Jonty Rhodes to visit Pakistan for HBL PSL

ABU DHABI: Former South African cricketer Jonty Rhodes will be coming to Pakistan to attend PSL matches.“I was in Pakistan in 2015 and 2016, so I am looking forward to going back,” Rhodes told www.psl-t20.com.He said he was excited to be going to Pakistan. “What I have seen (in the HBL PSL) will certainly go a long way to ensuring that Pakistan cricket stays at the top and remains very competitive for a long time because these young players have real skills,” said Rhodes, whose image of flying in the air to get Inzamam-ul-Haq run out in the 1992 World Cup is still etched in the memories of fans around the world.“It’s been interesting because the wickets here (in the UAE) have been slow,” said Rhodes, who was part of South African team during tours of Pakistan in 1994, 1996 and 1997. “The pace bowlers are able to dominate and they are young pace bowlers,” said Rhodes, who played 52 Tests and 245 ODIs.“It’s a great opportunity for young players as they are spending time in the field and in the nets, and with the foreign coaching staff.“I have done the IPL and the PSL. I have not been to Caribbean or the Big Bash, not even in South Africa. The difference here is that there are no home and away stadiums, which is a pity,” said Rhodes.He said fielding has improved, especially that of the Pakistan cricket team, with the advent of leagues. “T20 cricket has certainly shown that fielding is an important element. I really loved my time in the field. I had a coaching job in fielding for some nine years and the interesting thing, because traditionalists are critical of the T20 cricket, is that skills of all the players, especially in fielding, have improved.“At times, there are so many T20 matches that come down to the last ball or last over, so the runs you save in the field make a certain difference.“Pakistan certainly have some individuals who are good fielders,” said Rhodes.“I don’t have many fond memories of Pakistan tours . . . because I wasn’t very successful there as Pakistan had Waqar Younis, Wasim Akram and some great spin bowlers, so I certainly battled with the bat.“I did enjoy fielding because people didn’t expect you to be diving around, so there were some run-out opportunities. I love the people, the places and the food. It’s sad for me that the PSL is only in Karachi because I wanted to explore Pakistan as much as possible as I do like to go out and see the places.“But I look forward to getting back and exploring Pakistan,” he said. Asked about his fondest Pakistan memory, Rhodes replied: “Pat Symcox batting in Faisalabad when the ball went through the stumps without disturbing the bails.”Recalling his flying run-out of Inzamam, Rhodes said: “I don’t think Inzi was a slow runner. He was 19 at that time. We had not seen him before, so it wasn’t the case of he was not good at running. There was a bit of thunderstorm, so the ball was wet and we needed a wicket as Inzamam and Imran Khan were taking Pakistan to our total.”

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