Clarke wary of Pakistan pitfalls in Aussie opener

Pakistan’s recent tour of Australia saw them fail to win in three Tests, five one-day internationals and a Twenty20.

The fall-out was dramatic, with former captains Mohammad Yousuf and Younus Khan receiving indefinite bans for infighting.

On top of their disciplinary problems, Pakistan will also be without Umar Gul, the most successful bowler in Twenty20 internationals with 43 wickets in 26 matches, after the paceman suffered a shoulder injury at a training camp in Lahore earlier this month.

But batsman Clarke, leading Australia now that Ricky Ponting has opted out of Twenty20 internationals, told reporters here on Saturday: “I think Pakistan are very strong in this form of our game. We will have to be at our best.

“They’re the world champs, so they’ll be flying high on confidence.

“They like the slower pitches that spin a bit. I would imagine they always like beating Australia like every country seems to do.

“For us, it’s about making sure we get a lot of information on how their bowlers bowl, their batters bat.”

Australia will be able to update their files on Pakistan when the title-holders face Bangladesh here on Saturday in the first Group A match.

Clarke’s men were involved in a shock result even before the tournament proper started after losing a warm-up match by one run to outsiders Zimbabwe this week.

But Clarke insisted the defeat could yet work in Australia’s favour.

“We got a lot out of that game. And like I say, we played the game so everyone could get an opportunity so we could get a better idea of what our first XI is going to be,” he said.

“I’m confident we’ve got the talent and potential. We just have to execute our skills to the best of our ability. In this form of the game, you can’t afford one bad over with either the bat or the ball.

“The result against Zimbabwe is another kick up the backside to show that in this form of the game we’re all the same. We’re all equal.”

Australia’s major selection problem heading into the Pakistan match appears to be whether to field off-spinner Nathan Hauritz or get through their slow bowling overs through contributions from the likes of batting all-rounders such as Clarke David Hussey and leg-spinner Steve Smith.

“I’ve seen Haury bowl really well. I’ve seen how well he’s bowled in one-day cricket, and how well he’s performed in Twenty20 cricket,” Clarke said.

“If conditions suit that extra spin option, he could definitely play a big part. He’s also handy in the field and can smack it a bit with the bat.”

If Hauritz does miss out, his absence could pave the way for another of Australia’s all-rounders in Daniel Christian.

Clarke added: “If we want that extra all-rounder he will definitely play a part. If we go for the extra spinner or quick, we’ll go from there. It’s going to be hard.

“Playing Pakistan, we need to have a look at how they play spin bowling, which they face a lot of. Also having David Hussey in the team, who can bowl some off-spin probably makes it harder for Haury.”

Australia fell at the first hurdle in last year’s World Twenty20 in England, which Pakistan won, after defeats by the West Indies and Sri Lanka.

Now Clarke is desperate to avoid a ‘decider’ for second round qualification against Bangladesh.

“I don’t think we want to leave it to the second game. We want to win every game in this tournament. The last thing we can afford is to lose games and hope for results from other teams.

“All I’ve asked from the boys since we’ve arrived is to get our preparation as right as possible. Bring on Sunday.”