LAHORE: Pakistan coach Misbah-ul-Haq said his fate was in the hands of the country’s cricket authorities after their New Zealand series defeat prompted speculation about his future.
Misbah, who has lost all three away Test series in his 15 months in charge, blamed an extended stay in New Zealand coronavirus isolation for the latest failure.
“I will brief the cricket committee on Tuesday and it’s their right what they suggest to the board,” he told reporters.
Pakistan lost the Twenty20 series 2-1 and went down heavily in both Tests. They have also lost Test series in Australia and England under Misbah.
The New Zealand tour started badly when six players tested positive on arrival and the team were confined to their hotel. They were later warned for breaching coronavirus restrictions by mingling.
“We had to spend 18 to 19 days in the rooms, we could not do anything, not even running. We were in rooms and just walking in the rooms,” Misbah said.
“Leave aside our situation, it (Covid) is affecting all touring teams and you must be seeing that performances are up and down and injuries are there.”
Pakistan, whose captain Babar Azam was sidelined with a broken thumb, lost the first Test by 101 runs and the second by an innings and 176 runs.
Pakistan coach Misbah under fire after New Zealand flop
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Pakistan coach Misbah under fire after New Zealand flop
- Pakistan lost the Twenty20 series 2-1 and went down heavily in both Tests against New Zealand
- New Zealand tour started badly when six players tested positive on arrival and the team were confined to their hotel
Barcelona pounces on Real Madrid stumble and regains lead of La Liga with a 3-0 win over Levante
- Barcelona moved one point ahead of Madrid, which had won eight in a row in the league before losing to Osasuna
MADRID: Barcelona took advantage of Real Madrid’s stumble and regained the Spanish league lead with a comfortable 3-0 win over relegation-threatened Levante on Sunday.
Marc Bernal, Frenkie de Jong and Fermín López scored a goal each as Barcelona ended a two-game losing streak to get back in front of rival Madrid, which lost 2-1 at Osasuna on Saturday.
Barcelona moved one point ahead of Madrid, which had won eight in a row in the league before losing to Osasuna.
Barcelona was coming off a 2-1 loss to Girona in the league and a 4-0 loss to Atletico Madrid in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semifinals.
“It was important to win and earn three points again,” Barcelona defender João Cancelo said. “Soccer gives you these opportunities to rebound and that’s what we did today, playing well again after two bad games.”
Barcelona had earned a clean sheet only once in its previous six games in all competitions.
Good start for Barcelona
Bernal scored from close range four minutes into the match at the Camp Nou Stadium. The 18-year-old Bernal had scored his first goal with the first team two rounds ago in a win over Mallorca.
“They had an early chance but my goal helped us settle and gain some confidence,” Bernal said.
De Jong added to the lead from inside the area in the 32nd and López sealed the victory with a beautiful long-range shot in the 81st, with the ball ricocheting off the post before going into the net.
Levante’s Australian goalkeeper Mathew Ryan kept Barcelona from adding the fourth with a pair of outstanding saves in a row in the final minutes, first off a header by Raphinha and then off a point-blank strike from López on the rebound.
It was the fourth straight defeat for Levante, which sits in 19th place. It is one point ahead of last-place Oviedo, which has a game in hand.
Levante has only one victory in its last eight matches.
Pedri entered the match in the 66th to make his return to action after an injury layoff.
Other results
Sevilla won 1-0 at 10-man Getafe for its second win in its last 10 matches in all competitions.
Djibril Sow scored a 64th-minute winner for the visitors. Getafe played a man down from the 26th after a straight red card for Djene Dakonam.
The result left Sevilla in 11th place, immediately above Getafe.
Third-place Villarreal, Barcelona’s next league opponent, can restore a three-point gap to fourth-place Atletico Madrid if it beats Valencia at home later Sunday. Atletico beat Espanyol 4-2 at home on Saturday.
