Ahead of the second Test against the West Indies in Multan, Aaqib said that if the decision to prepare such wickets had been taken earlier, Pakistan could have been closer to reaching the final of the World Test Championship (WTC). Speaking publicly for the first time since taking on the role of interim coach of the Test team, he said he remained focused on winning Test matches and dismissed concerns about his team’s strategy.
“Why if fast bowlers take wickets, [people say] Test cricket moves forward, and if spinners take wickets, does Test cricket go backwards? “Aaqib said on the eve of the game. “I don’t understand this. When you go to Australia and England, they prepare the fields the way they like. So if we set up spinning wickets and the spinners take wickets, what’s the problem?
“Of course, we did well to prepare a spin pitch. [in the first Test] against the West Indies. Their batsmen are not as proficient against spin compared to fast bowling. I also want to address concerns about where our Test cricket is heading. If we had made these decisions earlier, we would have been in the race for the WTC. [final]. The rule of Test cricket is to win at home. “If you win at home and win two or three tests away, you become a strong candidate for the final.”
“We used to be strong in [bowling] reverse swing, but now that skill level has gone down,” he said. “We have told our fast bowlers that if they want to take wickets here, their reverse swing skill will have to go up. In the past we had Shoaib. [Akhtar, Waqar [Younis]Wasim [Akram]and both spin and pace bowlers took wickets.”
In the clearest sign that Pakistan’s latest strategy looks like it could be here to stay, Aaqib acknowledged the toll this was taking on his team’s batsmen because “even they have never played in these conditions.” He indicated that there would be extensive off-season changes regarding Pakistan’s domestic grounds as well as the training regime batsmen would be put through to prepare them for these grounds in the future.
“Although foreign players have problems with foreign spin pitches, so do our players because they have never played on these pitches,” Aaqid said. “From now on, we have told them that their training and practice routines will be geared towards this, and we will also change the national pitches. Our next test is not until October, so that will give them time to improve their batting.”
Criticism from abroad has focused on whether Pakistan’s tactics amount to manipulation. Concerns have been raised at home about Pakistan’s future ability to develop quality fast bowlers and batting talent, and whether this is likely to further erode Pakistan’s competitiveness in away Test series.
“We were in South Africa just now and we came very close to winning a Test,” Aaqib said. “Unfortunately, we couldn’t take those last two wickets at Centurion. No spinner played those Tests for us there. You have to select a team depending on the conditions you have.
“It’s about winning Tests; that’s what matters. We think we can prepare these pitches in every center in Pakistan, and it should be as difficult to beat Pakistan here as it is to beat Australia or South Africa. People should know if they can do it “. “If they go to Pakistan, they will have to do something extraordinary to beat Pakistan.”
Danyal Rasool is Pakistan correspondent for Pak Gazette. @danny61000
