HAVING misread the pitch in the first Test against Bangladesh, Pakistan suffered a complete meltdown in the second. The start to a bumper home season — and to Jason Gillespie’s tenure as coach of the Shan Masood-led Test team — hasn’t been what Pakistan wanted. In fact, it has been dismal. Being swept aside by Bangladesh, that too at home, was the last thing on Pakistan’s mind when they entered the series. But heading into the final day of the second and final Test on Tuesday, Pakistan were truly staring at it. The hope for a miracle died as Bangladesh eased to a six wicket win that followed a 10-wicket romp past the humbled hosts in the opening Test. Shan had hoped ahead of the series that the two games against Bangladesh will help kick-start Pakistan’s bid to qualify for the final of the World Test Championship. Instead, they are now second-bottom in the nine-team table with England to arrive for a three-match series next month. They are winless in their last 10 Tests at home. Shan, having been appointed skipper ahead of the Australia tour last year, has a 0-5 record as the leader of the side. Even the much-hyped appointment of Gillespie has failed to turn around the team’s fortunes.

It is evident that the problems are deep-rooted. Pakistan’s batting looked out of sorts; none of its batters rising up to the challenge when it was most needed. Its bowlers struggled badly in the first Test and although there was some improvement in the second, it was not enough. Shan lamented that his team was failing to learn from its mistakes, calling on his players to improve both mentally and physically. His mood was in stark contrast to the one ahead of the series. Pakistan cricket is struggling and something must change radically — perhaps a complete overhaul of the existing system — to prevent it from sliding further down.

Published in Dawn, September 4th, 2024