‘Mental pressure’ reason behind Pakistan’s batting collapses: Sarfraz

CAPE TOWN: Pakistan captain Sarfraz Ahmed has cited ‘mental pressure’ as the reason why his side have become so prone to collapses in key moments of Test matches, pointing to a particular occasion which has served as the catalyst for their fourth innings woes.

South African quicks Duanne Olivier and Kagiso Rabada did the majority of the damage as Pakistan crumbled from 101/2 to 190 all out, the Proteas securing a comfortable six-wicket victory in the first Test.

The middle-order batting collapse has been a recurring issue for Sarfraz’s men in recent times, one that that he links back to a match in Hamilton against New Zealand in 2016, where chasing 369, Pakistan capitulated from 159/1 to 230 all out.

“Since Hamilton this is happening. We will have to sort this out going forward. The responsibility lies on everyone: the players and the coaching staff,” said the Pakistan skipper, who went on to describe how the psychological pressure has affected his batsmen.

“We take a lot of mental pressure and because of which we are unable to perform in the fourth or second innings. We are struggling in the second innings (in the last two years). We do get starts but then a wicket falls which initiates a collapse. It has been a while now.”

Sarfraz himself bagged a pair in the opening Test against the Proteas- which began on Boxing Day and was wrapped up on day three- while fellow middle-order batters Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq both failed to contribute significant numbers in either innings.

Sarfraz is expecting a renewed sense of stoicism in the upcoming second Test. “Both batsmen realise that they shouldn’t have gotten out the way they did,” he said. “Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq have been working hard and we expect them to bounce back in the next match. I think we had an opportunity yesterday. Had we played for another hour, we could have scored more. We lost too many wickets after tea, and because of which we lost the match.”

Despite the disappointing result and frustrating manner in which the game was lost, Sarfraz was keen to point out the difficulties that both sides faced in negotiating a tricky pitch. “I am not saying anything. But, if you see throughout the two and a half days, all of the batsmen struggled. The first 30-40 balls for any batsmen were not easy. For me, this pitch qualifies to be a bowling paradise.”

It was certainly a paradise for Olivier, who bagged 11 wickets across two innings in a stunning display of pace bowling.