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LAHORE: Pakistan interim red-ball head coach Azhar Mahmood has lamented shot selection and decision-making in the opening Test against South Africa here at the Gaddafi Stadium on Tuesday.
Pakistan were bundled out in the second innings for 167, courtesy of Senuran Muthusamy’s five-wicket haul.
The home side posted 378 in the first innings; but the most noticeable aspect was their tendency to lose wickets in clusters
Pakistan were cruising at 199-2 in the first innings, yet they lost three wickets without adding to the total and slumped to 199-5. The pattern followed in the later part of their innings.
Similarly, in the second innings, Pakistan were 150-5 and were bowled out, adding only 17 runs and losing six wickets.
The Proteas were 51-2 at stumps, still requiring 226 runs for victory with Ryan Rickelton making 29* from 76 with the aid of three fours while Tony de Zorzi, battling out for his 16* from 44 in challenging conditions.
Speaking in the post-match press conference, Azhar remained hopeful of defending the target while lamenting poor shot selection and decision-making.
“We’re confident that we can defend this target. We’ve put ourselves in this position. I believe our shot selection and decision-making let us down at crucial moments,” he said.
“Throughout the match, we kept losing wickets in quick succession. The lack of partnerships really hurt us. Even when someone got a start, he couldn’t convert it into a big score. That’s an area we’ve discussed — we need to show better game awareness and adaptability,” he remarked.
He emphasized adapting to the conditions and handling pressure, stating that in their team meetings, there has been talk regarding playing out sessions.
“Moving forward, our focus is on building partnerships and turning good starts into match-defining contributions. We tried our best, but at times we gave in to pressure instead of absorbing it.
“In our team meetings, we’ve acknowledged that we must be more disciplined in playing out sessions,” he concluded.
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