MULTAN, Pakistan: Pakistan captain Shan Masood admitted England taught his team a “harsh reality” on how to win a Test with their massive innings and 47-run victory in Multan on Friday.
England’s attack made short work of the last four Pakistan batters on Day 5, dismissing the hosts for 220 and drawing first blood in the three-match series.
England found a way to win despite Pakistan’s first innings total of 556, responding with the fourth-highest Test score of 823-7 in response.
“It can’t be more disappointing than this,” said Masood who has lost all six Tests since being appointed captain last year.
“England taught us the harsh reality on how to find a way to win a Test match which we couldn’t find,” said Masood who scored a hundred to set up Pakistan’s first innings.
“After two days being under the sun and being 556 behind they gave themselves a chance to bat and scored big and when they came back with the ball they had a plan and they executed that well.”
Harry Brook smashed 317 and Joe Root a record-setting 262, giving England a 267-run lead and both players their highest Test scores.
Chris Woakes then dismissed Abdullah Shafique with the first ball of the second innings before Jack Leach led the England attack to victory with figures of 4-30.
Masood said England proved themselves a quality side.
“The harsh reality in Test cricket is that no matter what the pitch is, quality sides will find a way and England did that and for us the learning is to find a way to win Tests,” said Masood.
Pakistan’s batting has been stumbling due to a slump for talisman Babar Azam, who has gone without a half-century in his last 18 Test innings.
“There is no doubt that Babar is Pakistan’s best batsman,” said Masood of Azam who scored a scratchy 30 and five in the match.
“You always believe that your best batsman is just one innings away and we hope that he returns to form soon.”
Meanwhile, spinner Abrar Ahmed remained doubtful for the second Test in Multan starting on Tuesday.
“The condition of Abrar is not good so we all pray that he recovers well and plays cricket again,” said Masood of the spinner who did not take the field on the last two days due to a high fever.
The third and final Test is in Rawalpindi from October 24.
Masood admits England defeat ‘a harsh reality’ for Pakistan
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Masood admits England defeat ‘a harsh reality’ for Pakistan
- England’s attack made short work of last four Pakistan batters on Day 5, dismissing hosts for 220, drawing first blood in three-match series
- England found a way to win despite Pakistan’s first innings total of 556, responding with the fourth-highest Test score of 823-7 in response
IMF says has made ‘considerable progress’ as Pakistan funding talks continue
- Discussions covered the impact of the Middle East conflict on Pakistan, balance of payments and external financing needs
- Pakistan’s program implementation under a $7 billion program remained broadly aligned with authorities’ commitments, IMF says
KARACHI: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has made “considerable progress” in talks with Pakistan over its funding facilities, the Fund said late Wednesday, adding that discussions will continue in the coming days.
The IMF mission, led by Iva Petrova, had started talks with Pakistani officials on the third review of a $7 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) multi-year program and for the second review of the $1.4 billion Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF) from Feb. 25 to Mar. 11, according to the IMF.
The mission observed that Pakistan’s program implementation under the EFF remained broadly aligned with the authorities’ commitments through end-Feb., with both sides making progress on policies, including fiscal consolidation, a sufficiently tight monetary policy and advancing energy sector reforms.
“While considerable progress was made in the discussions, these will continue in the coming days, including to more fully assess the impact of recent global developments on Pakistan’s economy and the EFF-supported program,” the IMF quoted Petrova as saying.
Both EFF, secured in Sept. 2024, and the RSF, secured in May 2025, are key programs crucial for stabilizing Pakistan’s fragile economy. The IMF team was in the country to assess fiscal performance, energy-sector reforms, and external financing needs before approving the next disbursement.
The ongoing IMF engagement is seen as vital for Pakistan as geopolitical tensions and rising global oil prices pose renewed risks for its economic recovery.
The IMF mission observed that Islamabad paid “particular attention” to deepening structural reforms and made “good progress” in the implementation of their agenda to strengthen climate resilience, including through the completion of reform measures under the RSF.
“Discussions also covered the impact of the conflict in the Middle East on Pakistan’s economic outlook, the balance of payments and external financing needs amid volatile and rising energy prices and tighter global financial conditions,” Petrova said, adding:
“The IMF team and the authorities will continue these discussions with a view to conclude them in the coming days.”
