Pakistan vs Australia: Fakhar Zaman spills the reason for him not playing his natural game

If it was Mohammad Hafeez in the first Test, Pakistan found a new hero in the debutant Fakhar Zaman in Abu Dhabi. They were left reeling at 57/5 as Nathan Lyon scalped four wickets in six deliveries only and there was a fear of Pakistan collapsing to a meagre total. But Fakhar brought his patient game to the fore and scored 94 facing a massive 198 balls during his stay at the crease.

He stitched a crucial and game-changing 147-run partnership along with Sarfraz Ahmed to bail his team out of the trouble. The latter played aggressively in the post-lunch session and the move paid off for the hosts. Due to the skipper’s aggressive instinct, the left-hander could quietly go under his shadow for the most parts of the day.

While speaking to Wisden.com radio broadcast after the end of the play, Fakhar Zaman explained that he had to curb his natural instincts as the situation demanded to play the waiting game. “Actually I changed my game because of the situation. Before the game, I was just looking to play my natural game. But after that situation, 57 for 5, after that, I was just looking to take my time because we weren’t in a good position to play naturally,” he said.

Pakistan dominating the game

Fakhar and Sarfraz’s knocks helped Pakistan post a decent total of 282 runs on the board. Australia have crumbled to 145 runs in their first innings. Mohammad Abbas was the wrecker-in-chief for them as he scalped a five-wicket haul by sending back most of the top-order Aussie batsmen.

Only Aaron Finch and Mitchell Starc batted decently while the rest of the batters couldn’t add much to the team’s total. The visitors now trail by 137 runs and with the pitch deteriorating fast, they will have to pick quick wickets in the second innings and hope that the lead doesn’t go past 250 or 300.

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