ISLAMABAD- Pakistan bowling coach Waqar Younis believes that although the boys committed some mistakes in the first Test, which cost them the match yet they are capable of making a strong comeback.
Talking to media online here on Wednesday, Waqar said: “Yes, it is true that we committed some mistakes in the first Test, which cost us dearly. Some sessions weren’t good while the lady of luck also didn’t favour us last day. But I am hopeful that boys are capable of making a strong comeback in the next match.”
“We are extremely disappointed with the defeat in Manchester. We were the better team by some margin in most of the match but we failed at crucial junctures which cost us dearly. However, I believe that both players and the team management are responsible for that poor result,” he added.
The bowling coach also backed 35-year-old captain Azhar Ali to regain his lost form and produce the good results for Pakistan. “Azhar is an experienced campaigner. He knows how to tackle such situations and I am very optimistic that he will produce the goods for the team in the next match.”
He urged his bowlers to take advantage of Ben Stokes’ absence as they look to hit back in the second Test against England. Although Stokes was dismissed cheaply in both innings of the first Test at Old Trafford, Waqar feels the loss of England's most destructive batsman - who is on his way to New Zealand for family reasons - will weaken their line-up.
"If he (Stokes) is not around, it's unfortunate for cricket, but there's no doubt he is a match-winner. England will probably be a touch light in their middle order, so we're going to talk about that and try to cash in. He's the kind of batsman who takes the game away from you - single-handedly at times. But the way we bowled at him in the previous game showed we had very clear plans and executed (them) really well," he added.
About young pacers and especially 17-year-old Naseem, Waqar said: "Naseem is very, very talented and he is still growing, his bones are growing. What a talent he is. I don't think he really bowled as well as we expected in the previous game, but he can really bowl well and take the opposition on at times.
“He is young, he is inexperienced and it gets tough at times. All he needs to do is probably get stronger and fitter. Over the years, Pakistan has produced some real quality fast bowlers. If he keeps himself fit and strong and keeps bowling, I'm sure he has the potential to become a very good bowler," he asserted.
Replying to a query about fast bowling, the bowling coach said: “Fast-bowling has always been the beauty of cricket, and now we have heaps of them (good fast bowlers) and because certain teams play a lot more Test matches than the others and the records suggest that their bowlers have got lot of wickets.
“The two supreme fast bowlers (Broad and Anderson) have got a lot of wickets in England but we don’t play so many Tests in Pakistan. The quality is there - no doubt about that and its good for the game that all these quality fast bowlers are coming around and making this game look prettier,” Waqar added.