A week was more than enough for Pakistan to understand the absolute process of succeeding against England in their own backyard. After a famous triumph at Lord’s, the mood in the Pakistani camp was positive as despite all the gloom which surrounded the side, the visitors ended up as winners on an iconic venue.
However, on the very first day of the second test at Old Trafford, the Pakistanis seemed utterly clueless as Misbah Ul Haq’s unit was found wanting against a rampaging English outfit. The initial onslaught by Alastair Cook and later by Joe Root proved to be way too much for the visitors, who already seemed to be out of sorts. A miserable defeat ended all the jubilation and the third test at Birmingham will just compound their challenges. Coach Mickey Arthur admitted that he was quite disappointed by Pakistan’s lackluster performance at Manchester.
“We’re going to have to raise our game considerably from Old Trafford,” Arthur said. “I was really disappointed with our performance at Old Trafford. There are credible losses and there are losses when you lie down and were steam rolled. Old Trafford was clearly that.”
“At Lord’s we were upbeat and played with real spirit. We had that edge. I told the guys I thought we were warriors at Lord’s. But we were completely the opposite at Old Trafford. “I wasn’t sure if it was as if we had reached our goal and our goal was to come and win a Test and then take your foot off the pedal,” the Pakistan coach added.
Arthur hinted that the Pakistanis could target the underperforming duo of James Vince and Gary Ballance. “Vince and Ballance are quality players,” Arthur said. “But at this level confidence is such an important thing. They clearly know when they walk out to bat that they are playing for their Test places. So that provides another level of pressure. It’s not just the opposition running in and bowling a cricket ball at you. Suddenly that pressure is intensified as they’re playing for their places as well.”