The tour of Bangladesh by Pakistan did not get off to the best start on Sunday, as the visiting team lost the first T20I of the three-game series by seven wickets. With seven wickets in hand and 27 balls to spare, the hosts easily surpassed the goal of 111. But following the loss, Mike Hesson, the Pakistani white-ball coach, cited the 22 yards that were used for the match, claiming that the surface was "unacceptable" by international standards.

Pakistan scored only 110 runs in 19.3 overs in the first T20I, where they batted first. Only opener Fakhar Zaman was able to get his bat going, scoring 44 runs, as the visiting team was unable to complete its full 20-over allotment. Taskin Ahmed, a Bangladeshi pacer, took three wickets upon his return.

Although Mike Hesson acknowledged that his hitters misread the pitch conditions, he called the surface "unacceptable" for international cricket.

"I don't believe the pitch is perfect for anyone. Teams are attempting to get ready for the T20 World Cup or the Asia Cup. It is not allowed. Some of the choices we made with the bat are still inexcusable. After the first T20I, Hesson informed reporters that this pitch is not up to par with international standards.

"In order to produce cricketers, you need good cricket wickets. To be fair, the BPL had a few nice wickets. It does not meet the criteria when international cricket is being played. I don't believe it helps them when they go from Bangladesh. However, I also believe it is difficult to bat first in these circumstances. When you're not sure whether 100, 130, or 150 is sufficient. I don't believe anyone benefits from the pitch. The reality that you must improve your performance on every surface is still there. "We will consider it as a team," he stated.

With the majority of its hitters losing their wickets in an attempt to hit big shots, Pakistan fell to 46/5 at one point during the first T20. Three run-outs further hurt Pakistan's cause.

Bangladesh disagrees.

In contrast, Bangladeshi opener Parvez Hossain Emon contested Hesson's pitch assessment, claiming that it was not a "bad surface" at all. He claimed that his team adapted better than the Pakistan team and that the pitch never had too many tricks up its sleeve.

"We didn't think it was a bad pitch since we chased it down in under 16 overs." If we had batted for the entire 20 overs, we might have scored 150–160 runs. It might be that they were unable to adapt to the pitch. We made a better adjustment than them. Generally speaking, the Dhaka surface favors the bowlers. "Our initial strategy was to try to quickly evaluate the wicket," he stated.

The second T20I will now be played by both teams at the same location in Dhaka on Tuesday, July 22.

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