Who said what - top 5 expert reactions to Pakistan's defeat to Bangladesh in 1st Test ft. Rameez Raja
Recently, there has been an explosion of Pakistani cricketers and former legends making a quick switch into punditry, usually starting with their own YouTube channel. It brings the audience closer to the game because some are quite knowledgeable but in others' cases, it perhaps also reveals some underlying spite.
That's what happened when Pakistan suffered one of their biggest Test defeats in history against Bangladesh at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. It's not like Bangladesh were a weak team -- they have run Pakistan close several times and even almost defeated India recently -- but the manner of the 10-wicket loss just felt like a new low.
Despite Mohammad Rizwan and Saud Shakeel's centuries, Pakistan declared the first innings at 448/6 in a bold move. It backfired when Bangladesh put up 565 in the first innings and took a 117-run lead and then bowled an out-of-sorts batting line-up out for just 146 on the last day, before sealing their first win in the country in 39 deliveries.
Check the top five reactions here:
#5 Ahmed Shehzad
One of the first remarks on the loss came from Ahmed Shehzad, the 32-year-old batter who has been out of the national selectors' plans for a while. He called it the biggest low point of Pakistan men's cricket in his life but refused to blame the players for it, instead putting it on the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB)'s choices.
"I had said this before as well, Pakistan team is already heading towards darkness, so you cannot take short-term decisions," Shahzad said on X. "The situation is just like hockey. Even so, we never expected that Pakistan will lose to Bangladesh, but they have done that as well. Pakistan's players are not at fault. The cricket board is responsible."
"Players never force anyone to put them in the team. It's the board that keeps playing them and is not allowing domestic players to come in. If you don't have domestic players who can replace the existing lot, then what have you done so far?"
The issue with Pakistan's domestic system is an old one. Many observers over the years have complained that the infrastructure of the domestic system doesn't give players appropriate preparation for international cricket.
After Pakistan's early exit from the 2024 T20 World Cup, PCB coach Mohsin Naqvi promised to improve the system by organizing more tournaments and appointing a "master coach" to train the domestic coaches, among other steps.
#4 Rameez Raja
Speaking of the PCB and its bosses, former chief Rameez Raja also gave his opinion on the loss. He, unlike Shahzad, found bigger faults with the players, saying their ability to manage pressure was below par and had led to many such last-day defeats for the team in the past.
"If any team can snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, it's the Pakistan team, and their reputation has become like that. This has not happened for the first time that Pakistan have floundered on the fifth day of Test cricket. Sometimes batting is a flop show and they bowl badly on other occasions," he said in a latest YouTube video (0:01).
"It becomes an odd story whenever pressure mounts on this team. I feel it's a serious problem. Your belief system goes off as soon as pressure mounts on you, especially on the bowlers, as they start bowling bad spells. The batters don't have the ability at all as it becomes a flop show whenever there is slight sideways movement," Ramiz added.
He also said that the team should have played an extra spinner while chastising the fast bowlers for being below the expected quality and lacking in speed and confidence since the 2024 T20 World Cup defeat to India.
#3 Kamran Akmal
Former wicketkeeper-batter Kamran Akmal was harsher with his words. He saw this defeat as a continuation of a pattern across formats for the team. Akmal also compared the players with club cricketers and questioned their attitude towards the game, alleging that there was a palpable lack of seriousness.
"Had Rizwan not scored a 50 and ran the scoreboard, you've would've lost by an innings. You haven't learned anything in the last 5 years. You lost to Zimbabwe. Last year, you were eliminated from Asia Cup. You were humiliated at the T20 World Cup. Made a complete mockery of Pakistan cricket," Akmal said on his YouTube channel.
"It was a difficult time for Bangladesh but their batters scored runs. They had to save the Test, and they not only did that but also won the game. They basically exposed Pakistan cricket. And our players were batting like club cricketers. Sorry, not even club cricketers play like this. The approach was poor. Players are having a laugh in the dressing room, there is no seriousness because they know nobody will ask anything. It seems that you are playing for fun," he added.
Pakistan's batting did seem to be lacking quality against the Bangladeshi bowlers in the second innings. The track was quite flat even on the fifth day but the team came with the plan to see off the innings and were caught on defense whenever the visiting bowlers found a little purchase.
#2 Rashid Latif
Former Pakistan captain Rashid Latif pointed at perhaps the most glaring error of judgment from the team -- the first-innings declaration with four wickets in hand. Bangladesh's win became only the fourth such instance in Pakistan's history (first in Bangladesh's) where they lost a game despite declaring the first essay.
"Those 100 extra runs cost us the game," Latif explained in his column for Cricbuzz. "Bangladesh, on the other hand, read the conditions well and outplayed Pakistan. They wore down the Pakistani bowlers and then capitalized. There was no need to declare - they should have aimed for 550. Falling 100 runs short ultimately made the difference. (Mohammad) Rizwan was unbeaten on 171, and Shaheen was also batting well on 30 (29)."
He also added that captain Shan Masood and senior batter Babar Azam, who grew up playing in Rawalpindi, should have known the conditions better and not trusted the grass on the pitch to do the trick for them with the ball.
#1 Basit Ali
Former Test player Basit Ali also felt the declaration was a sign of over-confidence from the home team. But he also specifically slammed opener Abdullah Shafique -- who scored 2 and 37 -- for his shot selection, saying if he was part of the decision-making process, he'd ask the 24-year-old to go back home.
"Abdullah Shafique is very lucky," Basit said on his YouTube channel (from 3:49). "Some players are surviving on the basis of the runs scored in the past. If I was in the Pakistani dressing room, I'd have asked Abdullah Shafique to pack his bags and go home. Abdullah Shafique's shot cost Pakistan this match."
Pakistan will now play to level the two-Test series at the same venue from August 30.