"Scoring 240-250 runs or more on the 4th day and on this pitch wont be easy" : Hassan Ali

[MenInG]

Hassan Ali speaking to the press:

Question on what lessons PCB can learn on how Hassan has comeback to the side and how he has been able to regain his pace:

"PCB as in institution does not need any advice on how to handle cases like these, they know what to do; As far as the question on regaining pace is concerned, if you work hard then all these qualities can come back into your game"

"I still remember that I would work on my rehab upto 4 times a day, and on top of that there was the issue of COVID-19, and there was the frustration of being dropped from the game as well; In such hard times, what I didnt give up on was hard work and my desire to make a comeback; I had many injuries but I did not give up on my hard work and there is nothing in this world that cannot be achieved if you put in the effort"

"Conditions are tough at the moment for batting, but any bowler whether he is a fast-bowler or spinner will do well if he puts in the effort"

"Shaheen and I planned to bowl in the right areas and we got rewarded for that"

"Bowlers are dominating in this game as pitch is slow and the batsmen are finding it difficult to score"

"The 200 runs lead we have isnt an easy one for the opposition to score because of the way our spinners supported by our fast-bowlers are bowling on this pitch"

"Our efforts will be to take the lead past the 240-250 mark; We have Rizwan and myself at the crease and we will try and score as many runs as possible so that we are under less pressure when we bowl"

"As a batting unit we didnt have any specific plans to play defensively or to play aggressively and score runs quickly; We played in a normal fashion as per the game situation; To their credit, the South Africans bowled in the right place and due to wickets falling back-to-back our batting line-up came under pressure"

"But we are still ahead in this game and scoring 240-250 runs or more on 4th day and on this pitch wont be easy"

 

[Firebat]

Well bowled by Hassan today, looked a bit wayward but he got a crucial 5-fer and finished the SA innings off quick.

I agree with what he said about the score, if these 2 can take it above 250 it will be very hard for them to chase that in the 4th innings on this pitch. Nauman and Yasir in tandem will be too much to deal with.

 

[jiduguravindra]

200 is enough i think.. Anything morethan that is luxury.

 

[MenInG]

Problem with 240-250 is that one Qdk cameo of 40-50 in 20 balls and our shoulders will drop and then things go south for us.

 

[sam_ahm]

240 odd won't be easy but in modern day cricket these targets are getting chased more often. Pakistan would want 280+ ideally, but that looks difficult. Will have to bowl well and take all your chances.

 

[hitthestump]

200 is enough i think.. Anything morethan that is luxury.

I don't think 200 will be enough. Once SA start inching towards the target then heads will drop as this team isn't used to winning tests at the moment. Pakistan need scoreboard pressure to compensate for the lack of mental strength in the side.

 

[Rana]

We are too pessimistic

Why do you worry when you have Uncle Nauman?

 

[Major]

Naa, the real problem is Van der Dussan or whatever his name is. That guy is a lethal batsmen. I am surprised that he got out to Hasan Ali in the first innings, but lets see if they are able to get him or not in the 4th innings.

Faf Du Plesis will be going all guns. If they get a good start, he will attack us upfront

need 300 just atleast, anything below is a great risk.

De kock, Dussan, Faf, Aiden are very good batsmen and shouldn't be taken lightly just because you have won 3 innings over them. One good innings by South Africa and this game is a goner.

 

[Titan24]

If I am not wrong 220 is the previous highest total chased in 4th innings at Rawalpindi cricket stadium which was done by Srl in 2000 when they won by 2 wickets. Wasim got injured during the match and only bowled 2 overs so Saqlain, Waqar and Razzaq were the only available options for Pak in that innings..

 

[Major]

If I am not wrong 220 is the previous highest total chased in 4th innings at Rawalpindi cricket stadium which was done by Srl in 2000 when they won by 2 wickets. Wasim got injured during the match and only bowled 2 overs so Saqlain, Waqar and Razzaq were the only available options for Pak in that innings..

there havent been much test matches at Pindi over the years, and the pitch has changed quite alot. South Africa is no weak team.

I am afraid we will throw this match just like we threw the Pakistan vs South Africa odi series 2007. We were suppose to win that last game, but we bottled it.

 

[UzmanBeast]

IMO this is the best case scenario.

Pindi is usually a good morning session as the ball doesn't play too many tricks, so I'd expect Rizwan to reach 50.

If Hasan, Nauman, Yasir, and Shaheen can combine together and put abotu 50, we'd be in a really good position.

The best case scenario, however, is if Hassan Bhai and Yasir Sahab combine with a 200 run stand.

 

[Savak]

Lol Pakistan were complacent and are underestimating South Africa, they have batted poorly this series and are due to score runs with the bat at some point. Yasir was poor in the first innings and Mahraj, Linde have bowled better than Nauman Ali in this game. The pacers picked up 7 wickets and there were two suicidal run outs.

 

[bilawal666]

Unless Pakistan stretch that lead to 270+, I don't see them winning. SA are gonna come down hard and try to go for the win to level the series. That's what George Linde indicated in the pressor.

 

[UzmanBeast]

Lol Pakistan were complacent and are underestimating South Africa, they have batted poorly this series and are due to score runs with the bat at some point. Yasir was poor in the first innings and Mahraj, Linde have bowled better than Nauman Ali in this game. The pacers picked up 7 wickets and there were two suicidal run outs.

Exactly.

Though Maharaj took a beating, Linde has bowled pretty well.

Yasir needs to up his game, or I fear this will be his last series.

If it is, then Nauman will be our spinner and we might finally see a spin-bowling batting all-rounder like Nawaz or Salman Ali Agha. I'd want Salman Ali Agha to bridge the batting and bowling alongside Faheem.

Sajid Khan will probably only get a chance if we play in Asia where there is a need of two specialist spinners, but for now, Nauman looks to have a decent run.

Your point about Linde and Maharaj bowling better than Nauman is not correct IMO. Nauman had a catch dropped, an LBW call not taken, and some poor fielding around the bat in general.

 

[bilawal666]

I think Pakistan has once again blown a chance to win a game from a good position like they did in England.

 

[Line and Length]

We shouldn’t take this SA team easy and think a target of around 250 is more than enough. They still have quality batsman like Elgar, Markram, QDK, Faf who can turn up on their given day. They may not have shown it so far on this tour, but these are all still very capable batsmen. With a low target like that, all it takes is one good partnership to curtail your entire bowling plan, that worries me, especially with an inexperienced captain like Babar.

 

[silent ischemia]

It was some poor batting by Pak post tea not much different to the post tea collapse they had against England in the first Test. Hope we don't see Buttler and Woakes this time on

 

[AAli98]

Both teams are absolutely woeful no way this is a 129/6 or a 200 all out pitch.

Any decent batsman should have got a ton & put the match to one side. Instead both teams keep giving each other chances to get back into the match.

 

[Cpt. Rishwat]

Both teams are absolutely woeful no way this is a 129/6 or a 200 all out pitch.

Any decent batsman should have got a ton & put the match to one side. Instead both teams keep giving each other chances to get back into the match.

Agree. There is some inconsistent bounce like in Karachi, but that hasn't really cost any wickets in this game, mostly it's just been poor batting. Pakistan needs to find another 70 runs from these last 4 wickets, anything less than 250 and and SA will think they can win. Pakistan should have scored a minimum of 250 in the second innings, really disappointing to see them struggle to get to 129 with six down already.

 

[Amjid Javed]

Batting on both sides has been pretty pathetic. 250 does favour pakistan but i think we would really want a few more then that as am sure some of SA batsmen will get runs after a few failures so far.

 

[Saj]

The way South Africa has been batting even 150 might be enough.

The concern for Pakistan will be if de Kock has one of those days and smashes the bowling to all parts.

 

[TeamPak95]

The way South Africa has been batting even 150 might be enough.

The concern for Pakistan will be if de Kock has one of those days and smashes the bowling to all parts.

I low-key agree. It's gonna come down to Quinton De Kock, as well as Yasir-Nauman.

 

[BunnyRabbit]

there havent been much test matches at Pindi over the years, and the pitch has changed quite alot. South Africa is no weak team.

I am afraid we will throw this match just like we threw the Pakistan vs South Africa odi series 2007. We were suppose to win that last game, but we bottled it.

That collapse was infuriating, after Shoaib had bowled so well. We lost 5 or 6 wickets for 30 odd.

 

[mon858]

I am sensing some blessing in disguise threads for things like:
1. This will get rid of Misbah
2. This will get rid of WAqar
3. This will get us new openers
4. Yasir is done and this will get rid of him
5. Babar shouldn't have been made captain, lets make Rizwan captain
6. Glad it was 2 test series otherwise we would have lost 2 1.








Just kidding. I am very confident we already have enough runs, add another 50 and its game over.
Please realize we are talking about 4th innings batting on 4th/5th day in subcontinent by a sena team. That too this south Africa team that really doesn't handle spin well (or reverse for that matter).
Believe it or not I think the biggest factor in their performance has been their poor catching, running between wickets and general outcricket , drs, etc. Otherwise they could have competed much better.
Anyway barring a faf and de cock special game is in the bag.

 

[Muhammad Saad]

Set a target of 300 and its over already 99% for SAF.

 

[Muhammad Saad]

Just 50 more and finish this match.

 

[Omer2002]

He doesnt have a clue what he was saying

 

[Suleiman]

Clueless bowling attack. Very easy to rattle.

 

[MHN1293]

I low-key agree. It's gonna come down to Quinton De Kock, as well as Yasir-Nauman.

In the end none of those 3 did anything the entire test

 

[Saj]

Quotes from Hassan Ali after today's press conference:

I was injured and I have put in a lot of hard work and my aim was to come back and perform. When I say I wanted to come back, I don’t just mean that I came back, played a match and just left, my aim was to come back and perform for my country.

The injury was a tough time for me. I was injured, coronavirus was around and I couldn’t even leave the house. I’d like to thank my wife who has been a huge support and motivated me and also my older brother who always said that I would make a comeback. Shoaib Malik was also a big support for me and someone who I spoke with a lot during the time I was injured. I’d also like to especially thank PCB who supported me and sent me overseas for treatment.

The biggest thing was though that I never accepted defeat during my injury problems and I had my mind set on getting fit again. I recall I was doing rehab 3 or 4 times a day and days like today make you appreciate the hard work that I put in.

South Africa was on top at lunch but at lunch Waqar Younis said don’t give up and to keep putting the ball in the right areas and that was our plan because there was some uneven bounce. Most of the wickets were stump to stump. Waqar said keep going, don’t give up and if they play well and win, so be it. That’s what happened, we put the ball in the right areas. We were waiting for the new ball and we were hoping that would change things and that’s what happened.

It’s a team game, it’s not just my game where I can bowl all day. Its not a case of I have invested in the game and only I can bowl. You have to go according to the team strategy and the plan was to use the spinners at times. Our spinners were unlucky and there was no issue regarding my fitness that I was replaced after taking 2 wickets in a 4-over spell. If you want me to go out there now and play for another 5 days I am ready.

The wicket taking celebration will always remain the same but the celebration today was because my wife and I are expecting our first child next month. My wife was here to watch the match and her and the baby that is due have brought me good luck.

All the wickets were important in this match but the key wicket was that of van der Dussen which got us a good start today as he was a set player and that put pressure on South Africa. The other key wicket was de Kock because he is the type of player who can turn a match on his own.

 

[SensiblePakFan]

Thank god Nauman Ali stuck around and got the lead past 350 with rizzy.

 

[Bigboii]

" my fitness that I was replaced after taking 2 wickets in a 4-over spell. If you want me to go out there now and play for another 5 days I am ready."

His attitude is amazing tbh - he works hard like a super star
People during his hard time just counted him out but k
now he is back taking 10-fer on a dead flat wicket!

Unfortunately people take his "attitude" as cocky but he is a hard working fella if he wasn't no one with that injury would make a come back especially the way he made it

Ultimate story of human struggle and coming over it

 

[JaDed]

Can’t wait for India to play him, every Indian locker should have his pic with his Wagah stunt.

 

[Bilal_103]

" my fitness that I was replaced after taking 2 wickets in a 4-over spell. If you want me to go out there now and play for another 5 days I am ready."

His attitude is amazing tbh - he works hard like a super star
People during his hard time just counted him out but k
now he is back taking 10-fer on a dead flat wicket!

Unfortunately people take his "attitude" as cocky but he is a hard working fella if he wasn't no one with that injury would make a come back especially the way he made it

Ultimate story of human struggle and coming over it

If he can keep performing nobody will mind his celebrations. I think he gets himself fired up by his theatrics.

 

[Saj]

" my fitness that I was replaced after taking 2 wickets in a 4-over spell. If you want me to go out there now and play for another 5 days I am ready."

His attitude is amazing tbh - he works hard like a super star
People during his hard time just counted him out but k
now he is back taking 10-fer on a dead flat wicket!

Unfortunately people take his "attitude" as cocky but he is a hard working fella if he wasn't no one with that injury would make a come back especially the way he made it

Ultimate story of human struggle and coming over it

He's a character, which cricket needs.

I think he just enjoys the limelight, wants to make people happy and he likes to entertain.

I don't think there's any malice in him.

 

[Saj]

I’d also like to especially thank PCB who supported me and sent me overseas for treatment.

The PCB medics were once again unable to sort his injury out, so he had to be sent overseas and also seek help from a medic in the UK.

 

[CrIc_Mystique]

His attitude is that of a fighter. When he is on song, he is a hard bowler to get away and on SC wickets, he will be a handful. Its always good to see players make it back after injury and be successful, shows their fighting spirit. And his celebrations........well done to him ...from an indian fan..

 

[shamaan]

Who would have thought he would have made a come back and got a 10 wickets in his second game back.credit to hassan ali for showing 100 percent commitment to regaining form