No ifs in Butt146;s mind

Back in December 2004, this paper 8212; looking ahead at the new year 8212; asked cricket 8216;8216;experts8217;8217; for their tips f...

Back in December 2004, this paper 8212; looking ahead at the new year 8212; asked cricket 8216;8216;experts8217;8217; for their tips for the year ahead. From former Australia pace bowler Merv Hughes came this unlikely commendation: 8216;8216;That bloke from Pakistan, Salman Butt. He is good, for me he is the man watch out for this year.8217;8217;

Within the week Butt proved him right by smashing a sparkling 108 against an in-form Australian attack.

That was his first Test tour, a trip Down Under that would have left many other fazed. Butt 20 relished the opportunity to tangle with cricket8217;s best. 8216;8216;I think, first, it was a new country, different conditions8217;8217;, he told The Indian Express from Lahore today. 8216;8216;And then playing probably the most competitive sporting nation in the world. When you play the best you always try to be better, don8217;t you?8217;8217;

He learnt much, he says, from McGrath8217;s accuracy. 8216;8216;He makes you play all the time and that helped my concentration.8217;8217;

His debut Down Under was reminiscent of the occasion exactly a year before when Irfan Pathan was in a similar situation. The Lahore-bred opener cannot help but see the similarities.

8216;8216;Everybody loves Irfan Pathan in India after he did well in Australia. If you do well there you build a good reputation and the world knows because you are playing the world champions at home.8217;8217;

It8217;s this positive mindset that has convinced many that Butt is the right choice for what will be a difficult tour of India. What will help is the memory of his last match here: at the Eden Gardens last November for the BCCI anniversary match when he battled cramps to score a match-winning hundred.

	FIRST THINGS FIRST

			1998-99 series 8226; Aggregate runs for opening partnership India: 309 Avg: 51.5; Pakistan: 186 Avg: 31 2003-04 series 8226; Aggregate runs for opening partnership India: 180 Avg: 45 Pakistan: 217 Avg: 36.16 Story continues below this ad

Test matches are different and Butt is aware of what he8217;s up against, though he is unwilling to pin down one single bowler to watch out for. 8216;8216;There is Harbhajan, Kumble who wins matches. And then Zaheer and Nehra are also there. I am not going to come to India with any pre-conceived notions. It never helps your cause in cricket.8217;8217; For now, Butt is trying to live down comparisons with another left-handed Pakistan opener, Saeed Anwar. Apart from the similar free-flowing grace, Butt8217;s first ODI century and Anwar8217;s last came against the same opponents.

Ask Butt about the comparisons and he finds it hard to reply. 8216;8216;It8217;s a huge compliment. He is the best left-hander I have ever seen. Since I started my cricket, I tried to be like him, my hero if you will. So whenever I meet Saeedbhai in the Academy I just try to learn as much as I can from him.8217;8217;

What has struck Butt is the comparative ease Anwar puts him in whenever they meet. 8216;8216;If you talk to him, he makes it so simple and makes you feel good about yourself. I just want to learn how to be mentally tough like he was all the way in his career.8217;8217;