Waqar Younis has said that poor fielding was a major factor in Pakistan’s loss against the West Indies.
Pakistan’s bowling coach Waqar was critical of the team’s catching towards the end, which cost them the first test.
West Indies is now 1-0 up in the two-match series.
“It was a very good Test match, couldn’t have had a better advertisement for Test cricket. Unfortunately, we were on the wrong side of the result, but that’s the way cricket goes. Of course, mistakes happened, which is why we came second. We were poor with the catching – if you let go of catches intense moments then they’ll hurt you. The bowlers gave it their all in the end, hats off to them. I feel proud of this bowling unit, the way they fought in this Test match. It’s the work of the bowlers to create opportunities. They were 114 for 7 and there were three opportunities after that. If we cannot grab that as a unit then it will hurt us,” said Waqar.
The veteran bowler said that it was a low-scoring Test match, with 253 being the highest total across four innings.
He said that the conditions gave the fast bowlers an advantage, and put the batsmen in a tough position. “The ball was seaming, there were overcast conditions at times. The pitch was not easy for batting. The bowlers found a lot of help, that’s why it was a low-scoring Test match. The batsmen need to apply on pitches like this, and they also need to be positive, as a batsman you need to sometimes take risks. With the Dukes ball, and in conditions like this, it is not going to be easy for the batsmen. They also have to deal with bounce,” he said.
“The conditions are likely to be the same for the second Test. I’m not sure about the (weather) forecast. We want to play in the same way and spirit as we did in the previous Test and want to avoid the mistakes to win the second Test,” the bowling coach stated.
Waqar did praise the efforts of the pacers, who kept Pakistan in the game despite defending a low score.
He came to the defense of Muhammad Abbas, who was wicketless in the second innings.
“Abbas, I thought, bowled beautifully. There are some days when luck is not on your side. The way Abbas bowled, he should have taken a lot more wickets. He was beating the bat, not finding the edges, that’s part of the game. Abbas is a wonderful professional, he bowled really well but unfortunately, he didn’t take as many wickets as we expected. But that’s fine with me,” Waqar concluded.
He also praised Babar Azam’s captaincy during the tense match.
“He (Babar) captained really well throughout the Test match. It’s not easy for a young captain in Test matches like this but he did a wonderful job. Unfortunately, we couldn’t really finish the game,” the former cricketer said.
West Indies were 114/7 at one stage, losing Jermaine Blackwood (55) and Jason Holder (16). Kemar Roach and Joshua Da Silva led a crucial partnership but at 142/8 and 151/9, Pakistan still held the upper hand.
However, Roach remained calm under pressure to take his side over the line.
