Broad - No room for sentiment

Last updated: 7th September 2010   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Broad - No room for sentiment

Broad: no sympathy for Pakistan

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England bowler Stuart Broad insists he has no sympathy for Pakistan ahead of Tuesday's second T20 contest in Cardiff.

Embroiled in the ongoing 'spot-fixing' betting controversy, the tourists have had to cope with intense media scrutiny during their preparations for the limited overs series with England.

They have also been left without the services of Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir - all three having been charged and suspended by the International Cricket Council over allegations of a plot to defraud illegal bookmakers.

But Broad insists Pakistan now have to try and put the controversy behind them for the time being and refocus their attention to on-field matters.

"Sympathy? No," he said. "At the end of the day, as cricketers, you've got one job - and that's to perform on the pitch.

"You've got to focus on your bowling and your batting, and that's what we've done very well professionally as an England team."

"There's always distractions in international cricket - because that's part of being an international sportsman, probably more than most this week.

"That's why as players you've got to be able to shut things out and focus on what you've got to do.

Hype

"I'm sure for the Pakistan team, there's everyone following them around and there's a lot of hype around them at the minute.

"That would be difficult to do, but at the end of the day that's not our problem. We've just got to go out there and try to win. In international sport you get distractions all the time, but that shouldn't affect how you deliver a ball or how you hit a ball.

"That's all off-the-field stuff."

Broad is a former county team-mate of Asif's at Leicestershire and admits he was surprised to see the seamer caught up in the current controversy.

Indeed, he revealed he was planning to catch up with Asif at the conclusion of the one-day series to pick the experienced seamer's brains, although that now looks highly unlikely.

"He's a lovely fellow. I got on really well with him and he's obviously a world-class bowler," he continued.

"But obviously these allegations have come from the News of the World, and it will be interesting to see how it curtails and when it curtails.

Chat with Asif

"He is a seriously talented bowler. I only played about three games with him, but he was fantastic to learn from.

"Throughout this series I was saying to him 'at the end of this series I would like to have a chat with you.

"But with him being left out of the squad, it's probably not going to happen."

Meanwhile, Pakistan's associate manager Shafqat Rana and limited-overs captain Shahid Afridi have both welcomed reports that their country's tax authorities are to scrutinise players' financial assets.

It emerged in Pakistan, following the 'spot-fixing' crisis, that the government is to sanction the assistance of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).

Rana is all in favour of a move he suggests was already a possibility long before any Pakistani players were named in connection with the controversy which has rocked cricket for the past week.

"I think it's a good thing from the government," he said.

"It was there in their minds before we came over. It will bring things out, so they will be very careful.

"Shahid is of the same opinion that it should be done, and it's good for cricket."