Sydney: Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq said on Monday he will lead the side in the third Test against Australia in Sydney, dismissing suggestions he is about to retire.
Misbah, 42, raised the possibility following his team’s abject innings defeat in the second Melbourne Test last week to lose the series, when he said he would contemplate his future and may even retire before Tuesday’s final Test.
But Pakistan’s most successful skipper on Monday appeared at the captain’s media conference before the Test to hose down speculation of his imminent retirement.
Misbah, who has scored a total of 20 runs in four innings in the series, said his comments after the innings and 18-run defeat in Melbourne were triggered by frustration.
“That was 2016 — now it’s 2017,” he told reporters. “That is gone, that is gone.
“You have to fight as a sportsman and that’s important for me also.
“I’m happy that I’ve got a very good family, all the team. The way they supported me (was appreciated).
“Everyone, from the support staff to the players — and they’re up for that (fight), so I’m also up. I need to play at my best.”
Misbah said he was not thinking about the end of his international career that started in 2001, although well-placed sources said he would make the final decision about his playing status once he returns home to Pakistan.
Misbah now concentrates only on Test cricket and retired from One-day Internationals after Pakistan’s defeat to Australia in the World Cup quarter-final in 2015.
After the Australia Test series Pakistan do not have any Tests scheduled until April, when they will tour the West Indies for a four-match series.
Misbah’s most immediate assignment after the Australia series will be in the United Arab Emirates in the Pakistan Super League with Islamabad United, which starts on February 9.
Misbah opted against naming a final Test team on Monday, admitting there could be changes after his side’s woeful last day in the Melbourne Test.
“Traditionally, Sydney is a bit different. It all depends on the final look of the pitch,” he said.
Australia hold an unassailable 2-0 lead in the Test series.
Heading into Sydney, Pakistan have not won a Test Down Under since their ‘dead rubber’ victory at the Sydney Cricket Ground in 1995.
All-rounder Hilton Cartwright will, meanwhile, make his Test debut as Australia make two changes for the final Test in Sydney, captain Steve Smith said.
Zimbabwe-born Cartwright and left-arm spinner Steve O’Keefe replace Nic Maddinson and Jackson Bird in the team that demolished Pakistan in Melbourne last week to clinch the three-match series.
“He’s improved (his bowling) a lot over the last year or so. He’s gained 10kph,” Smith said of Cartwright.
The 24-year-old Cartwright is a batting all-rounder who bowls medium pace and is expected to support front-line fast bowlers Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood.
The need for a second spinner in Sydney had been flagged by selectors, with O’Keefe getting the final nod over Ashton Agar.
“We’re playing the two spinners, traditionally out here it does take some spin,” Smith said.
O’Keefe will partner veteran spinner Nathan Lyon, who cemented his place in the team with a crucial three-wicket spell on the final day of the Melbourne Test.
O’Keefe has played three Tests, including in Sydney against the West Indies last season, and partnered Lyon in the first Test in Sri Lanka earlier this year before injury ruled him out for the remainder of the series.
Australia are chasing a 3-0 whitewash in the Test that starts in Sydney on Tuesday.
