'I want to score a century from the lower order' - Afridi

Shahid Afridi has said that he harbours ambitions of making a century while batting in the lower order and has cited Adam Gilchrist's fantastic 113 at Sydney recently, against Pakistan, as a knock that inspired him. He added that he was not planning to change his dare-devil approach to batting, which brought him success on the tour, and hoped that he could boost Pakistan's chances of upstaging India in the much-anticipated forthcoming rubber.

"I think I've been selected for this tour as a bowler who can bat instead of 1999 when I was picked as a batsman who could bowl," Afridi told the Press Trust of India. "Which means batting down the order and bowling more than before."

Afridi had a scorching run in the VB Series, where Pakistan lost in the final, with 231 runs at a stunning strike-rate of 167.39. His power-hitting proved crucial in a number of games, he even notched up the record for the most sixes in ODIs, as fielders were reduced to spectators in the big Australian grounds. "I want to continue with my style of batting which is extremely simple: hit the ball back with same force," he added. "I like hitting the ball into stands and want to hear the cracking sound that comes out of my bat. I don't know why but that sound [of wood] and sight of seeing the ball land in enclosures gives me immense pleasure and satisfaction."

Afridi has had success in India earlier: he scored a matchwinning 141 in the Chennai Test in 1999 and helped Pakistan clinch an epic encounter. He has tormented India regularly and has one century and four fifties against them. The last tour of India saw Afridi the opener display his destructive ability. This series, though, may see Afridi the legspinner and lower-order dynamite prove a point or two.