Pakistan captain Azhar blames lacklustre fielding

Mirpur, April 18 (IANS) New Pakistan cricket captain Azhar Ali blamed his side’s uninspiring show in the field following their loss against Bangladesh in the first One-Day International (ODI) here.

Bangladesh took a 1-0 lead in the three-match series with a comprehensive 79-run win at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium on Friday, reports bdnews24.com.

After Shakib Al Hasan elected to bat, Bangladesh racked up 329/6, riding on two brilliant centuries from Tamim Iqbal (132) and Muhfiqur Rahim (106). Both the batsmen, however, were given reprieve once each during their innings as Pakistani fielders spilled catches.

“We made some mistakes in the field and dropped a few catches at the wrong stages,” Azhar said, also ruing poor bowling in death overs.

“Some of the bowling wasn’t up to our standards. The way we bowled in the death overs and powerplay, we weren’t up to it.”

Azhar thought Bangladesh scored 30-40 runs more than they had expected and that piled the pressure on the visitors.

Azhar, who made his captaincy debut on Friday, however, gave credit to Bangladeshi batsmen and is keen to come back strong in the next match.

“We have to look forward now. There is a gap of just one day before the next game but we have to bounce back and show our full strength again.”

The second ODI will be held at the same venue on Sunday.