A tour of India is a tough proposition for any team, and to take up this challenge without your best bowler can at times break a team's resistance even before the start of the tour. That's exactly the predicament Pakistan are in as they prepare to take on their arch-rivals next month in a three-Test and six One-Day International series.
Fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar ruled himself out of the tour and many believe that without his services Pakistan will face an uphill struggle in India. The rest of the bowlers, led by leg-spinner Danish Kaneria and a fit-again Mohammad Sami will be itching to prove the critics wrong.
Will they succeed in their quest or will the Indian batsman batter them into submission?
