NEW DELHI: Pakistan’s Test captain Shan Masood expressed his thoughts following the team’s series loss against Bangladesh. Despite the disappointing outcome, Masood seemed unconcerned about his personal future as the captain. However, he acknowledged that the team was not adequately prepared for the challenges of Test cricket.
In a historic first, Bangladesh secured a 2-0 series win by defeating Pakistan by six wickets in the second Test held in Rawalpindi on Tuesday.Masood emphasized the importance of moving forward swiftly from this setback, recognizing the need for the team to regroup and improve their performance in the longer format of the game.
“I take responsibility for the defeats and I apologise to the nation. But I think we need to focus on how we can improve and take our Test side forward,” Masood said in the post-match press meet, as quoted by PTI.
Masood acknowledged the challenge of returning to Test cricket after an extended absence of almost 10 months.
“There is no excuse for losing this series and we accept that. But it is also a fact that the players also wanted to do well.
“But we were just not prepared for red ball cricket. We have to tolerate some failures if we are to move forward,” he added.
Masood emphasized that the first step forward for the team should be to focus on developing a strong pool of fast bowlers.
“The main thing is that we need to build our stocks in fast bowling and need to encourage and give consistent chances to those bowlers who regularly play red ball cricket,” he said.
Pakistan’s bowling attack faced challenges in maintaining consistency during the second Test match, following the absence of Shaheen Shah Afridi due to being dropped and the decision to rest Naseem Shah, another key pacer in the team.
When asked about the notion that the previous two Test matches represented the bleakest period for Pakistan cricket in the past thirty years, Masood expressed his disagreement with this viewpoint.
“That is not a fair assessment because we can never underestimate any opposition and I think Bangladesh played more disciplined cricket over us in both Tests.
“I think Bangladesh need to be respected for their performances in contrast we made too many mistakes,” he added.
Masood noted that the turning point in the Test came when Pakistan allowed Bangladesh to recover from 26 for 6 in their first innings, eventually reaching 262.
The Pakistan captain also emphasized the need for the team to work towards improving their fitness standards.
“In Test cricket you need to have the fitness to last five days and also have the intensity for five days and I think that is one area in which we really need to work a lot more.
“I think because of this we couldn’t capitalise on the opportunities to push Bangladesh out of the game,” he added.
The 34-year-old also rejected suggestions that the management made mistakes in selecting the playing XI.
“Sometimes we can make mistakes in selection but it is not intentional and we picked the best eleven we could given the conditions in both Tests,” he insisted.
“Thing is we need to play more red ball cricket. That is the bottom line,” he added.
Masood defended Babar Azam after the senior batter struggled in the series, scoring only 64 runs across two matches with an average of 16.
The captain pointed out that the scarcity of red-ball cricket at the domestic level makes it challenging to find suitable replacements.
“We are not playing red ball cricket even at domestic level, so how do we replace out-of-form players. But Babar has made runs in the past and he will do it again,” he said.
Pakistan red ball head coach Jason Gillespie offered his support to Masood. “Shan, I feel, has led the side very well. We just haven’t played well as a team and that’s the reality,” Gillespie said.
“We need to sharpen up on certain areas. I really want to back and believe in these players. They are good enough and have shown glimpses of how good we are. We just need to do it more often and consistently,” he added.
In a historic first, Bangladesh secured a 2-0 series win by defeating Pakistan by six wickets in the second Test held in Rawalpindi on Tuesday.Masood emphasized the importance of moving forward swiftly from this setback, recognizing the need for the team to regroup and improve their performance in the longer format of the game.
“I take responsibility for the defeats and I apologise to the nation. But I think we need to focus on how we can improve and take our Test side forward,” Masood said in the post-match press meet, as quoted by PTI.
Masood acknowledged the challenge of returning to Test cricket after an extended absence of almost 10 months.
“There is no excuse for losing this series and we accept that. But it is also a fact that the players also wanted to do well.
“But we were just not prepared for red ball cricket. We have to tolerate some failures if we are to move forward,” he added.
Masood emphasized that the first step forward for the team should be to focus on developing a strong pool of fast bowlers.
“The main thing is that we need to build our stocks in fast bowling and need to encourage and give consistent chances to those bowlers who regularly play red ball cricket,” he said.
Pakistan’s bowling attack faced challenges in maintaining consistency during the second Test match, following the absence of Shaheen Shah Afridi due to being dropped and the decision to rest Naseem Shah, another key pacer in the team.
When asked about the notion that the previous two Test matches represented the bleakest period for Pakistan cricket in the past thirty years, Masood expressed his disagreement with this viewpoint.
“That is not a fair assessment because we can never underestimate any opposition and I think Bangladesh played more disciplined cricket over us in both Tests.
“I think Bangladesh need to be respected for their performances in contrast we made too many mistakes,” he added.
Masood noted that the turning point in the Test came when Pakistan allowed Bangladesh to recover from 26 for 6 in their first innings, eventually reaching 262.
The Pakistan captain also emphasized the need for the team to work towards improving their fitness standards.
“In Test cricket you need to have the fitness to last five days and also have the intensity for five days and I think that is one area in which we really need to work a lot more.
“I think because of this we couldn’t capitalise on the opportunities to push Bangladesh out of the game,” he added.
The 34-year-old also rejected suggestions that the management made mistakes in selecting the playing XI.
“Sometimes we can make mistakes in selection but it is not intentional and we picked the best eleven we could given the conditions in both Tests,” he insisted.
“Thing is we need to play more red ball cricket. That is the bottom line,” he added.
Masood defended Babar Azam after the senior batter struggled in the series, scoring only 64 runs across two matches with an average of 16.
The captain pointed out that the scarcity of red-ball cricket at the domestic level makes it challenging to find suitable replacements.
“We are not playing red ball cricket even at domestic level, so how do we replace out-of-form players. But Babar has made runs in the past and he will do it again,” he said.
Pakistan red ball head coach Jason Gillespie offered his support to Masood. “Shan, I feel, has led the side very well. We just haven’t played well as a team and that’s the reality,” Gillespie said.
“We need to sharpen up on certain areas. I really want to back and believe in these players. They are good enough and have shown glimpses of how good we are. We just need to do it more often and consistently,” he added.
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