Pakistan's captain Rashid Latif is hoping to break a five-year test drought to win the 3-test series against Bangladesh in the second test, which begins in Peshawar on Wednesday. Pakistan won the first test match in Karachi by seven wickets.
The searing temperatures in Pakistan's northwest are the only worry for the Pakistan captain.
"It's quite hot here and it will be difficult for the bowlers to bowl long spells," he said. "But as long as we win, I am not worried if the match goes into even fifth day."
If Pakistan clinches the test series it will be their first on home ground in five years. Pakistan last won a series at home against the West Indies in 1997-98 before losing four to Australia, Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka and England.
Latif says he won't let history worry him -- but his team is young and inexperienced.
"I am concerned about my team performance. We are going through a rebuilding process and I am confident that the new players are showing signs of great improvement.''
Bangladesh took the first test into the fifth day before losing it by seven wickets with reliable No. 3 batsman Habibul Bashar scoring 71 and 108 in two good Bangladesh totals of 288 and 346.
"Obviously they are bound to improve after playing 22 test matches and they showed it in Karachi where they fought bravely," Latif said.
"I expect a good [first innings] score from my team to put them under pressure. If we get 450 plus in the first innings, we have enough bowling resources to dismiss them early," he said.
Pakistan's latest batting sensation Yasir Hameed will be playing in his hometown after becoming only the second player in test history to score centuries in each innings of his debut test at Karachi (170 and 105).
The wicket at the Arbab Niaz Stadium in Peshawar is expected to give bowlers some more assistance with its tinge of grass. The pitch is not as flat as it was in the first test in Karachi.
"It [the wicket] looks quite different from the Karachi one and I hope there will be more juice in it for the bowlers," Latif said.
Bangladesh's captain was more than satisfied with his team's performance in the first test and was confident his players would raise the bar in the second.
"There were lots of ifs and buts in the Karachi test. We took the test into the fifth day and with a bit of more responsible batting we could have stretched Pakistan more," he said. "All my players are confident and the heat is no problem for us."
Coach Dav Whatmore, who has targeted totals of 300-plus in both the Peshawar test innings, said that Bangladesh is definitely heading in the right direction.
"Improvement in the performance of our team is evident in the way we played in Karachi," Whatmore said.
"It was difficult to lift a losing side but we have identified the areas of improvement and we need to work on that," he said.
Niether team has finalized their squad lineups.



