Shan Masood lamented “the same mistakes” Pakistan continue to make after suffering an eighth consecutive Test defeat in South Africa and seventh in their last nine matches. In a toss-up game, the final twist belonged to South Africa as they recovered from an epic collapse that saw them lose four wickets in three runs to record an unbeaten 50-ball, 51-run partnership that secured victory by two wickets, and alongside a place in the final of the World Test Championship.
“We had the game in our hands, whether it was with the bat or the ball,” Masood said. “I don’t have to add anything and it sounds like a broken record. [I’m] We are very proud of the efforts, but to move forward as a team we must be ruthless. We have been competing well in these conditions and I said this before when we played in Australia in similar conditions. “We had the game under control and even here twice, we had them eight down and we thought we were in a reasonable position and even with the bat, when we could have extended our score in both innings.”
While Pakistan have not won in South Africa since 2007, they have never come as close as they did in this Test. But collapses with the bat in both innings (they lost 4 for 22 in the first innings and 7 for 84 in the second) were compounded by a lack of teeth in the field against the tail: South Africa’s ninth and 10th wicket partnerships they added a combined total of 139 total. two innings for the loss of only two wickets.
“The four entrances [cost us]” Masood said. “We can only look at ourselves. You are going to make mistakes for several days, but you need to have a cushion. I thought about when the time would come when we could get that cushion with the bat, in the first and third innings, or if it would be with the ball when we were down eight on two occasions. “We didn’t have that cushion, and then partnerships come along like Bosch and Rabada and Jansen coming in, and we don’t have enough cushion to retain a winning position.”
Failure to finish games has been a familiar theme for Masood, one he has highlighted so often that he was aware he sounded “like a broken record.” In Australia, Pakistan found themselves in positions of dominance – or at least parity – in two of the three Tests, as well as in both matches against Bangladesh. Pakistan has cut and changed personnel; the bowlers, coaches and selection panel have all been rejigged during this period. Masood maintained, however, that his team had the ability to cross the line.
“I don’t think it’s a question of quality. The quality is there and we have seen it at various points. Being a top-level team, being in South Africa’s place, playing in a WTC final, these are the things in which you have than to be ruthless.
“Sometimes you learn the hard way. You can’t use it as an excuse, but the more we play Test cricket, the more people get in sync. A lot of the players were playing for the first time in these conditions. It can be a really tough lesson in the one where you feel like you have the other team under pressure, but you still need to finish the job.
“It may also seem that we have a very good partnership with Saud [Shakeel] and Babar [Azam]or Kamran [Ghulam] and [Mohammad] Rizwan, or me and Saim [Ayub] in both innings and you feel like you can take them on and make a big score. You are never in these conditions, whether with the bat or the ball. We are learning the hard way through a loss, but the challenge is that we have to respond to this and make sure that once we are in winning positions, we have to make sure we win the game rather than bringing the other team back in. “
There was still enough encouragement from the Pakistan captain to highlight the contributions he felt were most deserved. Playing, at 34, his first Test in over three years, Mohammad Abbas bowled 19.3 unbroken overs in the second innings as he battled to snatch a win for Pakistan, recording career-best figures of 6 for 54 in the second. entrance. He is now three wickets away from 100 and has the best Test bowling average for a Pakistani in history (minimum 15 wickets).
“The message is clear: age is just a number,” Masood said. “The disappointing thing is that a performance like that should be on the winning side. I also thought that Saud Shakeel’s innings [was excellent] – If we had batted a little better with him – he would have scored a hundred. “Those two performances deserved to be on the winning side and unfortunately that is not the case.”
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