Malik dreams of home win

Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik has revealed his desire to win the ICC Champions Trophy in September in front of home support. “It is my dream to captain my country to victory in the ICC Champions Trophy on home soil and my team will be doing everything we can to convert this dream into reality,” said Malik, who earlier in the week captained his side to a famous 25-run win over India. He also believes the fact this is the biggest event to take place in Pakistan since the ICC Cricket World Cup over ten years ago means that there will be a fantastic atmosphere for the matches. “This is the biggest cricket event to come to Pakistan in over a decade. I am sure that there will be a fantastic atmosphere for some of the biggest games and that the people of Pakistan will make it a happy and memorable event,” he said. Malik also believes that the new eight-team format, featuring the elite teams and players in world cricket, will generate great excitement, especially as so many of the top ODI sides are evenly matched at the moment. “The new format of the event should mean that there are lots of exciting matches, especially as I don’t think there is that much to separate many of the teams in ODI cricket at the moment in 50-over cricket,” said Malik. “The fact we beat India earlier this week, who showed what a good side they are when they beat Australia earlier this year, means that it will be very difficult to predict the outcome of matches. I think this could be one of the most closely contested tournaments for a long time.”