Pakistan’s Shan Masood Calls for Consistency After Loss to Bangladesh
Rawalpindi, Pakistan – September 4: After Pakistan’s disappointing series defeat against Bangladesh, skipper Shan Masood emphasized the need for ‘consistency’ in team selection. Pakistan lost the second Test match in Rawalpindi by six wickets.
Shan Masood’s Performance
Masood performed well in the first inning, scoring 57 runs from 69 balls at a strike rate of 82.61. In the second inning, he added 28 runs from 34 balls.
Post-Match Press Conference
Speaking at the post-match press conference, Masood highlighted the issues with player selection. He stated, “We will have to work on bringing in consistency in selection. You will have to bear with player’s failures. It’s not just about Babar Azam, the more consistently you give a chance to someone, the better he will perform.”
Masood also mentioned that he is not worried about his captaincy being taken away after the series loss. “I am not worried for my job security. I took this job to make the changes we believe will help this team,” he added.
Bangladesh’s Historic Win
Bangladesh’s 10-wicket victory in the first match marked their maiden Test win over Pakistan. The second Test win solidified a historic achievement for Bangladesh, marking their first Test series win (of two matches or more) against a team other than Zimbabwe and the West Indies.
This victory boosted Bangladesh in the ICC World Test Championship standings, moving them to No. 4 with a points percentage of 45.83, surpassing England.
Match Highlights
On the fifth day, Bangladesh started at 42/0, needing 143 more runs to win. Despite losing both openers within 12 runs, Najmul Hossain Shanto and Mominul Haque’s 57-run stand kept them on track. Shanto was dismissed for 38, and Mominul for 34, but Mushfiqur Rahim (22*) and Shakib Al Hasan (21*) guided Bangladesh to victory.
Earlier, Bangladesh bowled Pakistan out for 274 runs in the first innings, with Mehidy Hasan Miraz taking five wickets and Taskin Ahmed three. Pakistan’s Khurram Shahzad responded with a six-wicket haul, giving Pakistan a slim lead of 12 runs. However, Hasan Mahmud and Nahid Rana’s combined nine wickets in the second innings led to Pakistan’s collapse for 172 runs, setting Bangladesh a target of 185.
Poor weather and bad light delayed the inevitable on Day 4, but Bangladesh wrapped up the Test with six wickets to spare.
Doubts Revealed
Shan Masood -: Shan Masood is a cricketer from Pakistan. He is the captain of the Pakistan cricket team.
Consistency -: Consistency means doing things in the same way every time. In cricket, it means picking the same players regularly so they can get better together.
Rawalpindi -: Rawalpindi is a city in Pakistan. It is one of the places where cricket matches are played.
Test -: A Test match is a type of cricket game that lasts up to five days. It is the longest form of cricket.
Bangladesh -: Bangladesh is a country in South Asia. They have a national cricket team that plays against other countries.
Zimbabwe -: Zimbabwe is a country in Africa. They also have a national cricket team.
West Indies -: The West Indies is a group of countries in the Caribbean that play cricket together as one team.
ICC World Test Championship -: The ICC World Test Championship is a competition where cricket teams from different countries play Test matches to see who is the best.
Captaincy -: Captaincy means being the leader of the cricket team. The captain makes important decisions during the game.