Pakistan captain prays for "two more good days" by AFP

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Event:

ICC Champions Trophy 2009/10

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DateLine: 2nd October 2009

 

Pakistan captain Younus Khan is looking for "two more good days" in the Champions Trophy as his team clash with New Zealand in the semi-final here on Saturday.

 

Pakistan have never reached the final of this competition, but Younus said Friday the team were capable of breaking the jinx if they played to their potential in the day-night match.

 

"After winning the Twenty20 World Cup in England this year, we are now in the semi-finals here. We need two more good days," Younus told reporters on the eve of the match.

 

"If that happens, it will be very nice for me and fantastic for Pakistan. We need a couple of big titles."

 

Younus said he did not believe the advantage was with New Zealand, who had beaten Sri Lanka and England in league matches at the Wanderers here.

 

"I don't think any team has an edge over the other, especially in the semi-final or final. There's nothing like that these days," he said.

 

"If we play our natural game tomorrow and stick to our plans, I think we will be through. It'll be fantastic if we reach the final."

 

The Pakistan skipper said his team needed to put in a disciplined performance against New Zealand who were in good form.

 

"They are a good side. They are fantastic, especially their fielding. Whenever they are under pressure they play like a team," said Younus.

 

"They have a couple of good all-rounders. Their captain is always fantastic with the ball and now he is also batting well. I think it will be a good game."

 

New Zealand were sweating over the fitness of all-rounder Grant Elliott, who is suffering from a thumb injury. The seamer was named man of the match for taking four wickets in his team's victory over England.

 

"He took part in training this morning, but we'll leave it till the last possible minute before making a decision," said New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori.

 

New Zealand, who have already lost Jesse Ryder, Daryl Tuffey and Jacob Oram to injuries, summoned all-rounder Scott Styris as cover for Elliott.

 

Vettori said his team were not short of confidence going into the big match against Pakistan.

 

"Momentum is with us, I think. It's a much more preferable way to go into the semi-final knowing we've won two big games. We go into the match with confidence," said Vettori.

 

"The Wanderers has been good for us. We always felt confident of making the semi-finals and backed our chances. This is a real test for us now.

 

"Personally, it will be one of the most satisfying things I could achieve in my career if I lead New Zealand in the final and you never know what can happen after that."

 

New Zealand have often fallen in the semi-finals of big tournaments, like the 2006 Champions Trophy in India and the 2007 World Cup in the Caribbean.

 

"We want to go past that. We want to change the script a little bit," said Vettori, a day after New Zealand won the International Cricket Council (ICC) Spirit of Cricket award.

 

"That will be the ultimate if we can couple that with a major tournament. If we win a major tournament, it'll be a great achievement for us.

 

"We know they (Pakistan) are a very good side and hope we can catch them on an off-day."

(Article: Copyright © 2009 AFP)