Pakistan's Test Series Struggles Against Bangladesh: A Call for Ruthlessness

Pakistan lost their advantage twice in their recent home Test series against Bangladesh. Head coach Jason Gillespie emphasized the need for greater ruthlessness to convert dominant positions into victories. The team hopes to improve in their upcoming series against England, beginning in Multan on October 7.

In a recent home Test series against Bangladesh, Pakistan found themselves in commanding positions on two occasions but ultimately surrendered their advantage to the opposition. Pakistan head coach Jason Gillespie remarked, 'We showed glimpses of quality in the Test series against Bangladesh, where we were really driving the game forward,' on a podcast by PCB, as quoted by the ICC.

In the first Test, Pakistan accumulated a total of 448/6 before declaring, only to concede a lead to Bangladesh that proved decisive in the final outcome. In the second Test, they had the visitors at 26/6 in the first innings but allowed them to recover to 262, reducing the first-innings deficit.

'We weren't ruthless enough in situations where we were dominating,' said Gillespie, explaining that the series score of 2-0 in favor of Bangladesh wasn't truly reflective of how the series panned out. 'We played excellent cricket, both with the bat and the ball. The issue was that we didn't sustain it long enough. When we let our opponents get into the game, they capitalized and pulled ahead,' he added.

The Australian coach felt Pakistan let themselves down in short critical periods during the Test, which significantly set them back. 'What we need is more ruthlessness. When we're ahead, we need to stay ahead and make sure we drive home our advantage. That's the main takeaway from the Bangladesh series,' he emphasized, as quoted by the ICC.

'There was some very good work done, but when we had a bad hour, it really set us back. We need to minimize those poor periods and maximize the good ones,' he added. Pakistan have not won a home Test match since February 2021 and are desperate for a series win to boost their standings in the ICC World Test Championship.

They face England next in another home series early next month and will be hoping to turn the tide from 2022, when they lost a home series 3-0 to England. 'It's very clear how England approaches their cricket,' said Gillespie, as quoted by the ICC.

'I don't particularly like the term 'Bazball,' but they do play aggressive cricket. We've seen them evolve their game, and that's how they want to play,' he noted. 'We will play our way, striving to be a consistent and disciplined team that strikes at the right moment to drive the game forward and exploit gaps. That's our strategy,' he concluded.

The first Test will be played in Multan from October 7. (ANI)

(With inputs from agencies.)