LAHORE — Pakistan Test captain Misbahul Haq said Friday he was mulling retirement after the upcoming Pakistan-England series, saying he hoped to leave the game on a high. The 41-year-old said the series against England “could be my last.” “I haven't taken a final decision,” Misbah told media on the sidelines of a training camp in Lahore, adding that he was considering his options. Misbah retired from Twenty20 cricket in 2012 and left the One-Day International game after Pakistan's quarterfinal finish in the 2015 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand in March. He said he wanted to leave Test cricket with “good memories.” “People remember your final performance,” he said.The unassuming middle-order batsman will be remembered for his admirable leadership of Pakistan in the aftermath of the 2010 spot-fixing scandal which resulted in five-year bans for Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir. Last month Misbah had announced he will retire after an upcoming series against India, but the December-January contest is in serious doubt due to tensions between the arch-rivals. Pakistan takes on the Ashes-winning England team in a three-Test series in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) starting in Abu Dhabi from Oct. 13. Misbah warned the conditions in the UAE will be challenging for England. “This English team has done well in the Ashes,” he said. “But they do not have experience of UAE conditions and that will be a big challenge for them.” He refused to be drawn on the prospect of another 3-0 rout of the Lions, such as the one in the UAE under his captaincy three years ago. “We have to take it match by match, session by session and once you win sessions you go toward the bigger goals. “We are not thinking of 3-0, England is a top team and we have to play well and think how to tackle them.” When asked if Pakistan would miss Saeed Ajmal — one of the architects of the 2012 rout with 24 wickets — Misbah said Pakistan has replacements in leg-spinner Yasir Shah and left-armer Zulfiqar Babar. “Shah and Babar are doing extraordinarily well and that's a big plus, so they haven't made us feel anyone's absence,” said Misbah. Australia focuses on Kiwis Australia's new cricket captain Steve Smith Friday switched focus to New Zealand's upcoming tour as he voiced regret that a two-Test series in Bangladesh had to be called off over security fears. “The safety and the security of the players is the biggest concern,” Smith told reporters. “It's not safe enough for us to travel at this time.” He noted that the Bangladesh tour would have been his first as full-time captain following Michael Clarke's recent retirement. “It was a great opportunity for us,” said Smith who will now play for New South Wales next week. “It's a new team and new players and we were all really looking forward to getting over there and playing.” Smith said he understood disappointment over the canceled tour among fans in Bangladesh. “Really disappointing for the Bangladesh fans as well. I really feel for them. They were all looking forward to us ... playing over there so hopefully we can get an opportunity to get over there at some time.” Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland said late Thursday that an independent security assessment confirmed the “risk of terrorism in Bangladesh targeting Australian nationals.” Smith said the focus had now moved on to preparing for the southern summer visit of the Kiwis, with the first of three Tests starting on Nov. 5 in Brisbane. “New Zealand have played some very good cricket of late,” he said. — Agencies
