November 27, 2007	Tuesday	Ziqa’ad 16, 1428

NEW DELHI, Nov 26: Pakistan coach Geoff Lawson believes his wards lost the battle of the middle-orders against India, which eventually led to the side’s six-wicket defeat against the hosts in the first cricket Test here on Monday.

A dejected Lawson pointed out that barring the glorious exception of Misbah-ul-Haq, the Pakistani middle order cut a sorry figure in the match, while their Indian counterparts came up with a solid show tilted the scale in the hosts’ favour.

”Performance of the (Pakistani) middle-order was very disappointing. (Mohammad) Yousuf, Younis (Khan) and the captain (Shoaib Malik) did not score. I was disappointed with Malik’s batting,” Lawson said at Ferozeshah Kotla on Monday.

”Anyway, it was good to see Misbah evolve as a genuine Test player after a slow start to his career,” Lawson said of the batsman, who scored 82 and 45 in the match.

In contrast, Indian middle order did a smart job, said Lawson. “(Rahul) Dravid, Sachin (Tendulkar), (Sourav) Ganguly, (VVS) Laxman -- all are quality players and they did very well. I think their middle order made all the difference. Otherwise, there is not much between the two sides,” he explained.

Lawson also predicted that in the next two Tests too, outcome of the matches would depend on how the middle-order performs.

The only positive Lawson derived from the defeat was pace spearhead Shoaib Akhtar’s performance, especially in the second innings when the ‘Rawalpindi Express’ scalped all four Indian wickets. “Shoaib has been improving with every match. He returned to international cricket after a gap but he is fitter and bowling well. He is bowling fast and I’m happy with the way he is shaping up,” he said.—Agencies