Pakistan captain Shan Masood has asked his team to play an entertaining brand of cricket that will help revitalize Test cricket in the country. Pakistan will play a two-match Test series against Bangladesh starting on August 21 in Rawalpindi.
Masood also added that Pakistan does not want to miss the opportunity to play the final of the World Test Championship (WTC) 2025 this time. They are currently at the sixth spot in the WTC points table with two wins and three losses so far. Their winning percentage currently stands at 36.66, way below the top-ranked India whose percentage is 68.52.
Pakistan will have to work harder from now on if they want to climb the WTC rankings. The first step towards that would be to win the next two tests against Bangladesh.
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Shan Masood reveals how Pakistan can play the WTC 2025 final
While speaking to reporters ahead of the first Test, Shan Masood requested the media to write positive things about the team instead of blaming them with unnecessary comments.
“I think first of all we want our fans and the media to write good things about the team. So one of our aims is to play cricket that everyone enjoys. At the end of the day it is a results-oriented business. You have to keep the results in mind,” Masood said.
The southpaw also spoke about Pakistan’s position in the ongoing WTC cycle. He mentioned that if Pakistan wants to qualify for the WTC final this time, they will need to put in a brilliant performance in the home tests.
“And we, again, have to look at our position in the World Test Championship. Yes, we were sixth and seventh earlier. Yes, obviously we would like to play the final this time. So if we want to play the final, we have to win our Test matches at home,” Masood said.
“If we want to win, we have to get 20 wickets consistently. And obviously our batsmen have to score enough and give the bowlers time to get those 20 wickets,” he added.
Pakistan’s upcoming Test schedule at home
Pakistan will play a total of seven Test matches at home during the 2024-25 season. After the two-match Test series against Bangladesh, they will play a three-match Test series against England at home.
They will then play a two-match overseas series against South Africa. In January next year, they will play a two-match home series against the West Indies.
“We all want Test cricket to be fun,” said Shan Masood
The Pakistan captain stressed the importance of playing an exciting and positive style of cricket to make Test cricket fun for both players and fans. He wants to produce the right results for his team by playing an aggressive style of cricket.
“I think it’s all about playing good, exciting cricket. We all want Test cricket to be fun, to be enjoyable, both for the fans and for us, the players. When we play Test cricket, we want to be enthusiastic and show the same enthusiasm that we show in any format. Our challenge is to get the right results and also play a brand of cricket that is consistent and exciting for everyone,” Masood added.
Shan Masood has led Pakistan in only one Test series so far. The series was played in Australia and Pakistan lost all three Tests on the tour. The Men in Green must dig deep if they are to have any chance of qualifying for the WTC finals next year.
