“A 10-wicket defeat raises serious questions” – Shahid Afridi reacts to Pakistan’s hammering against Bangladesh in 1st Test
Former captain Shahid Afridi has questioned the pitch after Pakistan lost to Bangladesh by 10 wickets in the first Test in Rawalpindi on Sunday, August 25. Afridi also looked bemused as the hosts didn’t pick any specialist spinner in their playing XI. He, however, reserved special praise for Bangladesh following their heroics.
Notably, 17 wickets fell on the first four days, with Pakistan and Bangladesh scoring 448/6 and 565 runs in their first innings, respectively. However, the last day's pitch changed into a rank turner, with nine wickets falling in just two sessions. The hosts were bundled out for 146, managing just a 30-run target for the visitors. Bangladesh achieved the target without losing any wickets to script history by registering their first-ever win against Pakistan in Tests.
Shahid Afridi wrote on X:
“A 10-wicket defeat raises serious questions about the decision to prepare this type of pitch, select four fast bowlers, and leave out a specialist spinner. This to me clearly shows a lack of awareness about home conditions. That said, you cannot take the credit away from Bangladesh for the brand of cricket they played throughout the Test.”
Shan Masood justifies his decision to exclude spinner and declaration
Pakistan Test captain Shan Masood justified his decision to ignore spinners and first-innings declaration after losing to Bangladesh in opening Test. He said (via Cricket Pakistan):
“Looking at the pitch, we expected it to do more. If we played 3 fast bowlers, we would be pushing them to the limit and the spinner would be bowling 25-30 overs a day, which we wanted to avoid. We thought that with the weather, it may not even last the full 5 days. At the end of the day, we got it wrong.
“Hindsight’s 20/20. The reason for the declaration was a positive push - to push the game forward and hopefully have a crack at them in the 4th innings. We could have done with those runs but there were also things with the ball and in the field that we could’ve done better to either take a lead or keep them at par,” Masood added.
Masood has failed to win a game for Pakistan in his first four Tests. They also lost the three-Test series in Australia in December 2023-January 2024.
The hosts will next play against Bangladesh in the second Test at the same venue, beginning August 30.