Sami Chaudhry's column: 'Correct' bowling is more important than 'fast' bowling '
An important lesson of Test cricket is that no one can keep up with the pace of the game. Because the aggression that seems to be wise in one moment seems to be a reflection of stupidity in the next moment.
Pakistan did not achieve the success it was expecting at the beginning of the day. Last evening, Mohammad Abbas's hat-trick gave him the confidence that 217 could be a competitive combination on this deadly green wicket for batting.
And the kind of uncertainty that West Indies batting has been facing recently, it was not far off that Pakistan, despite their low total, could lift their spirits with a slight lead.
That is why the aggressive manner in which Babar Azam started the day was spectacular. The hustle and bustle of line, length, and slip cordon made it clear that Pakistani bowling would show its best control. This skill was seen to some extent but in the second hour of the session, nothing came of it except the wicket of Ruston Chase.
Even after lunch, Shaheen Shah Afridi's two consecutive attacks raised the expectation that Pakistan would soon have penetrated the lower order. But the thing was that the wicket had changed and the ball had softened.
On the first day, it was clear that the new ball was moving a lot on this wicket in cloudy conditions. The pacers were getting a grip on the wicket due to the prominence of the grass and Sam was getting so much that he felt like a kiwi pitch.
If you are not convinced, ask Azhar Ali who, despite getting four reviews and half a dozen chances, is still thirsty for a valuable score.
But an hour after lunch the next day, the nature of the wicket had changed and so had the mood of the ball. There, Pakistan needed to stop the runs, but the captain's some debatable decisions and some bowling disorders did not allow this to happen. He was about fifty runs that were testing Craig Brathwaite's patience.
But while it was clear that the medium pacers were more likely to succeed with the old ball, Babar Azam, instead of referring to Faheem Ashraf and Muhammad Abbas, handed the ball to Shaheen Afridi and Hassan Ali.
Shaheen Afridi, of course, bowled a terrific over after lunch and was close to taking the third wicket despite missing a hat-trick chance, but apart from that over, his bowling as a whole was below his own standards.
The downside was that the holder was easily given a full field to reach the fifties and the West Indies to clear the deficit. Although Babar Azam turned to Faheem Ashraf as soon as the case of late arrival, correct arrival came, there was an immediate victory in the form of Holder's wicket, but by then Brathwaite, standing on the other side, had dominated the match.
Criticized for his recent batting form, the West Indies captain set out to lodge his batting line in these difficult batting conditions and put his side on the lead despite falling a few yards behind the century.
The match has not slipped away yet and a wicket that is gradually made easier for batting can add about three and a half hundred runs in the third innings, but still, many frustrated faces in the Pakistani dressing room will be wondering what is wrong. The expectations were thus deceived.
Perhaps it was a miscalculation that Babar Azam misunderstood the changing pace of the wicket. Or maybe it was Shaheen Shah Afridi's mistake that instead of bowling 'correctly', he focused on fast bowling.
However, it is not a bad lesson to learn that the importance of pace is in its place, but it is more important to bowl 'correct' bowling instead of 'fast bowling.