Salman’s triple-strike helps Pakistan hit back after Conway’s century

Umaid Wasim Published January 3, 2023

NEW ZEALAND opener Devon Conway drives during his century in the second Test against Pakistan at the National Stadium on Monday.—White Star

KARACHI: New Zealand were on top but once Agha Salman — known more for his batting than bowling — found turn after tea on a pitch that had offered little in the first two sessions, Pakistan found the verve. The tails were up. Pakistan sensed blood. The few hundred fans who’d turned up at the National Stadium on Monday, despite the Pakistan Cricket Board having offered free entry for those wishing to attend the second and final Test of the series, found their voice.

New Zealand had been reduced from 234-1 to 255-4 and skipper Babar Azam was keen to make further inroads. With Hasan Ali charging in at Tom Blundell, there were four players close-in on the leg-side. But it was Salman who was shining as the twilight hours approached with his off-spin and he would get the breakthrough by dismissing Henry Nicholls for his third wicket. His fellow spinner Abrar Ahmed would then join the party by finally getting a wicket in his 22nd over.

New Zealand would close at 309-6 with Blundell on 30 not out and Ish Sodhi unbeaten on 11 as Pakistan picked up five wickets for 83 runs in the last session to gain some impetus heading into the second day.

“The idea is to dismiss them as quickly as possible tomorrow,” Salman told reporters after ending the day with figures of 3-55. “I’m more of a batting all-rounder but I [also] try to contribute as much as I can as a bowler. After tea, the pitch offered more bite and it worked for me because in the opening two sessions, there was some turn but it was a bit slow.”

Salman started Pakistan’s comeback here with the wicket of century-making opener Devon Conway. The left-hander had been cruising, batting with utter disdain typified when he cut Mir Hamza for four through the offside with the kind of nonchalance of a batter aiming to go for a bigger score after he’d raised his ton. But he’d reached 122 when he tried to cut Salman and after the ball turned away, he could only find an edge that went through to wicket-keeper Sarfraz Ahmed, who held on to a sharp catch. “The pitch began assisting the spinners, the ball was skidding on,” reflected Conway.

In his 191-ball innings, Conway hit 16 boundaries and a six and featured in two century partnerships — 134 with fellow opener Tom Latham and a 100 with Kane Williamson. It wasn’t too long before Williamson was walking back as well. Naseem Shah, one of three pacers included by Pakistan alongside Hasan and Hamza, sent back the former New Zealand captain for 36 with a ball that moved away after pitching and found the outside edge on its way to Sarfraz who dived to his right, almost in front of first slip, to pouch it.

Daryl Mitchell then became Salman’s second victim and it was a peach of a delivery that accounted for him. Mitchell put out a stride to a looping delivery but as the ball spun inwards, he was beaten and it went through the gate to knock back his off-stump. The feeling was that New Zealand were there for the taking and then they lost two more wickets in the space of a run. First a smart review saw Nicholls caught behind off Salman and then Abrar had Michael Bracewell lbw for a duck to reduce New Zealand to 279-6 before Blundell and Sodhi stuck in amid fading light.

BRISK START

On a sunny morning, Pakistan — going by the word of interim chief selector Shahid Afridi, who had vowed on Sunday that the pitch would offer more for the bowlers than the one for the first Test that had ended in a draw last week — selected Naseem and Hasan in place of spinner Nauman Ali and pacer Mohammad Wasim Jr.

But it was all New Zealand, who had elected to bat, in the opening two sessions on a pitch that had a tinge of green on the sides. Conway got his first boundaries off Mir Hamza — Pakistan’s third pacer — in the fifth over; and in the following over off Naseem, both Latham and Conway helped themselves to fours. The tone had been set. New Zealand were looking to score, and quickly.

“I think early on we weren’t able to make most of the moisture on the pitch,” Salman said. Conway would say that New Zealand were “rewarded for good cricketing shots”. “I had adjusted my game plan according to the wicket here and the idea was to score quickly when the ball was hard.”

A lull in the boundaries followed but New Zealand were back up; Latham driving and flicking Hasan in the 10th over and then Conway getting a four and a six off spinner Abrar in the next over. The runs kept coming at a good rate; New Zealand were dominant.

The bigger problem was that Abrar was being taken on and milked for runs. But Pakistan soon had a shout and were up in celebration once the umpire’s finger went up for an lbw shout by Hamza on Latham. Latham immediately reviewed and the decision was overturned after an inside edge was found.

PAKISTAN off-spinner Agha Salman (second R) celebrates with team-mates after cleaning up New Zealand batter Daryl Mitchell.—AFP

Pakistan were desperately looking for an early breakthrough and such was their eagerness that they soon wasted a review when they sought another lbw on Conway off Hamza. Replays, however, showed the delivery was going well over the wicket and Conway would add insult to injury with a four off the next ball.

Latham and Conway reached their half-centuries in contrasting fashion; albeit on almost the same amount of deliveries — the former reaching the mark with a single off Hamza and the latter flicking Naseem for four.

But just when Latham looked set for another hundred after his 113 in the opening Test, Naseem went in wide of the crease and found an angled delivery that rapped him on the front pad. It was plumb. Latham hit nine fours in his 71 off 100 balls.

Conway, though, kept going. He had some luck too. At 86, his edge off Hasan fell just short of Abdullah Shafique at first slip. Then at 89, his edge brushed the fingertips of Saud Shakeel at gully on its way for four before reaching his his fourth Test century in the 51st over. He and Williamson had kept pushing back Pakistan’s advances but the hosts didn’t help themselves either.

Williamson was on 33 when he edged a Naseem delivery to Sarfraz but while the pacer felt the ball had touched something on the way, there was no one supporting his halfhearted appeal. Replays showed there was indeed an edge but Salman ensured Pakistan weren’t lamenting it for too long.

SCOREBOARD

NEW ZEALAND (1st Innings):

T. Latham lbw b Naseem 71

D. Conway c Sarfraz b Salman 122

K. Williamson c Sarfraz b Naseem 36

H. Nicholls c Sarfraz b Salman 26

D. Mitchell b Salman 3

T. Blundell not out 30

M. Bracewell lbw b Abrar 0

I. Sodhi not out 11

EXTRAS (B-1, LB-4, NB-5) 10

TOTAL (for six wickets, 90 overs) 309