Pakistani fast bowler ne chhe wickets lekar apni team ko Division One ki leader position par mazboot pakad dilayi Yorkshire ke khilaf. Abbas ki disciplined bowling ke saath Ben Slater aur Joe Clarke ke hosla afzaa half-centuries ne Nottinghamshire ki doosri innings mein unki badht banaye rakhi, jab din kaafi challenging aur action-packed raha.
Abbas, jo 34 saal ke hain aur Hampshire ke liye chaar saal mein 180 first-class wickets le chuke hain, ne Trent Bridge mein foran asar dikhaya. Green-tinged pitch par, jo seam bowling ke liye ideal thi, unhone Yorkshire ke batting lineup ko chhitte-chhitte uda diya, aur 6-49 ke figures ke saath innings khatam ki. Abbas ne shuruat mein hi Yorkshire ke openers Adam Lyth aur Fin Bean ko sirf do-do runs par out kiya, dono ko wicketkeeper ke haathon catch karwaya. Wo poore spell mein accuracy aur movement ke saath bowling karte rahe, jisse Yorkshire ke already struggling batting lineup par aur pressure badh gaya. ECB Reporters Network ke mutabiq, unki bowling se Yorkshire ke batsmen ko koi jawab nahi mila.
Nottinghamshire ki batting ko bhi doosri innings mein mushkilein jhelni padi. Captain Haseeb Hameed sirf 6 runs banakar out ho gaye, aur team ka score 59-5 tak gir gaya. Yorkshire ke George Hill ne 5-40 ke figures ke saath zabardast bowling ki aur Nottinghamshire ke kuch aham batsmen jaise Freddie McCann aur Kyle Verreynne ko out kiya. Magar Ben Slater aur Joe Clarke ne himmat dikhayi aur innings ko sambhala. Slater ne left-handed busy style mein 52 runs banaye (111 balls mein), jabke Clarke ne 64 runs (151 balls mein) ki sabr o tahammul wali innings kheli. Dono ke darmiyan 71-run ki partnership ne team ko wapas game mein la diya aur Nottinghamshire ko 300 se zyada runs ki lead tak pohcha diya.
Slater ka performance khaas tor par qabil-e-tareef tha, kyunki unka record pehle se consistent raha hai. Unhone 2020 mein Lancashire ke khilaf 111 not out bhi banaya tha. Clarke bhi apni form mein lagatar acha khel rahe hain, aur unki recent century Worcestershire ke khilaf bhi is ka saboot hai. Din ke aakhir tak Nottinghamshire ka score 171-6 tha, jabke Jack Haynes (60 not out) aur Liam Patterson-White (44 not out) ne mil kar 87-run ki unbroken partnership banayi, jab pitch thodi behter hone lagi thi.
Yorkshire, jo Division One standings mein second-bottom hain, ab ek bohot mushkil situation mein hain. Abbas ko ECB Reporters Network ne “perfect bowler” kaha hai in conditions ke liye, aur Nottinghamshire ki 308 runs ki lead unki position ko aur mazboot kar rahi hai. Abbas ki devastating bowling aur Slater-Clarke ki mazboot batting ne match ka rukh poori tarah se Nottinghamshire ke haq mein kar diya hai. Ab dekhna yeh hai ke Yorkshire is pressure ko kaise handle karta hai, kyunki Nottinghamshire clearly control mein hai.
