Despite suffering a humiliating loss in Perth, Pakistan’s team director Mohammad Hafeez is confident that his squad possesses the capability to defeat Australia in Australia. Despite losing a significant first-innings lead, Pakistan demonstrated batting determination as they completed 101.5 overs. Nonetheless, that all came tumbling down during the pursuit on the treacherous surface, where they were dismissed for 89 in just 30.2 overs.
“I’ve seen during our preparation the amount of talent these guys have. There’s no doubt that they can beat Australia here in Australia,” Hafeez said, before lamenting his team’s poor execution in the series opener. “But obviously, we couldn’t do that execution-wise. The plan was there and we prepared accordingly. I still believe that as a team, Pakistan can beat Australia here in Australia, but we must execute our skills when required.”
“We couldn’t execute our skills. We made plans for the team, but unfortunately, as a team, we couldn’t execute our plans. Obviously, the guys wanted to, but they never applied themselves, to be honest. As a team, we made a couple of tactical errors. There were certain situations where we could have dominated. We were prepared, but our execution wasn’t great,” he added.
As a result of Pakistan’s lack of effort, especially with the bat in the fourth innings, Australia’s frontline pacers will have a light workload heading into the Boxing Day Test. Despite the fact that Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, and Pat Cummins all bowled over 20 overs in the first inning, the second inning was quickly concluded.
“I don’t think injuries are going to be an issue, so I dare say it will be a pretty similar line-up at this stage. I think all the bowlers are pretty fresh after (the win in Perth). It’s basically the ideal start to the summer,” Pat Cummins admitted.
The Australia captain also put Pakistan’s horror show in Perth in perspective, stating how tough it can be to play away Tests. Pakistan had to play catch up due to their huge first-innings deficit and failed to make the most of treacherous conditions with the ball. They were then bundled out for just 89 in chase of 450 runs.
“We know from travelling overseas, if you go to foreign conditions and if you’re a batter and you don’t score runs, you start questioning things. As a bowler if you haven’t had a huge impact, you start looking at your own game perhaps a bit more than you do at home.
“We love these conditions. We know these conditions really well. I think that’s what makes playing and winning away from home so difficult,” Cummins added. As for his own team, the atmosphere couldn’t have been better. “I know we will have a pretty stress-free week going into Boxing Day. I think everyone’s in a really good place.”
Lance Moris released from squad
An additional outcome of the swift conclusion in Perth and the availability of the three fast bowlers for the match next week is the discharge of Western Australia speedster Lance Morris, who was widely anticipated to make his Test debut in this series. Morris’s name has been removed from the 13-member squad. Morris will join the Perth Scorchers of the Big Bash League. Notwithstanding this determination, national selector George Bailey reaffirmed that the fast bowler continues to be an integral part of Australia’s summer preparations.
“He will stay prepared for Test cricket as he remains firmly in our plans for the summer, should an opportunity arise,” Bailey said.
Australia squad for Boxing Day Test:
David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steven Smith, Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh, Alex Carey, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood, Cameron Green, Scott Boland
