BIRMINGHAM: Middle-overs problems returned to haunt Pakistan yet again in their 23-run defeat against England at Edgbaston on Saturday. And with their T20 World Cup opener hardly 10 days away, Babar Azam and co. would be putting their heads together to find a way around it.

Having restricted the hosts to 183 runs thanks to a fairly disciplined bowling show, Pakistan had got off to a flying start with the bat with skipper Babar and Fakhar Zaman leading from the front.

But Babar getting trapped lbw by Moeen Ali’s off-spin was Pakistan’s first of the four dismissals that occurred between the start of the ninth over and the end of the 13th.

During that period Pakistan scored only 37 runs, which eventually proved to be turn the match in England’s favour.

“Our middle overs have been our lacking for a long time, and we need to plan how to gain momentum during this phase,” Pakistan all-rounder Imad Wasim said during the post-match press conference. “Today, the middle phase where we lost 37 runs for four wickets was crucial.

“.. we need to dominate the middle overs. Dominating doesn’t mean hitting every ball for a boundary but playing smartly ball by ball and not letting the bowlers settle.”

Imad and Iftikhar Ahmed threatened to snatch it back from Jos Buttler’s men with a 40-run partnership off just 21 balls, but before the impact of the stand could translate into a definitive edge for Pakistan, the latter lost his wicket just ahead of the death stages of the contest.

“I think we sometimes lack the intent we need,” Imad noted. “However, you saw glimpses of it, like how Fakhar played with full backing to attack from the start.

“If you put the opposition under pressure from the beginning, it reduces the required run rate, making it easier to chase. Today, we reached a run rate of 10 per over, and if Iftikhar and I hadn’t gotten out at crucial moments, we could have crossed the finish line.”

Imad could have had a perfect all-round show under his belt if he did so. With the ball, he was the best for Pakistan, conceding only 19 runs and taking two wickets in his quota of four overs.

Although he shined with the new ball, the left-armer said he was comfortable with bowling at any given stage of the game, especially with Pakistan having the likes of Shaheen Shah Afridi and Mohammad Amir as attackers at their disposal.

“I am comfortable bowling at any position because you can see the records of Shaheen and Amir with the new ball, which are excellent,” Imad observed. “Mine is also very good, but only two bowlers can bowl with the new ball at a time.

“As we get closer to the World Cup, the roles and clarifications for everyone are becoming more defined, especially in bowling.”

The third T20I will be played in Cardiff on Tuesday.

Published in Dawn, May 27th, 2024