'Some really nice small contributions' - Shan Masood highlights team effort leading to win in second Test against England

Pakistan won a Test match at home after over three years as they beat England in the second Test in Multan on Friday, October 18. On a spinning track, it was Sajid Khan’s seven-wicket haul in the first innings and Noman Ali’s eight-wicket haul in the second, that helped the hosts to break the longstanding jinx. 

Pakistan were under the scanner after losing the Test series against Bangladesh by 0-2 and subsequently succumbing to England in the first Test. However, the management made some brave decisions to let go of the likes of Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi, and Naseem Shah for the second Test. Captain Shan Masood reflected on debutant Kamran Ghulam’s ton, who came in as a replacement for Babar.

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“I think for Kami (Kamran Ghulam), it’s never easy when you’re replacing one of the best batters in the world. I read some things that were horrid even before he played his first Test match, so I can’t even imagine the pressure someone can be under, but we were all behind him. From the get-go, he seemed like he belonged. To get that century, that was special,” said Masood as quoted by Cricket Pakistan.

Agha is probably one of my favourite players: Masood

Though the key contributions came from Sajid and Noman, Masood also took notice of Agha Salman’s knocks in the first and second innings, as he scored 31 and 63 respectively. He even highlighted Saim Ayub’s 77-run knock in the first innings and added that the small contributions played a huge role in the win.

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“(Salman Ali) Agha is probably one of my favorite players, he’s a team player - he’s Pakistan all in. For him to play in those pressure situations and get something for the team, that’s special. There have been some front runners (Noman and Sajid) but there have also been some really nice small contributions - even Saim Ayub, who played very nicely in the 1st innings and even the 20-odd in the second innings. Everything added up, and that’s what a team effort is," he added.