Javed Miandad was never shy about sticking the knife into his rivals,on or off the field. Were Indias cricketers participating in next months Asian Games in Guangzhou,then sledger-emeritus Miandads latest claim would have made more sense: he told The Indian Express that Chinas novice cricketers could be the next big thing. But since Indias cricket board has disappointingly chosen not to go,we have got to wonder: is he intimidating Bangladesh,always capable of dismembering Pakistan on the big occasion? Is this some subtle geopolitical positioning? Or could he,terrifyingly,just be calling it as he sees it? Few people have earned pots of money recently through underestimating Chinese persistence and determination. As Miandad says,when they want something,they master it,something that is missing in Pakistan and India. And it isnt as if this is a very recent development: China joined the Asian Cricket Council in 2005. And,even earlier,during a tour by the Chinese youth rugby team (another quintessentially Chinese sport) in New Zealand,a future deputy director at the sports ministry saw Sri Lanka win the 1996 World Cup on TV and instantly grasped that here was an international competition that Asian countries could demonstrably win and subsequently gain a great deal of face. That sort of thing causes a bureaucrat to dream. At least in China.Miandad,in a neat reversal of the usual transfer,will be taking Pakistani know-how to China to improve their game. The Chinese Cricket Association has determined that they will qualify for the World Cup in 2019,and win Test status by 2020. Worried? Dont be,at least not yet. At their last major outing,in the 2009 Asian Twenty20 Cup,the Chinese national team was crushed by the awesome Afghans,losing by 9 wickets after being all out for 37.
