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Pakistan Test Captain addressed press conference ahead of Test match series against England:
About preparing the team:
"To prepare any team, you need to support and back the players. You need to show consistency in selection. In case of defeat, it’s easy to change the team, make many changes, or change the method of playing. But when you’ve made up your mind that you want to take this Test team forward, and you want to take Pakistan cricket forward, then consistency and backing matter a lot."
"First of all, we will take responsibility. We are accountable. The results we’ve had so far have not been up to the mark."
About preparation for the England series:
"If you look at the outlook of our squad—15 members, and after that, the inclusion of 3 more players—we’ve tried to maintain consistency in selection. If the squad members were changing frequently, then yes, you could say our preparation was lacking, but our plan is continuing just as we wanted."
"We always try to play red-ball cricket before a Test series, but the schedules are fixed long in advance. And if you’ve observed the Champions One-Day Cup 2024, the standard was good. There was Pakistan’s emerging talent in it, and our current players were also there. One-day cricket, especially in the weather in Faisalabad, had significant mental and physical demands. So, I think in a short space of time, we’ve prepared well for the series."
"And as far as Shaheen Shah Afridi is concerned, he’s bowled almost 10 overs in each match. Babar Azam has played many innings and scored a lot of runs. Your fitness gets tested when you have to bat for 50 overs and then field for 50 overs."
"Yes, we didn’t get targeted red-ball preparation, but we got enough preparation in challenging conditions where our current Test squad members played 3-5 matches. This lessened their workload, and they can participate in the Test series against England with fresh bodies."
About selection and pitch:
"In the last series, we were confirmed that both matches would be in Rawalpindi, so we had an idea of the kind of pitches we would need. We decided to back our fast bowlers and leave some grass on the pitch. In the first Test, there was 6mm of grass on the pitch, and in the second Test, there was 9mm. So Noman Ali was rested in that series. We had decided that if we play with a spinner, we would go with one spinner."
"We brought Noman Ali back into the squad because we now have to assess the conditions in Multan. Considering the situation, we will decide what kind of wicket we need."
"Khurram Shahzad is essential, and we’ve seen his performances in the last matches. Unfortunately, in Australia, he also bowled really well in the first Test, and the second Test had a good wicket, but he got injured."
About lessons learned from the Bangladesh series:
"Test cricket is a five-day game, and throughout those five days, your mental and physical fitness should be up to the mark."
"As a squad and our coach has emphasized, even when we were losing matches, we weren’t losing on the first or second day. If you look at our first two innings against Bangladesh, we declared after scoring 450 runs as a batting unit. Then, in the second Test match, the pitch had Bangladesh at 26 for 6, and we couldn’t capitalize on that. So mental and physical fitness matter for each Test match. If you look, our batting usually collapsed on the fifth day, so these are things we need to improve as a team."
About team unity:
"Every captain has their own style of maintaining a good environment in the dressing room, and for me, it's my primary concern. During the Australia tour or the series against Bangladesh, I didn’t see any lack of effort from any player."
About handling pressure as captain:
"Pressure exists in sports. Pressure is a privilege, meaning you are doing something that has a purpose. Leading your country, I don’t think there’s a bigger honor than that. I see the word responsibility more than pressure. It’s not acceptable for me or any player to face defeat. When the Bangladesh series ended, I think that was one of the most challenging periods of my life. But now, the focus is on how we can do better."
About fast bowlers' injuries:
"In Test cricket, fast bowling is very tough, so the workload of fast bowlers is always managed. Unfortunately, Khurram Shahzad has had injuries twice that we couldn’t control, but we’ve personally talked to the fast bowlers. What we’ve conveyed is that taking 20 wickets is a very important part of your role, and they need to be super fit as it’s a team requirement. So we’ve set some fitness standards. Fast bowlers should be the fittest in our team. It’s a priority case, and we are in constant communication with the fast bowlers while setting these standards."
About preparing the team:
"To prepare any team, you need to support and back the players. You need to show consistency in selection. In case of defeat, it’s easy to change the team, make many changes, or change the method of playing. But when you’ve made up your mind that you want to take this Test team forward, and you want to take Pakistan cricket forward, then consistency and backing matter a lot."
"First of all, we will take responsibility. We are accountable. The results we’ve had so far have not been up to the mark."
About preparation for the England series:
"If you look at the outlook of our squad—15 members, and after that, the inclusion of 3 more players—we’ve tried to maintain consistency in selection. If the squad members were changing frequently, then yes, you could say our preparation was lacking, but our plan is continuing just as we wanted."
"We always try to play red-ball cricket before a Test series, but the schedules are fixed long in advance. And if you’ve observed the Champions One-Day Cup 2024, the standard was good. There was Pakistan’s emerging talent in it, and our current players were also there. One-day cricket, especially in the weather in Faisalabad, had significant mental and physical demands. So, I think in a short space of time, we’ve prepared well for the series."
"And as far as Shaheen Shah Afridi is concerned, he’s bowled almost 10 overs in each match. Babar Azam has played many innings and scored a lot of runs. Your fitness gets tested when you have to bat for 50 overs and then field for 50 overs."
"Yes, we didn’t get targeted red-ball preparation, but we got enough preparation in challenging conditions where our current Test squad members played 3-5 matches. This lessened their workload, and they can participate in the Test series against England with fresh bodies."
About selection and pitch:
"In the last series, we were confirmed that both matches would be in Rawalpindi, so we had an idea of the kind of pitches we would need. We decided to back our fast bowlers and leave some grass on the pitch. In the first Test, there was 6mm of grass on the pitch, and in the second Test, there was 9mm. So Noman Ali was rested in that series. We had decided that if we play with a spinner, we would go with one spinner."
"We brought Noman Ali back into the squad because we now have to assess the conditions in Multan. Considering the situation, we will decide what kind of wicket we need."
"Khurram Shahzad is essential, and we’ve seen his performances in the last matches. Unfortunately, in Australia, he also bowled really well in the first Test, and the second Test had a good wicket, but he got injured."
About lessons learned from the Bangladesh series:
"Test cricket is a five-day game, and throughout those five days, your mental and physical fitness should be up to the mark."
"As a squad and our coach has emphasized, even when we were losing matches, we weren’t losing on the first or second day. If you look at our first two innings against Bangladesh, we declared after scoring 450 runs as a batting unit. Then, in the second Test match, the pitch had Bangladesh at 26 for 6, and we couldn’t capitalize on that. So mental and physical fitness matter for each Test match. If you look, our batting usually collapsed on the fifth day, so these are things we need to improve as a team."
About team unity:
"Every captain has their own style of maintaining a good environment in the dressing room, and for me, it's my primary concern. During the Australia tour or the series against Bangladesh, I didn’t see any lack of effort from any player."
About handling pressure as captain:
"Pressure exists in sports. Pressure is a privilege, meaning you are doing something that has a purpose. Leading your country, I don’t think there’s a bigger honor than that. I see the word responsibility more than pressure. It’s not acceptable for me or any player to face defeat. When the Bangladesh series ended, I think that was one of the most challenging periods of my life. But now, the focus is on how we can do better."
About fast bowlers' injuries:
"In Test cricket, fast bowling is very tough, so the workload of fast bowlers is always managed. Unfortunately, Khurram Shahzad has had injuries twice that we couldn’t control, but we’ve personally talked to the fast bowlers. What we’ve conveyed is that taking 20 wickets is a very important part of your role, and they need to be super fit as it’s a team requirement. So we’ve set some fitness standards. Fast bowlers should be the fittest in our team. It’s a priority case, and we are in constant communication with the fast bowlers while setting these standards."
