Misbah confident of Pakistan’s ability to perform under pressure

But ‘home team’ will not be complacent, says their captain ahead of ODI series against Sri Lanka, starting on Wednesday in Sharjah. Plus a round-up of cricket news.

Misbah-ul-Haq’s Pakistan are riding on a high of having beaten South Africa in their backyard. Richard Heathcote / Getty Images

In-form Pakistan are seeking to build on their recent one-day series triumph in South Africa when they take on dangerous but rusty Sri Lanka in a five-match series starting in the UAE on Wednesday.

Pakistan last month sealed their first ODI series win against South Africa, beating them 2-1 just weeks after a 4-1 drubbing in the UAE against the same opposition.

Misbah-ul-Haq, whose side lie sixth in the one-day rankings – two places lower than Sri Lanka – hopes they can build on their success, saying his players thrive under pressure.

“We have good confidence before another tough series and we hope to carry the momentum we gained in South Africa,” Misbah said.

“It is the Pakistan team’s quality that they produce better results when they are under pressure. We were under pressure before the South Africa tour and when the confidence is better we play well.”

But Misbah warned his side against complacency.

“We must not relax,” he said. “Complacency comes when you beat a bigger opponent so we must guard against that because Sri Lanka know these conditions well.”

Pakistan will be without the paceman Mohammad Irfan; the bowler suffered a fractured hip during the Twenty20 series against South Africa last month.

Sri Lanka will be missing their former captain Mahela Jayawardene and the left-arm spinner Rangana Herath, who both opted out of the one-dayers.

Sri Lanka have been frustrated by a lack of match practice after their drawn, three-match ODI series against New Zealand last month was disrupted by rain.

“We’ve done as much as we can to make sure we are sharp and ready but nothing’s quite the same as being match-tight and match-sharp,” said Graham Ford, the coach.

He said Pakistan “have got an advantage from that point of view and they have got some fantastically talented cricketers”.

The Twenty20 series between the sides finished all square at 1-1.

The remaining ODIs will be played in Dubai (December 20), Sharjah (December 22) and Abu Dhabi (December 25 and 27).

The one-day series will be followed by three Tests.

ICC bans Shillingford for action

Shane Shillingford, the West Indies spinner, has been banned from bowling at international level after tests found his action was illegal, the International Cricket Council (ICC) said on Monday.

An independent biomechanical analysis showed Shillingford’s elbow extended beyond the permitted 15 degrees on his standard off-break delivery and his doosra, the ICC said in a statement.

“He is suspended from bowling in international cricket until such time that he has submitted to a fresh analysis, which concludes that he has remedied his bowling action,” it said.

Shillingford’s teammate, Marlon Samuels, was subjected to similar tests, which showed his standard off-break was legal but his quicker delivery was not, meaning he can only bowl his slower ball in international matches.

The actions of the West Indies pair were reported during their team’s second Test against India in Mumbai last month.

The ICC ordered them to undergo independent testing which was conducted in Australia while the players participated in the West Indies’ first two Tests in New Zealand.

Both players have previously been banned from bowling because of illegal actions.

Samuels did not bowl for three years after first being reported in 2008, while Shillingford was banned in 2010 and returned a year later after undergoing remedial work on his action.

The ICC said if Samuels was reported again for a suspect action in the next two years and analysis backed up the concerns, he would face an automatic one-year ban.

There was no immediate reaction from the West Indies. The ICC said both players had the right to appeal.

The West Indies’ third and final Test against New Zealand begins in Hamilton on Thursday.

They trail the series 1-0.

Khurram and Patil in Intercontinental Cup select team

Khurram Khan, the UAE captain, and his teammate Swapnil Patil were on Monday named in the ICC Intercontinental Cup Team of the Tournament for 2011-13.

The tournament, which kicked off in June 2011, featured ICC’s eight leading associate and affiliate members, and the elite team includes players from six countries.

Khurram topped the charts with 674 runs in the competition and has been picked as the one-down batsman. Patil, who scored 401 runs, is the team’s opener and partner to Ireland’s William Porterfield, the captain.

Others in the 12-strong side include Andrew White (Ireland), Rahmat Shah (Afghanistan), Raymond van Schoor (wicketkeeper, Namibia), Christoffel Viljoen (Namibia), Majid Haq (Scotland), George Dockrell (Ireland), Dalwat Zadran (Afghanistan), Izatullah Dawlatzai (Afghanistan) and Tom Cooper (Netherlands).