The pitch was a vivid green and had spent a damp day under covers before the toss even took place, so it was little surprise that it was the most seam-friendly strip he had played international cricket on, Azhar Ali said.Pakistan have refused to blame conditions for the loss at Hagley Oval. They have repeated the Hagley surface was not out of the realm of challenges a professional cricketer can expect to face.Yet it is clear that even by New Zealands standards, the surface was especially kind to quicks.Never before, for example, have all 30 wickets in the first three innings gone to seamers, in a Test in New Zealand. And neither Yasir Shah - the No.5 Test bowler in the world - nor Todd Astle, who took a five-wicket haul on this ground three weeks ago, could pose a threat. They collectively bowled 17.3 overs and emerged wicketless. Azhars part-time legbreaks did claim one scalp, but this was after the scores had been tied, and the result was a foregone conclusion.Maybe this is the most seam-friendly pitch Ive played on in my international career, Azhar said after the match. It reminds of one or two pitches in Sri Lanka where the ball moves for a couple of hours on the first day or two but it starts to settle down. Here the movement is there for longer. Its New Zealands home conditions so we, as a professional team, just have to play on whatever we get, and thats it.That their three-day practice match at Nelson had been washed out, exacerbated difficulties for Pakistan, though they did play a long Test series in England earlier this year. That tour had been played in Englands late summer, however, while this loss has come in New Zealands spring. Pakistan were also more effective on the drier tracks in London.You usually dont see in Australia, New Zealand or England a pitch that supports the seamers so much, Azhar said. There was no pitch was like this in England. It swings around there, but not as much grass as that. But this is the pitch we got, and New Zealand played better than us.In what may be a worrying sign with a tour of Australia on the horizon, the short ball proved particularly effective against Pakistan in the second innings. Younis Khan, Babar Azam and Misbah-ul-Haq all fell to short-pitched bowling - though in dissimilar ways. The bouncer barrage on day three had been perhaps the definitive period of play in this Test.If you come to this part of the world, you do expect that, Azhar said. You expect sub-continent teams will be tested with that short stuff and we all knew that. But as time goes on, well get better, and were hopeful to turn things around quickly.Though he only made 31 runs, Azhar had played the longest innings of the Test, surviving for over four hours, to face 173 deliveries. Having had an outstanding series in West Indies, he said he felt his own form was holding up.As a batsman, I was applying myself and trying to battle out the conditions when it was tough, he said. The New Zealand bowlers held their plans really well, and held their lines long enough to create chances. We couldnt get the flow of runs going at any stage, so thats why sometimes its hard as a batsman. Youre trying to play well and do everything right, but the opposition sometimes doesnt allow you to score runs.But Im confident that everything in my game is going alright. Its just a matter of time until you start playing fluently and the runs start coming. Cheap Nike Shoes Free Shipping . -- The Missouri Tigers might not have a roster full of superstars. Nike Clearance Store . The 25-year-old Japanese star has officially been posted by his club team, the Rakuten Golden Eagles. http://www.clearancenikeshoes.com/ . -- Claudio Bieler hadnt scored since early September, and not from the run of play since mid-July. Discount Nike Shoes . After Mondays hard-fought loss, the wait seemed longer than usual. Getting set to go their separate ways for a short Christmas break, the Raptors coach credited his team for their effort on a seemingly impossible three-game road trip, urging them to build on that success when they get back to work at the end of the week. Wholesale Nike Shoes . Cuban testified Thursday that he was upset when the companys CEO told him news that would reduce the value of his shares, for which hed paid $7.5 million. But he said he did nothing improper when he sold those shares over the next two days. The Miami Hurricanes permanently dismissed defensive end Al-Quadin Muhammad and linebacker Jermaine Grace from the team Saturday for NCAA rules violations, the school said in a statement.Both were projected starters and had been under investigation for their ties to a local luxury rental car agency.In a statement, the university said it arrived at the decision after outside consultation, including discussions with the NCAA enforcement staff, but would continue the players financial aid through graduation.As no staff members or boosters were involved in the violations, the program will not be subject to sanctions and, at this time, the University deems this matter closed, the statement said.Muhammad, a redshirt juniior, had his share of issues during his Miami career, serving a suspension for all of 2014 because of an off-campus fight.dddddddddddd He also was suspended for the season opener last year for team rules violation. Grace, a senior, started 10 games last season and finished third on the team with 79 tackles.Another player implicated in the allegations, linebacker Juwon Young, had been suspended indefinitely and opted to leave the team. He signed with Marshall.Receiver Stacy Coley has also been a part of the schools investigation, but theres no word yet on whether he will face punishment. ' ' '