Pakistan bowling coach Umar Gul has expressed confidence in his team’s ability to chase down a daunting 437-run target against Bangladesh national cricket team in the second Test at Sylhet.
Speaking after the third day’s play, Gul said the pitch had become increasingly favourable for batting and insisted that Pakistan still had a realistic chance of completing the challenging chase to level the two-match Test series 1-1.
“The wicket has eased out considerably after the first day. The ball is coming nicely onto the bat, so anything is possible in Test cricket,” Gul said while backing his side’s batting unit ahead of the crucial final innings.
The former fast bowler also admitted that Pakistan’s bowlers have struggled with the demands of red-ball cricket due to a lack of sufficient Test match exposure in recent times. Gul noted that bowling long spells in Tests is significantly different from white-ball cricket and acknowledged that the pace of Pakistan’s fast bowlers tends to drop during extended spells.
Pakistan entered the second Test under pressure after suffering a disappointing 104-run defeat against Bangladesh in the opening match of the series.
Gul also addressed social media speculation surrounding an on-field interaction with star pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi during the Test. He clarified that the viral clip was misunderstood and explained that he was instructing Afridi to prepare for a possible concussion substitution after Hasan Ali suffered a head injury on the field.
Despite the pressure situation, Pakistan remain hopeful of producing a memorable run chase in Sylhet and keeping the series alive.
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