Shoaib Akhtar, a pace legend, claimed that Pakistan did not show any intention to winning the match and just prepared the wicket to accept a draw. On the fifth day of the first Test match between Pakistan and England at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, the hosts suffered an embarrassing batting collapse, which prompted his comments. The Three Lions’ approach in this format, according to Akhtar, is really commendable because red-ball coach Brendon McCullum has already made it abundantly clear that England is not aiming for draws.
“Pakistan did not even take the chance which were availed to them. England gave them a chance to save the Test match but Pakistan did not take it. There’s a difference in mindset. The situation where England declared yesterday, would Pakistan have done the same? They wouldn’t have. Their coach McCullam said that they’ll play a run a ball in Test cricket,” said Shoaib Akhtar while speaking on his YouTube channel.
“They won’t go for draws. Joe Root said they want to save Test Cricket. If you have this mindset and intent, what do you think will be the result? Even with 7 wickets in hand, Pakistan did not have the intent to win the match. They made the wicket in order to draw. If this is your intent, what do you think, we’ll be heading towards?,”he wondered.
With eight wickets remaining on the final day, Pakistan only needed to score 263 runs to win the first game of the series. The hosts were not overly concerned despite the early dismissal of a well-established Imam-ul-Haq (48), as they still had a strong batting depth.
“It’s very disappointing. England made the effort to make this Test match interesting. They gave Pakistan a chance to avoid a draw. You (Pakistan) play well and win. 350 in this wicket is not a big deal. You have already scored 150. I did not see any intent or capability. No disrespect to the youngsters. Naseem Shah, you played well. But England deserve to win. No questions about it,” Akhtar further explained.
As soon as 86 runs were needed in the final session, it appeared that Pakistan would win the match. However, veteran English pacer James Anderson bowled outstandingly and claimed four wickets as the hosts’ batting collapsed dramatically and they were eventually dismissed for 268. As a result, the visitors won by a well-deserved 74 runs to take the opening match of the three-match series.