KARACHI: A brief but intense press conference was held by Shaun Tait (the bowling coach), who was again thrown into the middle of Pakistan’s struggles. The former pacer from Australia, Shaun Tait, could not provide any more details and only gave a few answers. He said he would face the media if Pakistan loses in the T20 series.
Pakistan is facing its third consecutive Test series loss at home. They need 319 runs to win, with eight wickets remaining on Friday’s second Test against New Zealand. The home season’s disappointing results against England and Australia raised doubts about Pakistan’s ability to hit at regular intervals. It has been a similar story against New Zealand, with the first match ending in a draw.
Pakistan’s best bowler was Abrar Ahmad, who took 11 wickets in four innings. He has had to work hard and bowl slowly for many overs. Fast bowlers have also struggled. Naseem Shah is the leader with four wickets, despite only being in the second Test. Mir Hamza is the leader with one wicket in two. Mohammad Wasim Jr got one. Hasan Ali could also not score a wicket in the second Test, which he won with just one wicket.
Tait was asked why Pakistan had such poor bowling performance, and he answered straightface: “That’s your view.” Another reporter asked him if he was satisfied with the performance.
Tait did, however, talk about managing the workload for Pakistan’s pacers. Many of them, like Shaheen Shah-Afridi or Haris Rauf, have been injured after playing cricket in all formats. He said, “Yes, there was too much cricket.” “This year is important [with the ODI World Cup being played], so I believe that player management will be crucial.”