NEW DELHI: Pakistan Test team’s head coach Jason Gillespie on Saturday said he is focused on giving players a fair chance to secure their place in the tradational format but remained clear that the opportunity will not be indefinite.
“If performances are not at the required level over a prolonged period, we may consider making changes,” Gillespie said in a video posted by Pakistan Cricket Board.
For the upcoming first Test against England, Pakistan have retained the same squad that was defeated 2-0 by Bangladesh at home.
Left-arm spinner Noman Ali has been included as a second specialist spinner after being overlooked for the Bangladesh series, joining leg-spinner Abrar Ahmed.
“What I’m learning is that the players understand my philosophy regarding selection,” Gillespie said. “We want to back and support players.”
Pakistan enter the three-Test series against England following six losses out of their last ten home Test matches, with the remaining four matches being drawn.
Their poor performance at home include a 3-0 whitewash by England in 2022, with one of those defeats occurring in Multan, which will now host back-to-back Test matches starting on October 7.
Gillespie’s tenure as head coach had a rocky start when underdog Bangladesh dominated Pakistan in the two Test matches held in Rawalpindi.
Pakistan’s batting lineup has been underperforming for a while, particularly star batter Babar Azam, who has only managed a top score of 41 in his last 16 Test innings.
Despite this, Shan Masood has been retained as captain for the first Test against England, even though he has lost five straight Test matches since his elevation to captain last year.
“A lot of people are writing us off (against England), and that’s OK, that’s fine,” Gillespie said. “It will only motivate our boys a little bit more. We’ll go out and do our jobs as best we can, and hopefully, the results will take care of themselves.”
Gillespie is aware of England’s aggressive ‘Bazball’ approach which has seen them scoring runs at a rapid pace against various bowling attacks.
“I don’t particularly like the term Bazball, but they do play aggressive cricket,” Gillespie said. “We’ve seen them evolve their game … (but) we will play our way, striving to be a consistent and disciplined team that hangs in there and strikes at the right moment to drive the game forward and exploit gaps.”
In the second Test against Bangladesh, Pakistan failed to capitalize on an advantageous position when they allowed the visitors to recover from a precarious 26 for 6 and eventually lost the match by seven wickets.
Gillespie emphasized the need for Pakistan to maintain their advantage once they gain it.
“Once you gain the advantage, you have to find a way to maintain it and not let the opposition back into the game,” he said. “We must shut that door and stay well ahead.”
Kamran Ghulam, top scorer in Pakistan’s domestic cricket, was not picked for the first Test, and fast bowler Mohammad Ali was dropped from the squad.
“Look, all players are disappointed when they miss out. I’d be surprised if they weren’t,” Gillespie said. “I’m relatively new to this role and I’ve only been involved in two Test matches. That’s not a big enough sample size to make long-term decisions on players. I’d rather show my support and backing for them at this stage.”
