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England's Hussain sets sights on Ashes
Dec 12, 2000, 11:45 Hrs (IST)

Karachi: England captain Nasser Hussain was on a cloud after clinching England's first series win here in 38 years, but warned the upcoming Ashes series against a rampant Australia could bring him back to earth.

"It's encouraging that we've now won two series in-a-row. But we don't want people to get carried away and think we'll win every time we go out," he told reporters following his team's cliffhanger win here.

"We've got to keep our feet on the ground ... Australia is going to be a totally different proposition." Australia's Ashes tour of England in the middle of next year will pit the long-established masters of the Test scene against its rising stars.

Australia recently crushed the West Indies for the second time on the islanders' tour there, taking their unbeaten stretch to a record 12 consecutive wins.

The Australian media have hailed them as the most consistently successful side in 123 years of international cricket after they surpassed the 11 successive victories set by Clive Lloyd's West Indies team of the 1980s.

But Hussain said it was the underdog tag that motivated his side to write their own history in Pakistan, where they became the first English side to win a series here in 38 years and the first ever visiting team to win in Karachi.

The victory followed their 3-1 home win over the West Indies last September - a feat not achieved for 31 years - and a 1-0 victory over Zimbabwe.

"It is a great year for English cricket, some good things have come our way. This is one year I think everyone associated with the game should look back on with pride," Hussain said after the six-wicket win here.

They clinched the series with just minutes to spare on the final day, showing gritty determination and confidence that they could salvage a win from what had looked like a certain draw.

"We had aspired for something special in this Test and if you look at the faces in the dressing room they are genuinely happy on achieving that something special," Hussain said as members of the "Barmy Army" of touring supporters sang in the rapidly emptying stands.

"We showed our character in this series and one of the very important things was to keep playing positively, and that we did. Considering all that hype that we will be rolled over this is a big series win and such things bring euphoria."

Copyright AFP 2000

Extras:
England stun Pak for historic series win