The recent disappointments of the white-ball side has created a sense of disillusionment the Test team isn’t immune from either
Danyal Rasool22-Aug-2024It can be tempting to conclude, upon first glance after entering the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, that Bangladesh’s tour of Pakistan has not captured the public imagination.Evidence to that effect is visible throughout the area, and extraneous factors don’t exactly help. This is the earliest start to a Pakistan home summer in history, August being among the least hospitable months to play cricket in any of Pakistan’s major centres owing to the oppressive humidity. The journey to the stadium on Thursday was an adventure in its own right, with the main access routes closed off by giant shipping containers to subdue political protests planned throughout the city. When a media colleague was asked if official attendance figures would be released for the day, “count them” was the wry riposte from another.None of this is new, though. Pakistan has always had hot summers, and yet attendances at the Asia Cup in similar weather last year were sizeable. The challenges of getting to stadia hasn’t prevented fans from filling seats if they really want to get to games, as many PSL games will verify. Even if you argue that Bangladesh’s lack of Test star power is unconducive to crowd pulling, recall that Rawalpindi recorded a full house on day five of a Test against Sri Lanka in 2019 after three near-washout days had guaranteed a drab draw.Related
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However, as Saud Shakeel and Mohammad Rizwan walked on for the second day of a finely poised Test match, hardly anyone was about to watch them put on a masterclass in drawing Bangladesh’s sting out. Shakeel has been gently coaxed by Pakistan’s backroom staff into more aggressive shot-making of late, but with the visitors just two wickets away from bringing Shaheen Shah Afridi out to the middle, he understood the value of falling back on the solid conservatism that brought him initial success with Pakistan. He struck five boundaries from 88 deliveries on the first day; it would be another 42 overs before his first on the second.But what Rizwan was up to from the other end was eminently watchable. In that fidgety, punchy mood that is equal parts delightful and infuriating depending on where your allegiances lie, he kept the runs whizzing along, forcing Bangladesh to spread out their field while giving his partner the space to play at his own tempo. He went reaching for the fuller deliveries finding gaps through the offside early on, and pulled effectively off the ribs when the line allowed him. When Nahid Rana, perhaps the fastest bowler Bangladesh have ever produced, decided to use the surface to target the diminutive Rizwan, he bent his knees, moved his head out of the way and helped him over third man for consecutive boundaries, demonstrating an elasticity that might not have been out of place in Paris a fortnight earlier.It wasn’t long before the pair had toppled the game off the tightrope it balanced on overnight, though the only ones around to watch were a smattering of spectators that gathered on the eastern terraces as the sun gave way to shade at a ground renowned in Pakistan for guaranteeing full houses for all international cricket. It is in part Rawalpindi’s historical crowds that have inspired the idea of taking Test cricket to smaller centres around the country, with broadcasters and wider stakeholders aware of the atmosphere packed crowds in cozy venues can generate.Mohammed Rizwan and Saud Shakeel both raised tons during a dominating fifth-wicket stand•AFP/Getty ImagesLittle of this is the fault of a Pakistan Test side that attempted a hard relaunch towards the end of last year. Shan Masood’s side may have been whitewashed in Australia like every iteration of Pakistan has since 1999, but they attempted to play a brand of cricket that saw them take the lead in one Test and come intriguingly close to winning another. Indeed, Pakistan’s new Test head coach Jason Gillespie told ESPNcricinfo several Australian players had praised Pakistan’s approach to that series, admitting they were unlucky not to win a Test. While the opposition’s quality plays its part – and England in October is almost assured of larger, more boisterous crowds – it is hard to imagine spectator interest being quite this low if this series was played immediately off the back of that one.But much like an upsetting meal can put you off food for a while – no matter the quality – the white-ball cricket Pakistan served up in the intervening months has left a bitter taste in spectators mouths. The farcical manner in which Pakistan’s change of captaincy was handled, the resentful power struggle in the camp, and the disastrous T20 World Cup it all culminated in has created a sense of disillusionment the Test team isn’t immune from, either. There is a trust deficit Pakistan have to bridge, and with nine Tests scheduled in the next six months, it is this red-ball team that responsibility will fall upon.Rizwan’s supporters and detractors alike acknowledge him as a legendary reader of public sentiment. Both him and Shakeel will have been aware that while praise for what they achieved today may be muted, any criticism had the early stages of this day gone differently would have been intense. The early stages of a rebuild can often put teams in no-win situations, but on the day, Rizwan and Shakeel ensured Pakistan did not lose. And though Pakistan supporters’ anger and passion is caricatured to the point of parody, they are also among the most forgiving. It won’t take too many more days like these to have Rawalpindi rocking again.
