‘Very good cricketing pitch’: Abbas praises Mirpur surface

Pakistan pacer Mohammad Abbas praised wicket despite a hard day for the visitors as Bangladesh ended a dominant opening day on 301 for four at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur on Friday.

Despite spending much of the day under pressure, Abbas refused to label the outing as frustrating, instead crediting the pitch for offering a fair contest between bat and ball.

“I don't think it was a frustrating day. We put in the hard work; at some points we didn't bowl well, but at other points, we bowled really well and were a bit unlucky. There was ‘play and miss’ action going on all day. I think it is a very good cricketing pitch, and since the new ball is in our hands, we will come back tomorrow to take early wickets and finish their innings as soon as possible,” Abbas said.

Pakistan’s call to bowl first after winning the toss came under the scanner as Bangladesh made steady progress throughout the day. Mominul Haque had earlier suggested in his press conference that batting first would have been the preferred option on such a surface.

Abbas, however, felt the surface had not misbehaved, but rather demanded sustained effort from the bowlers.

“There is grass on top, but it is very dry underneath,” he explained after finishing with a solitary wicket in a long, testing spell.

“We have played enough cricket to know we need to put in really hard work, and the weather is also very hot. I think it will continue to be a very good cricketing pitch.”

The Pakistan pacer also singled out Shanto for special praise, acknowledging the Bangladesh captain’s role in building the innings and denying Pakistan momentum during key phases.

“We tried everything, but we need to give credit to him as well; he played very good cricket. When I was bowling, a few balls were missed and played, but he played really well,” Abbas added.