``There is no match between us and England, we are far better than England,'' says Majid. ``We have the edge in both batting and bowling, and our players have worked very hard in the recent conditioning camp to improve their fielding.''
Speaking to Rediff On The Net via telephone from his Lahore residence, Majid said that ``Our side is determined to prove that we are among the best sides in the world. The best part, for us, is that both Waqar Younis and Wasim Akram have begun bowling with their former fire again. And more importantly, both of them have buried their past differences and come together in the interests of the side.''
It will, of course, be recalled that Younis had earlier led a revolt against the appointment of Akram as captain for the last tour of Australia. The news that the pace aces are back in harness again, meanwhile, must be worrying to the England batsmen, who found their swing and speed too hot to handle the last time Pakistan toured England.
Majid, the soft-spoken former captain of Cambridge University, Glamorgan and Pakistan is meanwhile making plans to visit his birthplace, Jallandhar, in mid-September along with his ailing mother. And Majid is quick to deny reports appearing in a section of the press that his appointment as PCB president by Pakistan president Farooq Ahmed Legari was at the instance of his brother in law Javed Burkhi. ``That is not true, that Javed brought about my appointment. In fact, the Pakistan President decided on the appointment without consulting anyone.''
Majid also denied reports that Pak Premier Benazir Bhutto had pulled strings to secure his appointment in order to create a rift between himself and his famous cousin, and Bhutto's political rival, Imran Khan. ``Personal relationships are one thing, cricket is something else,'' said Majid. ``Imran is my very dear cousin brother, true, but it is not necessary that I share his views on many subjects, including politics.''
Majid preferred to talk about Pakistan's recent hiring of former Australian skipper Ian Chappell as consultant for the tour. ``There was no need for Arif Abbassi (former PCB chief executive) to appoint Ian,'' says Majid, who for all his relaxed demeanour is very vocal about his opinions. ``If at all a consultant was needed, it should have been a former Pakistan Test player. We have a number of great former players, any of whom would have been better able to fulfill the duties of consultant,'' says Majid.
On his list of priorities, the PCB president indicates, is the revival of cricketing ties between India and Pakistan. ``I am planning to start a dialogue in this regard with both I S Bindra (the BCCI president) and Jagmohan Dalmiya (BCCI secre- tary),'' says Majid. ``Both are my very good friends, and I am sure they will respond in a positive manner.
``For sub-continental cricket to attain its true stature, it is very important that India and Pakistan play each other regularly.''