Cricket relief

AS is always the case with Pakistan cricket, more common sense was required. And with some radical changes came the desired results for the Shan Masood-led Test team. The six-match losing run snapped with the first home victory in three years. Victory in the second Test against England provided a moment of relief to a cricket-crazy nation as Pakistan squared the series, raising hopes for the final game in Rawalpindi next week. It showed that Pakistan cricket is alive, and not yet on the ventilator. However, bold decision-making is needed to steer it back to where it belongs. It started with a revamp of the selection committee and the decision to use the same pitch for the second Test in Multan where Pakistan were crushed in the series opener. The recycled pitch was expected to turn and the selection committee made the call to rest out-of-form batter Babar Azam as well as pacers Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah. Spinners Noman Ali and Sajid Khan as well as batter Kamran Ghulam were thrust into the side — the trio starring as Pakistan put England into a spin web they could not escape from. Noman and Sajid took all 20 wickets, Kamran struck a century in his debut innings.
Credit for Pakistan’s recovery has largely and rightly gone to Aqib Javed, who was appointed to the selection committee after the first Test. In a podcast prior to the England series, Aqib had pointed to a trial by spin of the tourists as Pakistan’s best chance of beating them. Immediately after his appointment, he delivered. What Pakistan now need is continuity. This does not necessarily mean that the playing XI should remain the same — that the same players play every game. Instead, they should look at playing to their strengths as well as making full use of the conditions on offer. That is how the best teams produce results on a regular basis.
Published in Dawn, October 20th, 2024