With no red-ball domestic cricket scheduled before the crucial Test series against England, Pakistan finds itself in a dire situation. The players have limited opportunities to regain form and confidence, leaving the team unprepared for the challenge ahead. The lack of proper Pakistan Test cricket preparation has thrown the national team into a state of crisis.
Pakistan’s Losing Streak: A Lack of Preparation
Sarfaraz Ahmed took his place behind the stumps as Pakistan endured yet another defeat. The team’s recent 2-0 series loss to Bangladesh marked their fifth consecutive Test defeat, extending their winless run at home to 10 matches. The root cause? Inadequate Pakistan Test cricket preparation.
Rather than focusing on improving the team’s performance ahead of the England series, the PCB has been occupied with promoting the Champions Cup, a white-ball tournament scheduled just days before the start of the first Test match. As a result, there will be no extended training camp, leaving the players with minimal preparation.
Test captain Shan Masood aptly described it as”studying science in preparation for a maths exam.”
Lack of Red-Ball Cricket Hurts Pakistan Test Cricket Preparation
For Pakistan’s struggling batters, the absence of red-ball domestic cricket before the England series is a significant setback. The Quaid-e-Azam Trophy (QeA), Pakistan’s premier red-ball tournament, isn’t set to begin until mid-October—right when England arrives. This further complicates the team’s already poor Test cricket preparation.
While it’s true that September isn’t an ideal month for four-day cricket in Pakistan, the QeA Trophy did begin earlier in 2023, which would have provided the team with some much-needed match practice. This year, however, the players are left to prepare for a Test series with no competitive red-ball cricket, relying solely on one-day cricket to stay in form.
Unfortunately, as Masood pointed out, “No matter how meticulously you study science, it’s not going to help in a maths examination.”
Pakistan’s Batting Woes: Lack of Match Practice
The consequences of inadequate Pakistan Test cricket preparation are already evident. Many of Pakistan’s top seven batters, including Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, and Saud Shakeel, have had minimal exposure to red-ball cricket. Only Shan Masood, through his County Championship contract, has been playing red-ball cricket ahead of this crucial season.
Despite these challenges, Pakistan’s middle order has performed well in the current World Test Championship (WTC) cycle, averaging 43.68 in positions 5-7—better than any other team. This success highlights the importance of consistent red-ball match practice for maintaining form in Test cricket. Unfortunately, the lack of Pakistan Test cricket preparation is likely to undermine these strengths in the upcoming series.
PCB’s Scheduling Blunders and Future Consequences
Bangladesh’s recent success against Pakistan can be attributed in part to their wealth of Test cricket experience, with veterans like Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan, and Mominul Haque leading the charge. In contrast, Pakistan’s players, hampered by insufficient Pakistan Test cricket preparation, have struggled to find form.
The PCB’s chaotic scheduling has prioritized limited-overs formats at the expense of the national team’s Test match preparation. Even though there could be leadership changes before the series against England, the real issue—lack of red-ball cricket to develop and maintain form—remains unaddressed.
What Lies Ahead for Pakistan Cricket?
As Pakistan heads into challenging series against England and later South Africa, the failure to provide adequate Pakistan Test cricket preparation has left the team vulnerable. The current domestic structure offers no solution, and players continue to miss out on valuable match practice. Without significant changes, Pakistan’s Test cricket performance will likely continue to suffer.
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An official involved with the team recently admitted that red-ball cricket ahead of a Test series is preferable but also emphasized the difficulty of scheduling it. However, consistently short-changing Test cricket and expecting positive results is not a sustainable strategy. For Pakistan to succeed in the long run, the PCB must make Test cricket preparation a priority.
