Down they go : Embarrassment at Edgbaston

Moin Khan condemns negative approach, poor application as Pakistan lose by 141 runs

KARACHI: An all-too-familiar batting collapse at Edgbaston against England saw Pakistan go 2-1 down in the four-match series after they suffered a 141-run loss to the hosts on the final day.

The visitors were seemingly on their way to saving the Test after being on a comfortable 124-3 with less than 37 overs to go in the day. However, they lost four wickets for just one run in 22 balls to throw away the match, which means they can now no longer win the series.

Former captain Moin Khan lamented Pakistan’s loss of momentum despite taking a 103-run first innings lead.

Speaking to The Express Tribune, Moin felt the turning point was England’s second innings, where some insipid bowling and a defensive mindset allowed the hosts a way back into the game.

“After that healthy lead, the bowlers gave away some easy runs,” said Moin. “For some odd reason, we allowed the momentum to shift.”

The former wicketkeeper credited the English batsmen for the way they played Pakistan’s bowlers. “The ease with which England batted in the second innings was commendable but Mohammad Amir and Yasir Shah failed to raise their game when Pakistan needed them to.”

Moin also questioned the team’s tactics. “We were unnecessarily defensive in the second innings, England wouldn’t have been thinking of winning after conceding a big lead but we didn’t capitalise on our position,” he said. “Test cricket isn’t about dominating a day or two; you have to sustain the momentum for the entire game and Pakistan didn’t do that.”

Moin felt that poor batting performances from the seniors have been a big setback for the team throughout the series, with Mohammad Hafeez and Younus Khan in particular letting the team down.

“If the seniors aren’t leading from the front then you can’t expect much from juniors either,” he said. “However, newcomer Sami Aslam batted with incredible maturity and composure, so the seniors can take a leaf out of his book.”

‘Pakistan need to make a call on Hafeez’

Moin added that Hafeez’s poor form is a big impediment in Pakistan’s plans and a call must be made on him.

“Hafeez has looked badly out of sorts and failure at Edgbaston means he can’t be persisted with,” added the 44-year-old. “Shan Masood can replace him since both Iftikhar Ahmed and Mohammad Rizwan are too raw to play a match of such significance. Shan has sat out a game and he must have realised he needs to score runs in order to continue playing Test cricket.”

Moin also recommended bringing in Wahab Riaz instead of Rahat Ali for the final Test since the Oval pitch is generally a flat track that has bounce and pace along with a tendency to provide prodigious reverse swing.

“Bringing back Wahab won’t be a bad call. Misbah needs to make a positive decision and with the true nature of the Oval pitch and the reverse swing that can be generated there, Wahab can be a viable option in place of Rahat.”

Published in The Express Tribune, August 8^th, 2016.

Like Sports on Facebook, follow @ETribuneSports on Twitter to stay informed and join in the conversation.