Pakistan cricket team went into the dark corners of cricketing history as they suffered a humiliating defeat to England in the Multan Test. Despite scoring 556 runs in the first innings, Pakistan suffered a defeat by an innings and 47 runs, becoming the first Test-playing nation in the world to do so. The unwanted piece of history is bound to haunt the Pakistan team for years but skipper Shan Masood isn’t keen to see the batters sharing the bulk of the blame. For Masood, if his batting unit managed to put over 500 runs in the first innings, the bowlers had to deliver with 10 wickets but they didn’t.
Speaking at the post-match presentation ceremony, Masood asserted that his team’s 220-run total in the second innings could’ve been a good one had the bowling unit stepped up and delivered in the first innings.
“We’ve spoken about the third innings or fourth innings, but at the end of the day it’s a team game. Everything has its advantages or repercussions as a team. When you put up 550 on the board, it’s important to back it up with 10 wickets. 220 runs in the third innings, depending on what kind of lead you have can also be a good score. England found a way to get those 20 wickets. We also have to find a way to do that. That’s the challenge a side has to go forward,” Masood said after the match.
Shan Masood said “You cannot win matches if you cannot take 20 wickets in a Test match” #PAKvENG #tapmad #DontStopStreaming pic.twitter.com/uju9K2u7Yi
— Farid Khan (@_FaridKhan) October 11, 2024
Pakistan also lost the home Test assignment to Bangladesh 0-2 before the start of the England series, raising questions over the team’s ability to deliver. After losing the opening match of the series, Masood is keen to help his team find a way to bounce back and there’s no other way for the skipper to do that than being consistent.
“We’re in the middle of the series, we’ve talked about squad mentality and consistency. No matter how the pitch is, we have to find a way out. England showed that. Sometimes you get conditions in your favour, sometimes you don’t. It’s a non-negotiable of Test cricket to perform on a consistent basis. We love playing the game,” he said.
The biggest disappointment from the result, for Masood, remains the fact that the team isn’t able to deliver the results Pakistan deserves.
“We’re obviously hurt by the results, hurt as a nation. I never try and shy away from responsibility. What hurts is that we’re not getting the results that Pakistan cricket deserves. We are trying to turn it around,” he concluded.
