In the second Rawalpindi Test, Babar Azam again could not back his start with big score, as he was dismissed by Shakib Al Hasan in the second Test. Post this, he has received some substantial support from his younger teammate Salman Ali Agha against criticism.
Babar came into bat on the second day of the second Test, with Pakistan in a far better position this time around. Saim Ayub and Shan Masood had given their side a good start with their respective fifties.
However, despite his start, as Babar scored a subtle 31 runs, he was out LBW in front of the wicket by Shakib Al Hasan. This happened to be his 15th consecutive inning in the longest format without scoring a half-century. Babar had already witnessed a major drop in ICC rankings in Tests, as he went down 6 positions to the no. 9 spot.
As usual, the batter was immensely criticized again; however, this time around he was backed by his teammate and half-century scorer in the first inning, Salman Ali Agha. He praised Azam for being a world-class player and also insisted that everyone goes through bad patch and he will be back in fine form, scoring runs for his team again.
Agha said in the press meet after the end of Day 1
“Babar Azam is a world-class player. As a cricketer, you go through these phases. He has scored consistently throughout the last five years. Soon, we will see him scoring big runs for Pakistan again,”
Pakistan is on the verge of losing another home Test to Bangladesh
The Pakistani batting collapsed in the first inning, though they came back strongly with a 274, as Bangladesh spinner Mehidy Hasan Miraz once again struck five times.
Bangladesh struggled against Shahzad and Mir Hamza early on as they were reduced to 26/6. Litton Das and Mehidy Hasan Miraz both batted extremely well to rescue them with a 150+ run partnership before Miraz got out for 78.
Unlike the first Test, the pitch has help for both spinners and pacers; however, Pakistan faced another major upset in the second innings of the second Rawalpindi Test, getting bowled out for 172. First, Hasan Mahmud and then the lanky fast bowler, Nahid Rana, did great work to restrict them to a small total.
Nahid Rana broke the back of Pakistan’s middle order. Babar Azam again went back for a disappointing 11 in the second innings. Rizwan showed some resistance alongside Salman Ali Agha but were eventually bowled out for just 172. For Bangladesh, Hasan Mahmud, this time, took a 5-fer with Rana’s 4 wickets as well.
Pakistan set a target of 185 runs in front of the Bangladesh team while they, in response, scored a quick 42. Though, the rain gods seemed to save the Pakistani players of recent humiliation. As for now, it seems that Bangladesh are the favorites to secure a second Test victory over Pakistan and their first ever series win against them.
