Usman admits Pakistan bowling was 'not up to the mark'

Pakistan spinner Ali Usman claimed his maiden Test five-wicket haul on Thursday but England took a commanding grip on the first Test at Headingley, leading by 195 runs with two wickets remaining after Joe Root and Jordan Cox turned a promising overnight stand into a 150-run partnership. Usman’s late burst offered Pakistan some relief after England had capitalised on inconsistent bowling throughout the day. The visitors had enjoyed helpful conditions when play finally began following rain delays, with the ball moving under grey skies and artificial lights. But Pakistan failed to maintain the required lines and lengths, allowing Root and Cox to build a substantial partnership before Usman made his impact late in the innings. “Our bowling was not up to standard today, including myself. I took five wickets but we’ve given away too many runs as a bowling unit. We’ll work on our mistakes and try not to repeat them.” Usman found greater control after being introduced and began extracting more from the surface as the day progressed. Dan Lawrence miscued a sweep before Harry Brook was bowled after going deep in his crease, a wicket Usman particularly valued given Brook’s exceptional record against Pakistan. “I wanted to bowl within the stumps,” Usman said. “If they got even a bit of room, they were scoring runs. Dan Lawrence was struggling a bit against spin. But Harry Brook uses his feet very well, so he was harder to bowl to. That’s how I ended up taking the wicket I did.” With the light fading, Usman struck twice more, trapping Gus Atkinson lbw before beating Ollie Robinson’s outside edge with his best delivery of the day. The five-wicket haul made him the first visiting spinner to achieve the feat at Headingley since 1972. “Today, when I started bowling, it felt like the ball was gripping. It made me think there was something in it for the spinner. I tried to hit the right areas and that’s where I got wickets.” Despite England’s strong position, Usman refused to concede the match and predicted the pitch would offer increasing assistance to spin as it slowed. “I think day-by-day the wicket is slowing down,” Usman said. “It’s slow already, it’s not especially fast, but on the next three days it’s going to take a lot more turn.” Pakistan will now need a major batting effort to stay in the contest, with Usman calling for a positive approach. “In the batting, we’ll try to take it as deep as possible and score as many runs as we can. Our approach should be positive with the bat. We need to take it session by session. Anything can happen. We’re positive as a batting unit. We’ve scored runs in the West Indies and the warm-up game. Our batters are in form, so we hope they do well and we’re able to salvage this match.”