Lack of domestic ODI cricket reason for Pak's recent slump, insists Misbah

Pakistan Test skipper Misbah-ul-Haq has identified lack of one-day cricket at the domestic level as the reason behind his side's recent struggles in the ODI format.

While Pakistan are the No. 1 Test team in the world, they are languishing down to the ninth spot in ODI rankings with lowest-ever rating of 86 points.

Insisting that the One-Day Cricket in Pakistan gets little attention, the 42-year-old said the focus is primarily on T20s and four-day games and, therefore, his players find it difficult to play 50-over cricket.

"While a Pakistani domestic cricketer may play at least ten to twenty first-class matches a season, he doesn't get the same match practice in the 50-over format. I have long been saying that we need to lay greater emphasis on one-day cricket in our domestic system, and play more one-day games, because you can't evolve by playing a maximum of five 50-over matches a year in the domestic circuit," Misbah was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.

The Test skipper, who has long retired from the ODI format, believes exposure to a lot of competitive cricket would enable the players to polish their skills.

Meanwhile, Misbah also insisted that his side are on top in Test cricket because they are playing enough games in the longest format of the game at the domestic level.

"The reason we are on top in Tests is because our players are getting enough games and exposure at domestic level. That is the only reason I see. Otherwise, these players are talented and they have shown glimpses of their flair, though not consistently. So this talent needs to be nurtured by giving them more games at domestic level.

With Pakistan's forthcoming ODI series against the West Indies and Australia, they have left themselves with a herculean task to keep alive their chances of qualifying automatically for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019.

The top eight teams as on 30th September 2017 will qualify directly for the ICC's pinnacle 50-over tournament, while the remaining two sides will progress from the 10-team ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2018.