Andy Flower hopes the World XI tour inspires young people in Pakistan

Andy Flower, the coach of the World XI team, is hoping that their tour to Pakistan inspires the youngsters in the country. Cricket returned to Pakistan after 2009 when 12 gunmen had attacked the Sri Lanka team bus on their way to the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) successfully organised the Independence Cup and more importantly, the people responded which proves that the nation is a flamboyant one for the game of cricket.

Three T20 Internationals were played within 4 days and the response of the crowd was ecstatic for all the matches. The home team won the series as the visiting World XI put up a spirited fight. The result though hardly mattered for the people involved as it was more than just a tour of Pakistan. They had to prove to the world that the nation was safe enough to tour now more than ever and they did it.

Cricket transcends boundaries

The former England coach Flower was buoyed by the gesture of Pakistani crowd and hoped that the tour will inspire the upcoming generation in the country.

“We said that this was more than just the cricket tour, the public showed their appreciation and the players interacted with the crowds at the hotel and at the ground, and the security agency proved that they can provide a safe and secure environment,” he said

I really hope this tour will inspire the young people in Pakistan; they’ve seen some of the best players across the world live in action and this might be the beginning of the cricketing journey of the next Hashim Amla or Faf du Plessis. One thing which I think we should all remember is that these are baby steps and I’m sure that Pakistan board will take one safe and steady step at a time,” Flower added.

He also mentioned that his team will take a lot of memories back from this tour. He was happy that cricket has once again broken all the boundaries and has brought people together.

“We go home on Saturday with memories that I hope the boys will cherish for the rest of their lives. This tour is another reminder of the fact that cricket transcends boundaries. The way Pakistani people and the crowd, particularly at this ground, cheered for us at the end of the second game which we won, and beat their national side, they made us feel right at home,” the former Zimbabwean wicketkeeper concluded.

The skipper of the World XI, Faf du Plessis was also hopeful of cricket returning back to Pakistan on a permanent basis. But he also mentioned that there is no need to rush things and they need to go step by step. “It’s really important you take each thing one at a time and plan specifically for every tour. So whatever is the next step, [you need to put in] the same amount of energy and time and resources to make sure that it is planned as smoothly as this was. If you do out all those things, then definitely another step, another step, another step, to hopefully bring cricket back into Pakistan,” Faf said.