MIRPUR: Pakistan captain Shan Masood admitted his side failed to capitalize on key moments after a painful defeat to Bangladesh in the first Test at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium on Tuesday.
Bangladesh sealed a commanding 104-run win over Pakistan on the final day of the Test match, largely due to Nahid Rana’s five-wicket haul. The speedster rattled Pakistan’s batting lineup in defense of 268, handing the home side a victory.
Speaking after the match, Shan lamented the outcome, noting that Pakistan could have pushed for a draw with two set batters at the crease.
“For us, it’s disappointing. I thought we were in the game with two set batters, and they could have batted longer to take the game towards a draw,” he said.
The skipper praised debutants Azan Awais and Abdullah Fazal, with the former scoring a century on debut while the latter registered half-centuries in both innings.
“It’s always a silver lining to look at the bright side and see what went well in this game, and those two [Azan, Abdullah] were exceptional. I thought about how they played in the first innings, particularly Azan was outstanding,” he added.
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Shan urged consistency from both batters, saying both batters will improve further with more Test cricket under their belts.
“When we picked them, we picked them seeing potential that they can play at this level. Their maturity was great. For them, the thing is can they be consistent in Test cricket? I think they have the potential to do that. When you get opportunities to stamp your authority we have to do that,” Shan explained.
“Abdullah did not know that he was playing till very late that night, before the Test match. Still, to go out there, play with maturity, be positive, and also be mindful of the situation. Once they start playing more Test cricket, they will be more better at decision making.”
Regarding the decision to bowl first, Shan said Pakistan made good use of the pristine bowling conditions but failed to capitalize afterward.
“We looked at the conditions and in terms of seam bowling we had the best conditions. We got two early wickets. But in the first innings we didn’t capitalise on that and then we didn’t capitalise with the bat either. We could have pushed for more runs. But in the first innings, with bat and ball, we needed to do better,” he said.
“You can never question the effort, especially when you are playing Test cricket after six months. Test cricket on surfaces like this teaches you that when you have the game in your hands you have to push the opposition away, but we failed to do that,” Shan concluded.
READ: Pakistan set unwanted Test record after defeat to Bangladesh