Present squad better than 1992 World Cup winning side 8211; Imran

Imran, who was here as a television commentator for the Coca-Cola Cup cricket series, which pakistan won by eight wickets over India in yesterday8217;s finals, said Pakistan should have stuck with Akram as captain after his retirement.

8220;When I retired, I recommended Wasim. They made him captain, and then removed him. That was a mistake. Now he has been brought back for a third time. If they had stuck with him, Pakistan would have been the best team in the world. It8217;s unfortunate they changed captains frequently,8221; he said.

8220;Pakistan have always had a good side,the problem was the leadership. There was no stability in the team and, as a result, they were getting beaten,8221; he felt.

8220;Bringing Akram in has made all the difference. He is a team man and has always been the best for the job,8221; Imran said.

He also criticised the Pakistan Cricket Board for the manner in which it had handled bribery and match-fixing allegations.

8220;Match-fixing did take place 8230; But that was way back. By not taking action then, the problem surfaces now whenever the team loses now,8221; he lamented.

Imran said Pakistan would find conditions for the World Cup in England vastly different from those in the Indian sub-continent. 8220;The wicket helps the seamers a lot and batsmen have to earn their runs,8221; he said.

8220;What they, especially the younger players, will have to worry about are the fluctuating conditions in England,8221; he warned.

However, he ranked Pakistan among the favourites, along with South Africa, Australia and England.

Imran described Shoaib Akhtar as the fastest bowlerin the world. 8220;The guy has got good ball control. Seeing Shoaib bowling full throttle is a lovely sight, but he will have to change a few things to bowl at that speed in England,8221; he added.