IN the end, the better side, the one that played with attacking intent and tried to force a result, won. After the series-deciding third Test against Australia in Lahore, Pakistan captain Babar Azam reflected that his team had dominated the first two Tests in Rawalpindi and Karachi, which ended in contrasting stalemates. That was somewhat misleading, and probably came in the heat of the grilling witnessed after a final day at Gaddafi Stadium where Pakistan went in with hopes but were overwhelmed by the Australians. The latter’s win in Lahore was a fitting result of their efforts. With 278 more runs required to overhaul the target of 351, and with all wickets in hand, Pakistan were arguably in a position of strength. Australian captain Pat Cummins’ decision to declare their second innings the previous day to force a result had been a bold one. Had Pakistan won, the decision would have seemed bizarre. But teams like Australia have the conviction and mental strength to back their decisions with actions and to create match-winning situations and capitalise on them. They might have not been able to do that in Karachi, where Babar’s majestic innings forced an epic draw, but there was no denying them in Lahore where they won by 115 runs.

What will hurt Pakistan more is the fact that the pitches in all three venues had been curated keeping in mind their own strengths. After the boring draw in the opening Test in Rawalpindi, PCB chief Ramiz Raja had been keen to stress that Pakistan needed to use their home advantage while making pitches. It didn’t matter in the end though and the fickle nature of professional sport will mean there will be questions asked of players who failed to fire. Babar was quick to point out that those who didn’t perform have served Pakistan well in the past. In the fast-moving world of sports, that doesn’t count for much but the limited-overs series which starts from Monday offers Pakistan a chance to bounce back.

Published in Dawn, March 27th, 2022