Mickey Arthur, the Pakistan coach, came out in support of the team selection after Pakistan had a horror Day 2 at the Gabba. The visitors were reduced to 97 for 8 and were trailing Australia by 332 runs at stumps. The major concern was the one-dimensional pace attack which comprised of Mohammad Amir, Wahab Riaz and Rahat Ali, with the likes of Imran Khan and Sohail Khan in the ranks, some reckoned Pakistan would have been better off with some variation.
“We’ve got an attack that’s pretty balanced and we’ve got guys that are sort of specialists in all areas,” Arthur said on ABC radio on Saturday (December 17).
The duo of Amir and Riaz shared eight wickets between them, and there were periods where both troubled the Australian batsmen. Rahat Ali had a good start to the tour, picking five wickets in the practice game against Cricket Australia XI. So the selection of the trio was justifiable, but whether they would have gone in for an extra pace option in place of Yasir Shah is debatable.
“Like we’ve got Imran Khan sitting off who bowls well with wickets with a lot of grass on. I wouldn’t be speaking out of line if I said I don’t think he has got the pace to bowl on a good wicket here. But when it does a little bit he’s fantastic.
“Sohail Khan comes in and swings its right arm, but I’ve got a doubt about Sohail’s comeback ability. If he has got to bowl, his first spell’s very good, his second spell’s okay, his third spell is tough and then you just don’t get anything more. That puts a lot of pressure on our other units.
“I think we picked our three best bowlers. I think we’ve always got to pick your three best bowlers. I’d be lying if I said we didn’t have a look at the Australian side, seven left-handers in their XI if we get it to swing it’s left-arm to left-arm.”
It was not Pakistan’s bowling that let them down at the Gabba, it was their batting. Having been reduced to 67 for 8, Sarfraz Ahmed fought back to ensure they weren’t bowled out on the second day. The old warhorses, the mainstays of the middle order – Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq were removed cheaply, for 0 and 4 respectively, and that raised a few eyebrows as well.
“I’ve seen Misbah do it time and time again,” Arthur reasoned. “And Younis Khan is just a complete professional, he really is. I’d be lying if I said there wasn’t a little doubt in my mind. But I had that doubt in England and I saw Younis come out and play exceptionally well, albeit against a different attack. So I’m backing him for the time being.”
-Mickey Arthur not happy with day-night Tests-
The visitors struggled against the pink ball under lights. The Australian quicks used the conditions to good effect as they got the ball to nip around quite a bit under artificial lights. Chris Rogers, the former Australian opener, asked on the radio whether there was an imbalance in the day-night Test, to which Arthur agreed.
“I think there are. I would agree and you can appreciate, being opening batsmen, it’s not an even playing field,” Arthur said. “You walk out at 1 o’clock in glorious conditions like this, it’s a totally different ball game than opening up at 6 o’clock or 6.30 or whenever they go out. So there are still issues around it, I think, definitely.
“I think it’s the future. If you’re playing just one a summer, you’ve got to do it. Funny enough in Dubai it didn’t do anything. I was surprised when they had it at the Gabba because the Gabba was the one where the conditions might be extreme. In Adelaide, it seems to be good, although the ball does go round. It is the future, I agree with you though I don’t think the playing fields are even.”
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