by Saj Sadiq (20th January 2012)

Pakistan completed an emphatic victory over a below par England side at the sparsely populated Dubai Sports City Stadium on Thursday. What promised to be a fiercely competitive and closely fought match turned into a one sided encounter with Pakistan dominating proceedings from start to finish.

Right from the start of the match Pakistan’s bowlers never let the English batsmen settle into any sort of rhythm and were literally kept on the back foot by a well-balanced and aggressive bowling attack. Whilst England’s bowlers fought back gallantly on Day 2 in Dubai, ultimately they were let down by their batsmen’s choice of shot, confusion and uncertain footwork.

Following the conclusion of the match, PakPassion.net spoke with the very proud and delighted coach of the Pakistan team, Mohsin Hasan Khan who emphasised the importance for his team to remain focussed and not become complacent against a tough opposition. 

“It’s great to be part of this wonderful unit and the win against England is dedicated to all Pakistanis around the world. Wherever you are, this win was for you and my team and I are very grateful for their continued well wishes and support. Naturally I’m delighted that we have won the Test match in Dubai so convincingly against England.”

Khan continued, “The boys have worked very hard ahead of this series and they have played some very good cricket over the past three days in Dubai. They played like Champions in this Test match. However this Test match is now over, it’s finished and we move onto our planning and preparation for the Abu Dhabi Test match. Shortly after the match finished today we had a team meeting where we all discussed the importance of not being complacent and maintaining our focus for the second Test match in Abu Dhabi. We all realise that England is a tough team and they will come back hard at us, as you would expect from any top team. But I have a lot of faith in the group of players that are playing for Pakistan and I keep telling them that if they continue to give 100%, play the game in the right spirit and work hard, then they can be a match for any team in the world.”

With the spot fixing episode of 2010 in England being a low point in Pakistan cricket, this time around against the same opposition what the cricket team, the nation and the fans really needed was for the series to get off on a very positive note for the ‘home’ side and the focus to be only on cricketing matters. The victory over England was precisely what Pakistan cricket and their large following around the world needed. Khan stated that the events of 2010 have actually spurred on this group of players to show the world that there is more to Pakistan cricket than just spot fixing.

“There have been well documented and unwanted activities involving former Pakistani cricketers a couple of years ago and which spoilt the name of Pakistan cricket and gave the nation of Pakistan a bad name. Our aim was to turn that around and to provide a boost to the nation and fans of Pakistan cricket and to show the world that there is more to Pakistan cricket than just negatives. Cricket is not just a game in Pakistan it’s a way of life, it’s a passion and the people adore cricket in Pakistan. So for that reason I feel the win today was a gift for the people of Pakistan. The Pakistan Cricket Board is working tirelessly to improve the image of Pakistan cricket and to bring normality back to Pakistan cricket. Likewise this group of players can play an important role in improving the image of Pakistan cricket, by playing tough cricket and winning consistently and therefore showing the world that Pakistani cricketers are amongst the best in the world and that Pakistan is amongst the best teams in the world.” 

With Pakistan dominating the three days Test cricket in Dubai the question was posed to Mohsin as to when he thought the match was “in the bag” for his team.

“We were pleased when England decided to bat first as we knew there would be something in the wicket for our bowlers particularly in the first hour due to the moisture. Our plan was to create early pressure in the first session and to take full advantage of the conditions and that worked to our satisfaction. We had the early grip on the game and I told the boys to not let that advantage go and to maintain that pressure and not ease up at all. The first session was ultimately pivotal in the outcome of the match.”

Man of the match Saeed Ajmal bamboozled the opposition batsmen and his guile and variations presented plenty of food for thought for Andrew Strauss and his World class batting line up. However despite taking 10 wickets in the match and picking up the Man of the Match award, comments from some quarters of the media will undoubtedly have a left a sour taste for Ajmal and his team mates. Khan though was undeterred by any negative remarks regarding Ajmal’s bowling action and played down the comments from former England fast bowler Bob Willis.

“I’m not worried about the comments regarding Ajmal’s action and neither is Saeed. You do find some people in the media who try to create a few unwanted things which should be kept away from cricket, but there again when we came to the UAE there were questions from some of the media directed to Misbah and myself about the issues in 2010 in England. Our response was simple and was that we are just here to play good positive cricket and nothing more than that.”

The second Test match in Abu Dhabi commences on Wednesday 25th January at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi.