Arthur to revamp Pakistan ODI playing style

Pakistan head coach Mickey Arthur says he needs to completely change the way the side plays ODI cricket if they are to have any chance of even qualifying for the World Cup in 2019.

Pakistan are ranked ninth in the world now, but need to be inside the top eight by next September to qualify for the showcase automatically. If they fail, they will need to play a 10-team qualification tournament, with only two sides advancing.

Pakistan lost their recent ODI series in England, and Arthur feels that time is not on his side but he has to make an effort to update the way Pakistan plays 50-over cricket.

The South African, when asked by Cricinfo whether his side was out-dated, said: “With the brand of cricket they are playing, definitely.

“We can’t play that brand of cricket anymore. We have got to be brave. You have got to take the game on.

“I have to be realistic. We haven’t got the time, but we have started the journey now. We will have to start again. I have got a really good feel for personnel and the areas we need to improve on.

“I have looked at people we can work with, people we can bring in and I am comfortable we will be okay. We have got the way to go and it is a journey.

“If we keep picking the same [players] we are going to get the same [results]. And we will be sitting at No. 9 in the world. We have nothing to lose.

“We just have to invest in some players. I know for a fact that from the first ODI to the fifth [in England] we changed the whole brand and style of cricket.

“I want us to play an attacking brand of cricket, a brand that is good to watch, a brand that inspires the players to play and gives you so much more gratification from your supporters.

“It must be a brand that challenges, it must be a brand that stimulates, but it must be a brand that is encapsulated by fun.”

Pakistan’s next assignment is a T20 series against the West Indies in the UAE later this month.

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