Sometime during Pakistans first full day in New Zealand, some of the players might have turned on the television to watch Australias fourth innings in Perth. They will have seen Kagiso Rabada doing what he does. And beyond the admiration for his skills, there will have been envy - what Pakistan would give to have their own Rabada right now - followed by a sigh, because they would remember, more than most, that it wasnt long ago that Pakistan seemed to hold the trademark on young speed demons.Last month Bangladeshs Mehedi Hasan became only the 13th player to take a Test five-for before his 19th birthday. Of the previous 12, six were Pakistanis, four of them fast bowlers. And that list doesnt even include the likes of Mohammad Sami, Mohammad Zahid and Shoaib Akhtar, all of whom managed the feat in their early 20s.It is in this context that the supposed current travails of Pakistani fast bowling are measured. Of the five quick bowlers Pakistan have taken to New Zealand (Mohammad Amir, Imran Khan, Rahat Ali, Sohail Khan and Wahab Riaz), and will most likely retain for the Australia leg of the tour, only one is under the age of 28 - Amir, who has already lived a life far more eventful than most people his age have done.The tours to New Zealand and Australia are significant - perhaps the biggest since, well, this summers trip to England. And despite the players protestations about how the Tests in New Zealand are likely to be more difficult than those across the Tasman Sea, its obvious where their legacies will be defined.Pakistan havent lost a Test series to New Zealand in 30 years, while their two wins in Australia since 1980 came in dead rubbers after they lost the series. The tour to Australia is how ex-players define how hard Test cricket is. They tell stories, of big, hairy men, ready to kill them at a moments notice.Pakistan will go to Australia for the first time in 17 years with a realistic chance of returning victorious. But, perhaps for the first time in living memory, their worries are primarily over their fast bowling. Its an odd feeling for a Pakistan fan. Decades of experience tell them that it will be up to the teams batsmen and spinners to ensure that the fast bowlers efforts wont be in vain. And while over the last six years this team has busted one Pakistani myth after another, it would appear that their brand of spin-heavy control cricket might finally come undone down under.Twenty months after Wahab became a household name, 11 months after Amir made his return to the national side, the concern for Pakistan fans, and their captain, remains with the fast-bowling unit. This isnt what the script promised.There are a lot of reasons for why Pakistan find themselves in this situation. As always, the finger-pointing goes back to domestic cricket, where a combination of helpful pitches, substandard balls, and the fact that the cricket season is in the winter end up helping medium-pacers and discouraging old-school Pakistani fast bowling. The result is that in the current season of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, there are as many as ten medium-pacers who have taken over a dozen wickets at under 20.Then you have to consider the nostalgia bias - far more prevalent than any recency bias - that affects the Pakistani cricket fraternity. If they are to be believed, there were a dozen or so fast bowlers in the 90s who would have all been world-class if given enough of a chance (usually stated as: If Wasim and Waqar hadnt destroyed their careers). Yet the numbers dont bear that out. During Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis golden period - 1990 to 2003 - the other quick bowlers (those who took at least 20 wickets) combined to average 34 with the ball. Thats what the current five fast bowlers achieve - mostly in less helpful conditions.And thats the crux of the issue really. The myths that feed Pakistani exceptionalism might proclaim otherwise, but has there ever been that much depth? Right now Pakistan are operating with what should have been their second-string attack. Is this attacks performance any worse than those achieved by second-string attacks in the past? And are these bowlers as bad as is being suggested? Not really.Amir still doesnt have a full season under his belt; Rahat performs a very specific role, which he has nearly always succeeded at; Imran and Sohail, in helpful conditions, have delivered repeatedly. And Wahab is far better than his critics suggest. For all his proclivity to being smashed around like a drum, only four bowlers who have taken over 30 wickets in Asia over the last decade have had a better average than him.For all their limitations, the West Indies series, where they supposedly failed to turn up, was an exception rather than the rule for these bowlers. For six years they have operated mostly in unhelpful conditions and delivered more often than not.But as always, the thoughts turn to the what-ifs and the potential. Thats why the young speed demon will always be favoured, for his promise makes even his possible ineffectiveness worth it.In that ideal world, Pakistan would have gone on this tour with an ageing Asif ready to say his goodbyes, having spent six years tutoring Amir and a Junaid Khan who wasnt made of papier-maché. With Wahab ready to bowl on tracks that suit his style of bluster, Pakistan would have started the New Zealand series with fast bowling their strength rather than their supposed weakness.In the real world, though, Pakistan have travelled to the southern hemisphere with five pacers, all with question marks over them, wanting to change history. They may be able to affect what will happen, but theyll never change what has already gone by. And that, it would seem, will never be good enough. Paul Molitor Jersey . Zvonareva, who won the tournament in 2009 and 10, couldnt handle her opponents big groundstrokes in only her third event back after 17 months out with a shoulder injury. Zvonareva made her comeback in January in Shenzhen and played in the Australian Open but lost her first matches at both tournaments. 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RIO DE JANEIRO -- The 10m diving final left Tonia Couch feeling flat but the three-time OIympian is confident she still has a future in the synchronized format.Couch, 27, finished 12th in the womens 10m platform final and found the solitary nature of the experience tough. So much of her preparation centred on the synchronized 10m class with her partner 16-year-old Lois Toulson, but as she stood on her own, planning out her five dives -- something she has done countless times -- it felt unfamiliar.I was a little bit flat -- I focused so much on synchro with Lois and without her up there, I was on my own, Couch said. Before the Olympics she was down at my house for the week, then I was up with her for a week and then she was down again and we focused so much on synchro. I gave everything I could in the synchro and didnt leave enough for my own. Im a little bit gutted.Couch will now return to her Plymouth home and is looking forward to spending time with her boyfriend, family and dog Nanook. She will take her fifth-placce finish in the synchronized class as a personal highlight, and that class is where she is likely to focus heading forward.ddddddddddddHopefully I can stay on a couple of years for synchro, if Lois still wants me, Couch said. I havent thought about it yet. I dont think thats the end of me just yet.Having been in diving for 15 years she knows how to navigate the highs and lows of the sport. She will look back on a year where she won 10m platform silver in the European Aquatics Championship as a highlight but will take the time to take stock before refocusing on building her partnership with Toulson.I am going to do something different -- spinning classes, dancing classes and my friends have a wedding coming up and Im going to try and get them into shape and keep myself in shape, Couch said. Im always used to weights and conditioning but Im going to do something else for a couple of months. ' ' '