Mohammad Abbas admitted dropped catches by Pakistan that allowed New Zealand to surge into a position of dominance in the second Test proved to be “quite frustrating”. New Zealand were 286 for 3 at the end of the second day’s play of the second Test in Christchurch, just 11 runs behind Pakistan’s first-innings 297 all out and with Kane Williamson (112*) and Henry Nicholls (89*) going strong.
Williamson and Nicholls had got together at a tricky 71 for 3, and both benefited from chances to put together a stand that’s already worth 215 runs in 55 overs. Williamson was dropped twice, on 82 and 107. He was nearly undone as early as the eighth ball of his innings before he had scored a half-chance squirting past Azhar Ali at gully.
Nicholls had his share of good fortune as well, caught superbly when on 3 by captain and keeper Mohammad Rizwan in front of first slip, only to find that Shaheen Afridi had over-stepped and it was a no-ball. Later on, when Nicholls was on 86, Afridi drew him into a drive with the ball seaming to take the edge, but Rizwan dropped a straightforward chance to his left.
“It was a tough day for us. As a bowling unit, if your fielders drop catches, it’s very costly in Test cricket,” Abbas said. “Playing against world-class players and then dropping their catches, or the one caught which was caught on no-ball, is quite frustrating. For a bowler, it gets really difficult to get them again.
