Former Pakistan cricketer Ramiz Raja has taken a dig at the current crop of fast bowlers in the national team, following their loss in the first Test match against Bangladesh at Rawalpindi.
The visitors Bangladesh managed to defeat Pakistan by 10 wickets, as they created history beating the hosts for the first time ever in Test cricket history.
While the Rawalpindi pitch was a flat wicket aiding runs, it came as a surprise when the visiting batters had a comfortable time in the middle against a fast-bowling lineup that used to be feared world over.
Bangladesh scored 565 runs in the second innings, taking a lead of 117 runs, after which they bowled out the hosts for just 146 runs. The visitors then went on to chase down the target of 29 runs, without the loss of any wicket.
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What did Ramiz Raja say about the Pakistan fast bowling lineup after their defeat to Bangladesh?
The former cricketer Raja was speaking on his YouTube channel following the shocking defeat of the Shan Masood-led Pakistan team on home soil, at the hands of visitors Bangladesh.
While he credited Bangladesh for the much-deserved victory, he blamed Pakistan for contributing to their own defeat.
"Pakistan contributed a lot in Bangladesh's win in the first Test match. The batters looked nervous on a straightforward flat [Rawalpindi] pitch. You declared the innings thinking you've got the match under control, but Test cricket teaches you a lot of hard lessons," he said.
The team's decision not to go with a specialist wrist spinner in Abrar Ahmed might have proven to be costly, as the youngster could have provided crucial breakthroughs for the Pakistan team when Bangladesh found themselves in a comfortable position against a one-dimensional fast bowling of the hosts.
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"Firstly, you made a mistake by going without a specialist spinner in the team," Raja said about the bowling lineup for the first Test.
Further, he went to say that the Asia Cup 2023 game against India was the start of all their miseries because the arch-rivals had exposed the weakness of Pakistan's fast bowling attack, who can crumble when the game is taken to them, while under pressure.
"Regarding the Pakistan fast bowlers, their reputation has been damaged, and this debacle started from the Asia Cup 2023 when India bashed them all over the ground in seaming conditions and there has been a confidence crisis in this lineup ever since. The world understood our secret, that they simply need to attack to put pressure on our pacers."
Raja believed that none of the fast bowlers in the current Pakistan team looked threatening with the ball, saying that they lack the express pace to make it difficult for the opposition batters, particularly on flat wickets like Rawalpindi.
The speed and skill of our bowlers has decreased - they are now more focused on drama. Bangladeshi pacers were so much better. If we don't have an out and out fast bowler on such flat pitches, even a team like Bangladesh can stand up confidently against us if we bowl at 125kph.
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