Pakistan’s new white-ball coach Mike Hesson didn’t mince words about the Mirpur pitch after his team’s seven-wicket loss on Sunday. The New Zealander said the pitch wasn’t international standard. He felt while it might help Bangladesh win, it wasn’t fair to visiting teams to have to play on such wickets.
Pakistan was bowled out for 110, their lowest ever in T20Is. Fakhar Zaman scored 44, but no other Pakistani batsman scored more than half that. Taskin Ahmed and Mustafizur Rahman took five wickets. In response, Parvez Hossain Emo scored a half-century and Towhid Hridoy 36, and Bangladesh chased the score in 15.3 overs, one of their best wins against Pakistan.
This isn’t an international standard wicket, Hesson said at the press conference. Playing on wickets like this won’t help anyone improve. With the Asia Cup coming up, practicing on surfaces like this won’t help you be successful. Bangladesh might win on these wickets but it’s not a good wicket.
Hesson almost started to explain how these kinds of wickets weren’t helping Bangladesh cricket either but stopped himself.
Usually good wickets are prepared here for the BPL. But in international matches Bangladesh makes these slow and low surfaces to get an edge when playing at home. That’s not right, he said. “I’m not here to fix Bangladesh cricket—that’s not my job. But when it comes to global standard of cricket these kinds of wickets aren’t the right way to go.
Read Also:- Salman Butt Criticizes Team India: Here’s What He Wants Pakistan to Do Next
Visiting teams aren’t the only ones who feel this way. In 2021 after Bangladesh won against New Zealand and Australia on similar wickets some batters complained about the pitch.
Before this T20I Bangladesh’s captain Litton Das also brought it up saying, “I agree. After the 2021 New Zealand-Australia series many batters careers went down. If I were a bowler my career would have been better.
Bangladesh leads the series 1-0. Second match is on Tuesday, July 22 at the same venue.
