"The pitch is very bouncy" - Wasim Akram believes Pakistan can't read too much from practice match ahead of 1st Test in Perth
Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram believes the tourists can't read too much from their practice match against the Prime Minister's XI in Canberra. The former left-arm seamer feels the pitch for the first Test in Perth will be vastly different.
The visitors piled up runs in the practice match in Canberra, as the game was headlined by Shan Masood's double-hundred while Babar Azam and Sarfaraz Ahmed also made merry. However, the hosts made 367-4 in reply to Pakistan's 391 as the match resulted in a draw.
However, Akram has reckoned that it will be a big test for Pakistan in Australia, given the home team's might across facets. As quoted by Perth Now, the 57-year-old claimed:
"Canberra is too early. OK, the captain got 200 ... they got some runs, so there's a bit of confidence. (But) new management, new captain. It will take time, especially at the first Test match in Perth. We know the pitch is very bouncy, different pitch altogether from Canberra. It'll be a big Test for this team."
Pakistan haven't produced favorable results Down Under in the past two decades, having failed to register a single victory in Tests. They last claimed a victory on the Australian soil in 1995.
"We'll only be able to decide when we get closer to the game" - Pakistan skipper on bowling attack
Pakistan's newly-appointed Test skipper Shan Masood underlined that they were lucky to play a practice match ahead of the first Test, further stating that the game helped them determine the best combination. He said, as quoted by ESPN Cricinfo:
"We'll only be able to decide when we get closer to the game, see the pitch, see the conditions, see where the guys are at with their fitness and their loads. You have to look at the opposition as well, match-ups, or type of bowling, is huge in cricket now. The permutations on the structure of the side matters as well - do we go with an allrounder, what will the role of the spinner be? So there are a lot of things we are looking at and we are very glad we are playing a fixture like this."
The first Test begins on December 14th at the Optus Stadium in Perth.