Pakistan skipper Inzamam-ul Haq on Sunday said the defeat in Rawalpindi had not dampened the spirit of his team which was confident of bouncing back in the third cricket one-dayer against India in Lahore on Monday.
Inzamam said the day-night match was crucial for both sides as a victory would give a psychological edge to the winners before the last two games of the series.
"It's a very important game for both the teams as whoever takes the lead at this stage would have a big advantage in the rest of the series," the 35-year-old batsman told reporters.
"We played well at Peshawar (first ODI) and did not do so yesterday. But one loss is not enough to dent the confidence of the team. I'm hoping the boys would do well."
The Pakistan captain conceded his side had not played well in the previous game at Rawalpindi.
"Yes, we did not play well yesterday. The crucial factor was the four run-outs. Even after this we managed to score 265 and had they not happened we would have scored over 300 runs which would have been a good target," he said.
On the wicket, he said it looked good and would produce a high-scoring game.
"The wicket is looking good and I feel it would be a high-scoring game. The 11 am start would also negate the disadvantage of batting first and bowling last or batting under lights," said the Pakistan captain.
But Inzamam refused to say what he would do if he won the toss.
The match is scheduled to start at 11 am (local time) and end at 7:15 pm as per the playing conditions for this series.
Asked about his own fitness and that of another pace bowler Mohammed Sami, who has not been in the playing eleven after being omitted for the third and deciding Test at Karachi, Inzamam said, "Sami is okay and I am also fully fit by God's grace."
| |||||||||||
"But those run outs happened and we could not put up a big score," he added.
He also accepted that the players needed to put up an improved performance in fielding department.
"We fielded very well in the first match but did not field so well yesterday. But we're laying emphasis on our fielding," he said.
The Pakistan team had a light practice session in the day while the Indians decided to take the day off.
More from rediff