Update: Pakistan won the match by 7 wickets.

It has finally begun. After all the controversy that Pakistan has been through recently they are finally back on the pitch (where the team actually belongs) and not at press conferences!

Also FINALLY the batting side has clicked. Yes, I know the pitch is flat and there is very little turn but come on that does not mean we do not give any credit to our batsmen.

By the way, my objective here is not to analyze the match but I just wanted to share some mid match comments with you guys.

As I write this piece, Pakistan are at 432-7 on day four of the test match and the day has just begun. Hafeez (119), Azhar Ali (75), Younis Khan (88) and captain Misbah-ul-Haq (66) helped in getting to this. Adnan Akmal added a quick 36 but was unfortunately run out.

In retrospect I believe that Misbah could have gotten a better score, but because Misbah is Misbah as soon as he reached his half century he started taking chances with unorthodox shots like the reverse sweep. Eventually he was shown back to the pavilion by Lamb.

Another disappointment was that Umar Akmal did not fire. I have always said this and will stick to it: the kid has talent!

Better luck next time Umar.

OK… Now for the part that hurts. I know the fight back has been a good one. I know that the pitch is flat and I also know that it is their home ground, but I still can’t believe that Zimbabwe was able to make 412 in their first innings.

Before the match I seriously thought that there would be no “fight back” I thought we would kill Zimbabwe or at least not let them make a first innings total of 412.

Pakistanhas usually been a side carried by our bowling, but this time I believe that the team did not show their true caliber in the bowling arena.

I don’t know if I’m being a bit harsh on the team, but it’s just that I personally did not expect a bowling performance like this against a team like Zimbabwe.

I understand that the Pakistani bowling side is still young and that Cheema did good by hauling in 4 wickets, but maybe it’s just that my own expectations were a bit high.

Why am I being harsh on the bowling side? Because we have a good chance of winning this test if the bowling fires in the second innings.

The last 3 Pakistani batsmen are hopefully going to add another 100 odd runs giving us a lead of around a 150. Then it’s all up to the bowlers to get Zimbabwe out quickly, which might not be the case if we bowl like we did in the first innings.

I am however, keeping my fingers crossed because I don’t want a draw…

Go Pakistan Go!