The last few seasons have mostly been pretty forgettable for Pakistan’s cricketers. And the fact that the country faces a lot of tough challenges in the near future, there could be more heartbreak for the national team unless solid measures are taken to prepare it for the forthcoming assignments.

In an interview with ‘The News on Sunday’, former Test cricketer and ex-chief selector Salahuddin Ahmed Sallu stressed that solid measures and steps need to be taken to spot and groom high calibre players from the domestic circuit since Pakistan cricket team will be facing a tough and hectic schedule with series against England, New Zealand, West Indies and Australia coming up in the year.

Sallu said while chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq has adopted the right approach by short-listing 35 players much ahead of the England tour and is also observing the boys first hand at the Kakul camp, he should be mindful of the fact that the current lot of players are not in the same league that he had under his captaincy a decade ago.

"I feel that Inzamam and his fellow selectors are diligently performing their job by closely monitoring the boys and also imposing strict discipline. However, the task is much tougher for them to raise a team of professionally competent and skillful players since the talent available in Pakistan today needs a lot of grooming and exposure to do well at the international level," observed Sallu.

"I feel that we need solid openers to combat England bowlers. It is unfortunate that our most experienced opener Mohammad Hafeez has been in the injury list for quite many months which is a setback indeed," he said. "I hope Hafeez get fit for the England series because he has a good record there too."

"Among others, Ahmed Shehzad is not available while Sharjeel Khan is also caught up with some personal problems. But Shan Masood is one player who can measure up I feel. He has improved a lot and his brilliant, match-winning innings in Sri Lanka has done a world of good to his confidence."

Sallu also expressed concern over the injury problems plaguing ace leg-spinner Yasir Shah. "He could be a trump card, especially in England. He is getting repeated injuries which are threatening to shorten his career. But if he is fit, he can be a handful for England."

Sallu, however, said much is expected of Pakistan’s strong middle-order batting. With seasoned Younis Khan, skipper Misbah-ul-Haq, Azhar Ali, Asad Shafiq and Sarfraz Ahmed forming the backbone of the Test side, I am quite confident that they will shine in England and will score lot of runs."

He added that pacer Wahab Riaz, who will be in England playing T20 cricket for Essex before joining the Pakistan team, will be adept to the conditions there and should pose a threat to English batsmen.

Sallu praised PCB Chairman Shaharyar Khan for his efforts to revamp Pakistan cricket and hoped that there are better days ahead for the national team. "Sending the team to England some three weeks before the Test series is a commendable step by PCB and will really help the players in acclimatizing to the weather and seamimg conditions there," said Sallu.

"The A team tour to England is also a step in the right direction towards grooming the younger players for challenging cricket."

The record ten time selector added that the bumper success of Pakistan Super League is also a good omen for Pakistan cricket and playing alongside foreign players will boost the techniques and confidence of local players.

"Najam Sethi and his team did wonders by pulling off the PSL project so handsomely," he said. "It has had a very positive effect on our cricket and the PSL will soon start producing players of high quality, just like the Indian Premier League."