Pakistan suffered a comprehensive 7-wicket loss to Bangladesh in the first T20I at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur, prompting head coach Mike Hesson to criticize the pitch conditions. Hesson, who oversees Pakistan’s ODI and T20 sides, did not hold back in the post-match press conference, calling the Mirpur surface “below international standards.”
Commenting on the pitch, Hesson said,
“No, that was not an ideal wicket. I don’t think a surface like that benefits any team. Everyone is preparing for major tournaments like the Asia Cup or the T20 World Cup and in that context, this pitch is not acceptable. I’m not making excuses for our poor shot selection, but this certainly wasn’t an international-standard wicket.”
Mike Hesson
Hesson also stressed the importance of quality pitches in developing cricket at the highest level:
“I’m not here to advise Bangladesh on how to prepare pitches,” he added with a laugh. “But better wickets are essential for cricket development. We’ve seen quality surfaces in the BPL unfortunately, that standard hasn’t been replicated in international games here.”
In response, Bangladesh’s match-winner Parvez Hossain Emon disagreed with Hesson’s assessment of the pitch.
“It didn’t feel that difficult,” said Emon. “We chased down 110 in about 15 overs. If we had batted all 20, we could’ve easily scored 160. I think they just couldn’t adjust to the conditions, whereas we tried to.”
In the match, Fakhar Zaman was the lone standout for Pakistan, scoring 44 off 34 balls. Abbas Afridi (22) and Khushdil Shah (17) were the only other players to reach double digits, as the rest of the lineup struggled. Bangladesh’s chase got off to a shaky start with early dismissals of Tanjid Tamim and Liton Das, but Parvez Emon anchored the innings with a composed unbeaten 56, guiding his team home with 27 balls to spare and seven wickets in hand.
The match sparked fresh debate over pitch quality in Mirpur, raising questions ahead of upcoming international fixtures.