PCB yet to evolve a system for pitches’ preparation

RAWALPINDI: The cricket managers in Pakistan are still clueless about the team’s strength, it seems. Foreign curator or a local one, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has yet to evolve a system where pitches are prepared to keep in mind the home advantage.

If our strategy even against Bangladesh is a bit defensive on home strips, we should not even target the World Test Championship final in a year’s time. The PCB has recently hired Australian curator Tony Hemming with just one target in mind and that was to prepare supporting tracks so that the best of Pakistan bowlers could exploit the home advantage to the fullest.

When we look at the Pindi Stadium track prepared for the opening Test against Bangladesh, there is nothing to cheer about. The soft, spineless wicket has everything to offer for the batsmen and nothing to bowlers.

Bangladesh bowlers even the pacers struggled to take wickets and there was no difference when Pakistan bowlers were seen working hard to earn wickets. The way Naseem Shah and Khurram Shahzad bowled, there was all the possibility that they could have run through the Bangladesh batting line-up had there been some spice in the wicket.

One wonders why Shan Masood-led team is so reluctant to go all out for a win and why no one was there to advise the host country’s think-tank that the only way they can accumulate points in the Test Championship is to win matches.

Indeed there is no better opportunity to win matches than to go with full force and lively pitches against a team like Bangladesh. If Pakistan cannot show aggression against Bangladesh, expecting them to do so against England or later in an away series against South Africa would be like living in a fool’s paradise.

Though in cricket you never know what is in store the next day, the apparent scenario emerging from the first Test is, that it is fast heading toward a draw. If any team has a good chance of putting pressure on the opposition that looks like the Bangladesh team which is equipped with better spin resources to exploit the fourth and fifth day’s low bounce.

For Pakistan and even for Shan Masood it will be a big jolt even if Bangladesh go on to earn a draw against a power-packed Pakistan attack. Under Shan Masood Pakistan have already lost the away series against Australia 0-3 and a draw here would raise serious questions about his ability to lead the Pakistan team impressively.

His performance has already hit the rock-bottom since out of nowhere he was named captain of the Test team by the former Chairman PCB Zaka Ashraf. Following a disastrous series against Australia as a batsman, Shan failed to cross the double figure in the first innings here. Apart from improving his batting credentials, as a captain, he should have ensured that a perfect strip should be there for the four-pronged Pakistan pace attack to pin down the struggling Bangladesh batting line-up.

On the contrary, one feels a draw would enhance Bangladesh image as a Test nation as so far they have nothing to show when it comes to records against Pakistan, losing 12 and drawing one Test, and that too more because of Tamim Iqbal’s heroics.