Ramiz Raja has questioned why the surface in Multan for the first Test match between Pakistan and England was not created to assist Pakistan's bowling attack, with over 1,500 runs scored on the surface within the first 10 sessions and only 13 wickets falling.
England continued to pile on the runs in the morning session of day four, passing 600 for the loss of only three wickets with both Joe Root and Harry Brook reaching double-centuries. They overtook Pakistan's first innings total of 556, with the last of those previous dismissals coming well before Tea on day three. Babar Azam put down a simple chance early on day four, dropping a catch from Joe Root at mid wicket.
Speaking on the TV coverage of the match, Raja expressed his sympathy for Pakistan's bowling attack: "I'm sure bowlers will be questioning the quality of this track because they bend their back and nothing has happened," said Raja. "You start questioning why such a surface was provided and why are we playing on such a surface at home."
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All three of England's wickets to fall have gone to Pakistan's seamers. Ollie Pope was dismissed in the second over of England's innings off Naseem Shah courtesy of a brilliant catch from Aamer Jamal, Zak Crawley flicked a ball from Shaheen Shah Afridi straight to mid-wicket and Duckett was pinned lbw by Jamal.
Every bowler in Pakistan's attack has conceded their runs at over four an over, with England's run-rate creeping up above five on the morning of day four.
Raja was previously the chairman of the PCB between September 2021 and December 2022. He came under criticism when he declared that Pakistan were "years away from preparing a good five-day pitch" during England's landmark win in Rawalpindi in 2022. The surface in that Test was rated 'below average' and given a demerit point. Among Raja's critics for his remarks on Pakistan's home pitches was Wasim Akram, who - during Pakistan's series against Australia in 2022 - denounced Raja's influence over the types of Test match pitches prepared in Pakistan.
The second Test of the series, which will begin next week, will also be played in Multan, before the final Test is played in Rawalpindi. Given the amount of runs scored on the wicket and the difficulty bowlers from both sides have had in taking wickets, the groundstaff may well embark on significant work on the Multan pitch in between games to ensure a repeat of the first Test doesn't take place in the second.
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