'It's important to go into the India series with confidence'

You have led Pakistan on a couple of occasions before, but this is your first stint as the official captain. How have you found it so far?
The team has been playing well recently and we have been winning. And because of that it has been good so far and even enjoyable. I think there is still a long way to go, and some hard work ahead, but I am looking forward to it.

Have you changed at all as a person because of the captaincy? Certainly, looking in from the outside, it seems you have assumed a quiet sense of authority and decisiveness ...
There has definitely been a change, both personally and professionally. For a start, I have to think about 16 other guys, but not only about their performances. I have had to look at my man-management skills and try and really get inside a player's mind; to know how to handle them temperamentally; to be able to know how to bring out the best in them, not just as a player but also as a person. This is where I have changed as a person - I have actually relished the challenge of working with players in that sense.

So you plan to stay as captain for a while?
I never really sought out the captaincy at any stage in my career. Now that it has been handed to me, I would obviously like to do it justice and keep performing well. The day I stop performing will be the day I happily relinquish the role.

What's been your most memorable game so far as captain?
I haven't really been around long enough to have one yet, to be honest. I think we will know something about the true mettle and the shape of this team, and my own performance, on the New Zealand tour.

This will be a difficult first series abroad for you as captain. You have young players, difficult conditions and are up against a strong opposition ...
This will be a test for us, no doubt. We have young guys, many making their first tour abroad and most of them have little idea of the playing conditions in New Zealand. I'll really learn something about how well I can manage a team on this tour.

You would have happy memories of New Zealand, where you first rose into prominence with two outstanding performances, first in the semi-final of the 1992 World Cup, and then the following season in the Hamilton Test where you scored 75 in the second innings to help set up a memorable win.
Yeah, it was a seaming wicket at Hamilton, and batting was really difficult. But it gave me the confidence after that to be able to play on any wicket, and I think the younger guys on this tour can take positives out of that. If they do well here, they can really go on at the international level. We are going to New Zealand with confidence - all the boys have performed well in the home series.

Have you got any particular strategy for the tour? Have you been practising in certain conditions in order to recreate the conditions you will encounter in New Zealand?
To be honest we haven't had any time to sit down and plan it out. We have been playing non-stop for a while. I wanted to have a training camp set up, play on some seaming pitches to get used to the conditions, but it hasn't happened. We've got a few days before the first Test, so we'll try to acclimatise as best as we can. The experience of guys like Javed Miandad, Moin Khan, Yousuf Youhana and myself will be crucial for the younger guys.

Have you set yourself any targets for the tour?
I believe we can win and will be disappointed if we don't. Yeah, it'll be tough, but I want to play as we always play - aggressively - and aim for a win. I will not be happy with a draw.

Are you happy with the team that has been selected?
I am. It's been selected with inputs and advice from both the coach and myself. I am happy that it is the strongest team we could have picked.

Before you were made captain, your name hadn't been mentioned as a contender. Youhana and Younis Khan were being touted as long-term options. Wasn't there was a general impression that you wouldn't make a good captain, and that you were a reluctant one?
I think most people thought that because I am quite reserved and private, I wouldn't make a good captain. I had been offered the post twice before, but turned it down both times, so people thought I was reluctant. I only turned it down because I didn't feel comfortable with the idea of leading a team with so many senior players. This time around the team was younger and fresher and I could do more in terms of moulding a team, so I said yes. So far it's been good, although whether any of that is down to my captaincy is debatable.

Has your batting been affected in any way?
No, I don't think it has been affected at all. I mean if I was younger and had only been in the team for three or four years, then maybe the pressures would have been too much, but I've been around for 13 years now, I have coped with pressure before and can cope with it now.

You talk of pressure - I don't think there could have been more pressure on you than in that century against Bangladesh in the third Test at Multan. You were making a comeback into the team, you were at your home ground, and there was the little matter of a defeat against Bangladesh stacked up against you. You let out your emotions at the end, which is unusual, isn't it?
That was a pressure innings, but then all international cricket is about pressure and how you handle it. Yes, there was extra baggage with the comeback, the opponents and so on, and my celebration showed that. But the bottom line is, you have to find ways of dealing with the pressure - I just kept thinking that there was no way we were going to lose, and we didn't.

Did you ever feel at any stage after the World Cup that you wouldn't come back into the team?
When you play at this level, not everything is going to go your way all the time. You just have to deal with it. If I am captain now, then I know that many still think I shouldn't be. Criticism is natural, it's just that you have to deal with it positively and use it to improve. I got criticised at the World Cup and rightly so. I gave people that opportunity, but I took the criticism and used it to improve myself and work even harder. At one stage I did think "Hey, I'm 33, I only have about three to four years left so I'd better get back into the team," but I didn't panic. I kept playing, working hard and got back.

After the series against New Zealand, you have arguably Pakistan's most important home series in the last 14 years or so, against India. Are you confident about the prospects?
Against any team, confidence is crucial. If we win in New Zealand and do well in the Sharjah Cup after that, then we will gain more confidence. It is vitally important that we go into any big series in a winning mode and with confidence. We will still play the same way against India as we would against any other country, but we must go into the series with some wins behind us.

But the stakes are so much higher against India.
Yes, but again, if you are confident going into it, you will handle that extra pressure. If you are struggling for form, then it is the worst series. But if you do perform, you know you can cut it at the highest level.

Do you see a potential captain in the team after you leave?
I think Youhana is doing quite well. He has captained a few matches, including the win against South Africa [in the first Test of the recent two-Test series in Pakistan], and he was impressive. He has still got a few years ahead of him as well, so out of the current team, he looks the part.

Finally, has the team's morale been affected at all by Tauqir Zia's resignation?
He has done a lot of good for the game at grass-roots level here. He has set up academies, built new grounds and, above all, he also looked after the players well. I think that was why they felt that a [public] statement had to be made asking him to continue. But Shaharyar Khan is here now and he is a good choice. He has been manager before in tough situations and he knows his stuff, so we are looking forward to it.