Salman agha: Cricket News & Match Updates

Azhar Mahmood: In a bid to reverse their fortunes following a crushing innings defeat in the first Test against England, Pakistan have opted for a spin-heavy approach, drastically changing their bowling strategy for the second Test. The decision to field three specialist spinners and only one pace-bowling option has raised eyebrows, but according to assistant coach Azhar Mahmood, this was always part of the plan.

"We had a clear plan of what pitches to prepare for Bangladesh and what to prepare against England," Mahmood said in a press conference on Monday. "Our approach was pace wickets against Bangladesh and spin pitches against England. Our instruction to the curator for the first Test was that the ball should spin after the second day. But the pitch didn't take turn until even the fifth day. Hopefully, the ball will begin to take turn on the ninth day."

Despite their original intentions, Pakistan’s lineup in the first Test did not reflect a spin-heavy strategy, featuring only one specialist spinner, Abrar Ahmed, alongside three fast bowlers—Naseem Shah, Shaheen Afridi, and all-rounder Aamer Jamal.   Read More...