After Old Trafford debacle: Pakistan eye improvement against Worcestershire

Tour match comes at perfect time to help side iron out chinks exposed by England

KARACHI: Pakistan have a chance to make amends and work on their weaknesses before heading into the third Test against England at Edgbaston, with the team involved in a two-day side match against Worcestershire today and tomorrow.

The series is currently hanging in the balance at 1-1 with two more Tests to go and former Pakistan captain Wasim Bari feels the tour game comes at a good time.

“Pakistan have got a good opportunity to regroup and work on their mistakes before the third Test,” Bari told The Express Tribune. “You could see a big difference in the approach of the England players from the first Test at Lord’s to the second one at Old Trafford. They quickly worked out their weaknesses and cut down the mistakes and Pakistan can learn from that.”



Bari, though, feels Misbah will not experiment too much with the team but feels a new bowling strategy is required, especially since England managed to neutralise the threat of ace spinner Yasir Shah.

“England will not allow Yasir to dominate them again in this series; that was evident from how little purchase there was for him at Old Trafford,” said Bari. “Pakistan need to figure out how they will attack England so this practice game is vital.”



And the former wicketkeeper urges the team to have a backup plan in place. “Pakistan need to know who their main weapon is if Yasir fails to deliver,” he said. "The work load between the bowlers needs to be managed as well.”

Published in The Express Tribune, July 29^th, 2016.

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