Shan Masood, the Pakistan Test captain, has received a stern warning from ex-PCB chief Ramiz Raja to score runs to keep his place in the team. Ramiz also stated that Masood is not a great captain to retain his place despite poor showings with the bat.
This comes after Pakistan lost to Bangladesh in the recent first Test in Rawalpindi. Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto won the toss and asked Pakistan to play first. Mohammad Rizwan’s 171* and Saud Shakeel’s 141 helped Pakistan post 448/6d in the first innings.
They were convinced they could bowl Bangladesh out cheaply, but Shadman Islam (93), Mehidy Hasan Miraz (77), and Mushfiqur Rahim (191) powered the squad to 565 runs.
Pakistan, trailing by 117 runs, was anticipated to bat on the final day and secure a draw. However, Bangladesh spinners Mehidy Hasan and Shakib Al Hasan combined for seven wickets as Pakistan collapsed for 146 runs. Bangladesh easily met their goal of 30 runs to take a 1-0 lead in the series.
“Shan Masood needs to first bat well”- Ramiz Raja rants on Pakistan captain
Shan Masood must deliver with the bat, according to Ramiz Raja, or he would not be able to play for Pakistan only as captain. He also questioned the Men in Green captain’s decisions in the first Test against Bangladesh.
Masood scored 20 runs in two innings, and his choice not to play a specialist spinner drew criticism. In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Raja pointed out that Masood was found wanting both as a batter and captain.
“Shan Masood needs to first bat well and then show his knowledge of the game a little because he is decently experienced as far as captaincy is concerned. He captains in county cricket and has captained his team in the PSL. I couldn’t understand on what basis he thought that if you leave grass on the Pindi pitch in August, the ball will swing a lot,” Ramiz said.
“Firstly, he has to take the correct direction. It was a massive Faultline from the selection point of view. His batting has gone down. He is not Mike Brearley or a great captain that he will continue to have a place even if he keeps scoring zero. He needs to pull his batting up,” the former Pakistan batter added.
Ramiz Raja stated that Shan Masood has to focus on his footwork. He said that the left-handed batter used to be aggressive earlier in his career, but has now gone into survival mode to play the new ball out.
The second and final Test will begin on August 30, also to be played in Rawalpindi.
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