First game of the two Test match series between Pakistan and the New Zealand ended with the Kiwi side winning by 101 runs despite Fawad Alam’s 100 which has now made headlines world-wide. So, here is a look at what happened.
Read: Pakistan Look To Azhar Ali And Fawad Alam To Save The First Test
Fawad Alam’s 100 & His Partnership With Skipper Mohd. Rizwan
Fawad Alam scored his first century after making his international comeback that happened in England earlier in the year. His was a fighting innings of 102 runs and captain Mohd. Rizwan provided plenty of support with brilliant 60 run knock. Their partnership of 165 runs and later the fight shown by the tail-enders almost secured a draw for the green shirts.
Read: Faheem Ashraf Finally Justifies Selection While Fawad Alam Disappoints Yet Again
Pakistan Go Down Fighting But Is It Enough?
There is no doubt that Pakistan provided plenty of resistance to a superior opponent on their own turf. Nevertheless, the question remains if the fight back was enough or if there is more that Pakistan could have done especially, when they were without their best batsman i.e. Babar Azam.
Regardless, by now it is obvious that Pakistan’s think-tank has a negative approach of managing proceedings and it is then no surprise that the results haven’t been too positive over the last 18 months or so. Hence, it just crystal clear that the men in green cannot deliver consistently in countries like Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and England as long as people like Misbah-ul-Haq and Waqar Younis are holding key positions and for as long as they carry on with their outdated coaching methods.
Read: Takeaways From Pakistan’s T20 Series In New Zealand
Pakistan Might Have A Selection Problem In The Next Test
Following Fawad Alam’s century he is now established his place in the playing eleven at least for the next Test. So, if Babar Azam recovers from his injury and makes a comeback then either Abid Ali or Haris Sohail will have to make way for him. Alternatively, the green shirts can also drop one of their bowlers to make room for the regular skipper.