‘We’re pretty happy with how it’s ended up’ – Jeetan Patel content with England’s resolute effort late on Day 1

Jeetan Patel (Photo Source: X(Twitter)

Pakistan may have had a couple of centurions in their XI in the form of Abdullah Shafique and Shan Masood after the completion of Day 1 of the first Test against England. However, the visitors deserved equal credit for putting up their best efforts on a scorching day in Multan where the pitch didn’t have anything substantial to offer to the bowlers.

One of the assistant coaches of the English setup, former Kiwi cricketer, Jeetan Patel, credited the perseverance which was on show in abundance by each and every team member on the field.

“I couldn’t commend them anymore. I think the toil they put in today was high-end – the way they tried different things to take wickets, the different fields they had, the way they fielded. To take those three wickets tonight was a testament to the work they’d done in the first two sessions. We’re pretty happy with how it’s ended up, with them four down,” stated Patel, as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.

Patel commended the team for fighting through the hot weather conditions which they had to encounter, as well as the passive pitch which hardly had anything in store for any of the bowlers.

“The guys were fizzing all day. Back in the day, it would have got a lot of people down. The guys went out in that third session knowing what they had to do, but also with enough energy to be able to effect it. I’m just really proud of [them] going through that. It’s pretty hot out there. It was pretty docile at times. We probably expected [the ball] to do a little bit more this morning. It didn’t, but that’s okay. We’ll figure it out, and find out if it does the same tomorrow or not. But it was a pretty strong day for the lads,” mentioned Patel.

Also Read – Twitter Reactions: Pakistan capitalize on flat Multan track as Shan Masood, Abdullah Shafique bring up tons on Day 1

We’ll just see what happens when we bat because we don’t really know: Patel

Furthering on what England’s plans would be on Tuesday, Patel was optimistic with his outlook with the ball and slightly restrained when it came to predicting how the side would go about with the bat.

“We always talk about putting two [wickets] on it,  how does the game change? Now you’ve got a nightwatchman in, so maybe we could put three on it; 350 for 7? We’ll just see what happens when we bat because we don’t really know,” added Patel.

Also Read: Shan Masood becomes 17th Pakistan captain to score Test century

With Pakistan comfortably placed on 261/1 early on in the final session of the day, wickets from Gus Atkinson, Jack Leach, and Chris Woakes reduced them to a score of 328/4 at Stumps.

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