Pakistan’s batting is unbelievably bad
Yousuf’s defensive approach on the 4th morning when he put all his field back eased the pressure on Australia straightaway but the 123-run partnership between Hussey and Siddle was still no excuse for the pathetic and indisciplined batting display that followed. A major test-playing nation should be able to chase 170 odd no matter what the pitch or opposition.
And this was not an uneven 5th day pitch. It was a 4th day surface that had no real demons in it, nor was the bowling unplayable or menacing by any stretch of imagination. It was just efficient and disciplined stuff from the Aussies.
Our batters lack test-match temperament big time. They lack basic test skills of patience, discipline and application. Runs will come if you concentrate and apply yourseves long enough at the wicket. Crease occupation is something we have forgotten all about. There is no need to try and hit every ball for a 4 or 6. Our batters have lost the art of leaving the ball. Leaving balls they need not play at is as important as hitting the bad balls and separates great from good batsmen. Most importantly they cannot take pressure and lack the confidence to chase any total in the second innings and confidece comes from winning. Hence rightly called PANICSTAN by some.
Umar Akmal for instance should have realised that there was no batsman left after him. It defies belief that he still went for an aerial shot which was most unnecessary in that situation. This was a test match not a one day game with 1.5 days still remaining in the game. That Umar made 49 in each innings is no excuse for the irresponsible and stupid manner in which he got out. The less said about his brother Kamran Akmal and Yousuf the better, both getting out themselves.
Do not want to be too harsh on Umar though because he is scoring runs atleast. He is still young and would hopefully learn from his mistakes but what about the senior jokers???
One could even argue that the first innings batting effort was not good enough. At 205/2 we had a golden opportunity to get an even bigger lead and bat Australia out of the game. That we failed to do so is the difference between us and a professional and disciplined team like Australia.
The batting failure should however come as no major surprise to those who have been following Pakistan cricket over the past 4 or 5 years. We simply do not know how to win test matches any more.
This was the 6th time in the last 8 tests that Pakistan had failed with the bat in the second knock (3rd or 4th innings). On 5 of those 6 occasions we lost the match (1st and 2nd SLA tests, ist test v NZ and 1st & 2nd tests v Australia).
Pakistan’s 2nd Innings Collapses (since July 2009)
- 1st Test (Galle) needing just 168 for victory collapsed from 2/71 to 117 all out - LOST
- 2nd Test (Colombo) collapsed from 2/294 to 320 all out in second innings – LOST
- 1st Test (Dunedin) needing 250 to win collapsed from 4/161 to 218 all out – LOST
- 2nd Test (Wellington) collapsed from 3/197 to 239 all out – WON mainly because of the 165-run first innings lead! NZ chasing 405 for victory were all out for 263. NOT because we batted any better in the second knock!
- 1st Test (Melbourne) chasing an improbable 422 to win collapsed from 3/171 to 251 all out - LOST
- 2nd Test (Sydney) chasing 176 for victory collapsed to 139 all out to lose by 36 runs - LOST
We not only batted poorly in this test but also fielded miserably. Hussey was let off 4 times (3 dropped catches, 1 missed run-out) and he just took the game away from us. Two days ago I said that a target of even 150 might prove to be beyond our current batters. Sadly it turned out to be the case.
And until and unless our batters master the basics of test cricket (as mentioned above), no matter how well we bowl, we still won’t win many games against NZ and WI, never mind the 5 teams that are currently better than us in test cricket - India, Australia, South Africa, England and Sri Lanka. The less said about our fielding - missing half a dozen chances in every innings has become a routine - the better.
It is no surprise then that we have won only one of our last 8 tests and just 2 test matches overall in the last 3 years!
Perhaps there should be a ranking/points-based tier system in test cricket
Top Tier: India and Australia
Middle Tier: South Africa, England and Sri Lanka
Bottom Tier: Pakistan, NZ and WI
Bottommost Tier: Bangladesh and Zimbabwe