By IANS,
Karachi : Pakistan’s national cricket team has been preparing hard at its week-long training camp for the upcoming series against England scheduled in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The training camp, under head coach Mohsin Khan, started Wednesday in the country’s eastern city of Lahore at the Gaddafi Cricket Stadium, the head office of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Xinhua reported.
The team for the Test matches was announced Dec 26 by the chief of the national selection committee in Lahore.
Pakistan’s former captain Shoaib Malik has been dropped from the team following his poor performance during the last couple of series and replaced by young batsman Umar Akmal.
Talking to media, Pakistani team manager Mohsin Khan said that both teams “are well balanced, thus fans will get to watch a tightly contested series.”
The PCB has given specific and strict instructions to its players to focus only on the game and avoid any kind of controversy during the matches against England.
The Pakistani team has been performing well and are unbeaten since September last, winning series against the West Indies, Zimbabwe, Ireland, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh.
Pakistan have been playing home series at the UAE due to security concerns at home.
Pakistan are scheduled to play three Test matches, four One-Day Internationals and two Twenty20 matches against England. The first Test starts Jan 17.