Pakistan v Australia: Fawad Alam tips hosts' bowlers to impress

Pakistan's Fawad Alam hopes his side's bowlers will prove the difference when Australia tour the country for the first time since 1998.

The three-Test series pits second against third in the World Test Championship, and 36-year-old Fawad is confident Pakistan's battery of pace bowlers and experienced spinners will be enough to topple an Australian side fresh from winning the Ashes 4-0.

«Our pace bowlers have been bowling brilliantly. Just look at the recent Test matches played by Pakistan and you'll see that our bowling combination of fast bowlers and spinners has worked very well,» Fawad said.

«Hassan Ali recently won the Pakistan Cricket Board's best bowler award and he has taken more than 40 wickets in the year, Shaheen (Afridi) is bowling magnificently, and Faheem Ashraf also plays his part.

»Nauman Ali and Sajid Khan have been bowling excellently. Yasir Shah (in reserve squad) is fit again.

«We have a great bowling combination and we will try to catch Australia with that.»

Fawad, who has scored 953 runs in 15 Tests with a formidable batting average of 47.65, was in the crowd the last time Australia played in Pakistan — a series which saw Australia win 1-0 in a batter-dominated series.

The tourists then won all three one-day internationals in convincing style.

«When they (Australia) came in 1998 an ODI match was played here at the National Stadium (Karachi) with a red ball and players wore white kits,» said Alam.

«I watched that match sitting outside and now I will play in the middle.»