NOMAN Ali and Sajid Khan walked off after England’s second innings, jointly holding the ball having all but secured Pakistan’s victory in the series-deciding final Test on Saturday. Since their comeback, the duo together claimed 39 of the 40 England wickets to fall in the last two Tests of the series after Pakistan had been humbled in the opener. This was a remarkable turnaround as Shan Masood and his men won the first Test series at home in over three years. Their performance in England’s second innings in Rawalpindi marked the third time in the two Tests that Sajid and Noman bagged all 10 wickets, leaving Pakistan with a paltry target of 36 runs to win. Shan knocked off the winning runs, sealing a nine-wicket victory for his side with an emphatic six, the innings defeat in the opening Test becoming a distant memory. Shan had lost six Tests in a row since taking over the team’s captaincy but the back-to-back wins have helped restore Pakistan’s pride and showed that smart decisions can bring the desired results. It began with the rejigging of the selection committee and a change in strategy with a turning pitch engineered for the second Test in Multan. That brought them level in the series before another turner in Rawalpindi put England in a tailspin once again.

The question is, why Pakistan were not playing to their strengths in the past and not using the home advantage on offer. In a startling claim recently, former Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Ramiz Raja stated that the dead pitches in the past were put in place on the call of ex-captain Babar Azam, who was rested after the first Test against England. Pakistan lost the Test series against both England and Australia during Ramiz’s tenure. The start of incumbent PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi’s tenure was not ideal either with incoming coach Jason Gillespie and Shan looking out of their depth in a humbling home series defeat to Bangladesh last month. But with the selection committee given more powers, Pakistan have turned a corner. Gillespie and Shan might have seen their powers over selection clipped, with the coach having voiced his displeasure over that only recently, but the important thing is that after so much trial and error, Pakistan finally seem to have returned to their winning ways.

Published in Dawn, October 27th, 2024