Aaqib Javed defends spin-friendly pitches ahead of second Test against West Indies

Speaking ahead of the second Test against the West Indies in Multan, Aaqib suggested that had this approach been adopted earlier, Pakistan might have been closer to securing a spot in the World Test Championship (WTC) final. Addressing the media for the first time since taking over as interim Test coach, he emphasized his primary focus on winning matches and brushed aside criticism of the team's strategy.

"Why is it that if fast bowlers take wickets, [people say] Test cricket is moving forward, and if spinners take wickets, Test cricket's going backwards?" Aaqib said, as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.

He added, "I don't understand this. When you go to Australia and England, they prepare pitches how they like. So, if we prepare turning wickets and spinners take wickets, what is the problem?"

"Of course, we were right to prepare a spin pitch [in the first Test] against West Indies. Their batters are not as proficient against spin when compared to fast bowling. I also want to address concerns about where our Test cricket is going. If we had taken these decisions earlier, then we would have been in the race for the WTC [final]. The rule of Test cricket is to win at home. If you win at home and you win two to three Tests away, you become a strong candidate for the final," he noted.

Aaqib's remarks came after Pakistan secured victory in the shortest-ever completed Test match on home soil against the West Indies. He revealed that a similar pitch is being prepared for the second Test, a decision influenced by both him and selector Aleem Dar, who joined the selection committee in October. The shift toward spin-friendly wickets, he explained, was partly driven by the declining performance of Pakistan's current crop of fast bowlers.

"We used to be strong on [bowling] reverse swing, but now that skill level has gone down," he said, as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.

"We have told our fast bowlers if you want to take wickets here, their reverse-swing skill will have to go up. In the past, we had Shoaib [Akhtar, Waqar [Younis], Wasim [Akram], and both spin and pace bowlers took wickets," he noted.

The coach acknowledged that this strategy has posed challenges for Pakistan's own batters, who are unaccustomed to playing on such surfaces. He indicated that significant changes would be made during the off-season, including adjustments to domestic pitches and specialized training programs for batters to better equip them for these conditions in the future.

"Even though foreign players are struggling with spin pitches from abroad, so are our players, because they have never played on these pitches," Aaqid noted.

"Moving forward, we have told them their training and practice routines will be geared towards this, and we will change domestic pitches too. Our next Test is not until October, so that gives them time to improve their batting," he added.

Pakistan's tactics have sparked widespread debate and criticism, both domestically and internationally. While the ICC deemed the pitches prepared for last October's series against England as satisfactory, the verdict on the surface used in the first Test against the West Indies is still pending.

International critics have raised concerns about whether these spinning tracks amount to pitch doctoring. Domestically, the strategy has drawn questions about its long-term impact on developing fast bowlers and quality batters, with fears that it might undermine Pakistan's competitiveness in overseas Test series.

"We were in South Africa just now, and we came very close to winning a Test," Aaqib remarked.

"Unfortunately, we couldn't take those last two wickets in Centurion. No spinner played those Tests for us there. You have to select a team depending on the conditions you get," he said.

"It's about winning Tests; that's what matters. We think we can prepare these pitches in every center of Pakistan, and it should be as difficult to beat Pakistan here as it is to beat Australia or South Africa away. People should know if they're going to Pakistan, they will have to do something extraordinary to beat Pakistan," he noted. (ANI)