah I am fit,” he said.

Giving his views about the playing conditions in the UAE, he said the conditions are tough for bowlers. The wicket was quite slow. “It's the first time I've seen such a pitch at Dubai, it was very slow and bowling on it is difficult. You have to hit a hard length to get help from it," the pacer said.

“Today's wicket was a very slow wicket, the ball wasn't going through. I was trying to bowl with pace, with the new ball I tried to pick up wickets but I couldn't. However, in the second spell the ball had deteriorated quite a bit and it was aiding reverse swing which helped me to pick up wickets.”

When asked about Pakistan-India clash on September 19, the 24-year-old replied, “India's team is the number one team. They have a lot of good players. When there's an India-Pakistan match, it's not just the players but the whole crowd is very excited. It's a big match and we will prepare well for it.”

The pacer also backed teammate Mohammad Amir, who failed to get the wicket in the game. “Amir bowled very well, sometimes wickets depend on luck as you can get many wickets with normal bowling or no wickets with good bowling. I think he is bowling well and I think insha'Allah he will do well in the next match.”