RAWALPINDI: Pakistan red-ball head coach Jason Gillespie has backed Shan Masood as captain despite the humiliating series loss against Bangladesh.
The visitors defeated Pakistan by six wickets in the second Test match to complete the clean sweep and win their first-ever series against the Green Shirts.
Pakistan dropped pace bowlers Shaheen Afridi and Naseem Shah from the line-up for the second Test and Gillespie defended the decision, calling it a strategic call considering the conditions.
“We felt that the attack we put on the park would be able to do the job. We could argue they did when we had the opposition 26/6 but they [Bangladesh] fought themselves back into the game,” said Gillespie.
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“We looked at the conditions, saw the surface here, and thought this was the best make-up of the bowling attack to take wickets on this surface,” he added.
Jason Gillespie also threw his weight behind Shan Masood, however, he acknowledged that the team failed to perform as a unit.
“Shan I feel has led the side very well. We just haven’t played well as a team and that’s the reality,” he stated. “We need to sharpen up on certain areas, and we will sharpen up.”
“I really want to back and believe in these players, they are good enough and have shown glimpses of how good we are. We just need to do it more often and consistently,” he added.
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