Lawson unfazed by media criticism of team

KARACHI: Coach Geoff Lawson on Sunday said he was not bothered about the media criticism of the national team in Pakistan and also told the players to just laugh it off and forget it.
    
"I tell them you should only be concerned that you have the full support and backing of the (Cricket) Board and team management," Lawson said after Pakistan lost a four-nation Twenty20 tournament final to Sri Lanka last week in Toronto.
    
He made it clear he was only concerned about how his players viewed his performance.
    
The former Australian paceman said there was no need to judge the national team's real worth in terms of wins and defeats.
    
"Pakistan has a very good domestic structure and some exciting players coming up. Fawad Alam is a good example. We need to be patient for the real worth of the team to come through," he was quoted as saying by the 'Daily Express'.
    
Lawson believes Twenty20 cricket was not the format to properly judge a player or team because it was too instant and short to be used as a barometre to properly assess anyone's performance.
    
"The real Test is still one-day internationals and Test matches," he added.

Lawson said there was a big difference between T20 and one-day internationals as both had their own set of requirements.
    
"I think Pakistan has done very well in T20 cricket in last 12 months as we have lost just three games so we don't need to be too worried about our form in this format."
    
The coach said his concentration would be focussed on preparing the team for the Abu Dhabi one-day series against the West Indies and the Test tour by India early next year.
    
"India will come here after having played against Australia so their confidence levels will be high," he noted.
    
Lawson's coaching contract with the Board appears to be under scrutiny as new PCB Chairman Ejaz Butt has said he was not satisfied with Lawson's performance.