prone fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar has been advised by Pakistan coach Geoff Lawson to play only One-Day Internationals so he can prolong his career. Akhtar, 32, has played just four Tests and a handful of one-dayers since Feb. 2006 because of fitness and disciplinary issues. In 46 Tests he has taken 178 wickets and 219 wickets in 138 one-dayers. “I have spoken to Shoaib about it. Players nowadays are specializing in some form of the game in latter stages of their career,” Lawson told reporters on Tuesday. “I have said maybe he would better just playing ODIs because of his reliability factor for Test match cricket.” Last month Akhtar was dropped from the central contracts list by the Pakistan Cricket Board because of concerns over his match fitness.‘Young players after money' Young cricketers may soon opt out of playing for their country because of the huge amounts of money available in the sport, Sri Lanka's cricket chief Arjuna Ranatunga said on Tuesday. Ranatunga, Sri Lanka's World Cup-winning captain in 1996, said he was worried about the future of younger players who could be tempted to join the cash-rich Twenty20 leagues in India. “It is India today, it could be another country tomorrow that will be offering large sums of money to players,” said Ranatunga. “I have no problem with senior players joining these leagues, but the younger players worry me. “I have heard them say that there are ways of making money even if one does not get picked for the national team.” Top Sri Lankans like Sanath Jayasuriya, captain Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara, Muttiah Muralitharan, Chaminda Vaas, Chamara Silva and Tillekaratne Dilshan have all been contracted to play in the Indian Premier League starting on April 18. Retired Test stars like Marvan Atapattu and Russel Arnold, who are playing for the rebel Indian Cricket league, have been banned from holding any post in the Sri Lankan cricket establishment. ‘NZ will attack' New Zealand bowlers will continue to attack the England batsman and put them under pressure when the second Test begins at the Basin Reserve on Thursday, pace bowler Chris Martin said. Martin and Kyle Mills produced inspired bowling spells on the last day of the first Test at Seddon Park to bowl the visitors out for just 110, chasing 300 for victory, to give New Zealand a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three series. “It was difficult (and) it was a Test of patience,” Martin told reporters on Tuesday. “I think the way the guys got together as a unit (was most pleasing). “I think the way they played against us in the first innings allowed us to dictate the lengths and lines to them. “They never got on top of us at any stage with the bat, now we've got to keep them in that deflated position.” Martin said while he had not yet seen the wicket at the Basin Reserve he expected it to be similar to the one produced for the Bangladesh Test earlier this year. “There will be good bounce and good carry. “It always swings so there will be that nature to the balance of our attack to this game,” he said. “It has always been a good hunting ground for seamers in the past.” Ian Bell, who scored a defiant unbeaten 54 in England's second innings in Hamilton, said his side would be more aggressive than in the first Test. __
