2024-08-21 03:02:42
Pakistan announced their XI two days before the field. Pakistan and Bangladesh will play in Rawalpindi on August 21. Pakistan squad all pace attack. For the second time in 28 years, they are playing a Test without a specialist spinner.
Amir Jamal and Mir Hamza have been benched and Pakistan have lined up four pacers. It is understood that the batsmen of Bangladesh will have to give a tough test on the wicket of Rawalpindi. Bangladesh coach Chandika Hathurusinghe believes that the students will do well in that test. This Sri Lankan coach believes that the Rawalpindi wicket will have a balance of bat and ball.
Hathurusinghe said in a press conference on Monday, ‘Batting has been a concern of Bangladesh for quite some time. We are playing on wickets that will give results on home soil. There are times when 250 runs is enough to win. I can say for sure, the batsmen will have a tough time playing on this kind of wicket. Pakistan’s wicket also helps the batsmen. There is balance in the bat-ball fight. Hopefully we can do something good.’
Hathurusinghe is very confident about his bowling unit. With two spin all-rounders can add extra power, Hathrusingha believes, ‘Pindi’s wicket is helpful for pace bowling and batting. They have not kept any spinners in the squad. So pace bowlers have to be made like that in our camp too. They will do well if they can influence the condition. Shakib Al Hasan and Mehdi Hasan Miraj are two world class all rounders. We are also ready to answer the way they want to test us.’
Bangladesh is lagging behind in Pakistan’s pace attack experience. Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Ali and Khurram Shahzad will rotate hands in Pindi’s 22 yards. Bangladesh squad includes Hasan Mahmud, Nahid Rana, Shariful Islam, Taskin Ahmed and Syed Khaled. It is already known that Taskin will not be able to play the first Test. The experience of the four pacers is not much. But they have the ability to challenge.
A confident tone in Hathurusingha’s voice, ‘Pacers (Bangladesh) have done well in the World Cup. They are great on wickets where help is available. It didn’t happen overnight. They have worked hard in the last two years. They have not even played 20 Tests together. Our pacers are young compared to Pakistan’s pace bowling attack. I’m really looking forward to seeing how they do on this wicket.’
The political situation in Bangladesh was quite hot a few days ago. There have also been cases of government collapse. In the name of suppressing terrorist and separatist activities, the people of Pakistan have erupted in protest against human rights violations by the army and law enforcement forces in the southwestern province of Balochistan. The coach of Bangladesh believes that the bat-ball fight can bring joy to the people in this unstable situation in both countries, ‘100% agree. As we all know, sports have that power to unite everyone and give people hope. A good match will surely make Pakistani and Bangladeshi cricket lovers happy.’