‘Pak bunch has amazing mindset’
bowling coach and former all-rounder Azhar Mahmood believes his team is blessed with a bunch of bowlers with amazing mindset, who are not only capable of executing the plans effectively but can also deliver on the field as well.
When quizzed about the wicket-taking approach of the Pakistan bowling attack in Limited Overs International (LOI), the 42-year-old said, “It’s not rocketscience to realise that in the modern-day LOI game, where boundaries are small, and bats are big, it is absolute madness to think that you can simply contain a top-quality opposition team by drying out runs. The only real way to stop runs from being scored against you is by taking wickets.”
“In this regard, we are very blessed that we have a bunch of guys who are wicket-takers and are able to effectively execute the plans given to them and deliver on the field. There is an amazing mind-set among these bowlers that they need to get the batsmen out and not just worry about containing them, which is very important for the team as a whole,” he emphasised.
Giving example of his side’s recent performances in the ODIs , Azhar stressed that his bowling line-up are confident of taking wickets at every stage of the game regardless of the oppositions besides also emphasizing on the rapid improvement in their bench-strength.
“With this bowling line-up we are confident of taking wickets at every stage of the game regardless of how well the opposition is doing at that time. The proof of our recent progress is in the fact that in the last 9 ODI games, the most any team has scored against us is 236 which is a great sign for Pakistan cricket. On top of that, our bench-strength is improving rapidly with each back-up player who is called up performing really well when given the chance,” he said.
Meanwhile, Azhar also reflected his disappointment on Pakistan’s recent two-match Test series defeat to Sri Lanka 0-2 in Dubai.
The former all-rounder admitted that his side failed to bowl well in both innings of the Tests which cost them defeat.
“Obviously, we were thoroughly disappointed by the loss of both Tests in the home series against Sri Lanka, but the fact of the matter is that we did not bowl well in both innings of the Tests. Again, this is not an attempt to look for excuses, but the guys were playing Tests after a long time as our last game had been in May of this year and that rustiness showed up against Sri Lanka,” he said.
KARACHI:Pakistan