International cricket after the novel coronavirus pandemic break when England took on West Indies in a historic series last month. In a series that was a fine advertisement for Test cricket on its return, England bounced back to clinch the series 2-1 against a spirited Jason Holder’s side.
England are certainly going to face a tougher challenge as they take on Pakistan in a 3-match series from August 5 in Manchester. Joe Root’s England are heading into the side with match practice and the confidence of having beaten the West Indies.
On the other hand, Pakistan will be featuring in their first assignment after the enforced break due to the pandemic. Pakistan though have played a series of practice matches, albeit intra-squad, after arriving in the UK as early as June 28. Pakistan were in the country even before England’s series against West Indies began and the time they have spent should have given the Asian nation ample opportunity to study the strengths and weaknesses of the English side.
Pakistan’s impressive record against England
Pakistan last lost a Test series to England in 2010. Since then, Pakistan have thrashed England in the UAE twice (2011-12, 2015-16) and drawn series in England during their trips in 2016 and 2018. No Asian team has won more matches in England since 2010 as Pakistan have managed 4 wins in 10 matches.
Azhar Ali’s men will be hoping to maintain their 10-year streak or go one step further in the upcoming series.
However, head coach Misbah-ul-Haq, who led the side during their memorable 2-2 draw in 2016, said history and statistics won’t mean anything to Azhar Ali’s side who will be starting fresh in the UK.
“Stats are just stats. That doesn’t guarantee you that you are going to do well in this series. Obviously, you can get confidence from that, some of your players were part of that, so belief is there. That can help up but still you have to play well. Obviously, that’s something that we will be looking to do,” Misbah-ul-Haq said on Monday.
The likes of Asad Shafiq and Wahab Riaz were part of the 2016 series and Pakistan will also be hoping pacer Mohammad Abbas, who impressed in the 2018 tour and has county cricket experience, will shine in relatively familiar conditions and deliver alongside a battery of young pace-bowling talents.
Misbah made it clear that he hopes that his senior batting trio of Shafiq, Babar Azam and Ali step up and put the runs on the board. The head coach expects the battle between the top-orders to prove decisive.
England will be confident about their batting unit after the way their openers Dom Sibley and Rory Burns delivered along with the established names, including Ben Stokes and Root in the West Indies series.
Can Anderson get to the 600-wicket club in Pakistan series?
While Pakistan have a promising bunch of fast bowlers, England pacers will be hoping to continue from where they left against the West Indies.
Stuart Broad, who was in imperious form on return to the side after the debatable axing in the 1st Test against West Indies, will be looking to lead the pace attack once again.
While Broad joined the 500-wicket club last month, his senior partner James Anderson will be eyeing the 600-wicket club. Anderson has 589 wickets and has a good opportunity to join Muttiah Muralitharan, Shane Warne and Anil Kumble in the elite list in the series against Pakistan.
Anderson can also become the most successful bowler in England-Pakistan Tests. The right-arm pacer has 63 wickets and needs 20 more to go past Abul Qadir who has 82 in 16 matches. Broad is not far behind on the list as he has 54 wickets in 16 matches.
Anderson needs 13 wickets to overtake Wasim Akram
Meanwhile, Anderson will also be hoping to break Wasim Akram’s record for the most wickets in England-Pakistan Tests in England.
Akram finished with 53 Test wickets in 14 matches in England while Imran Khan is second on the list with 47 wickets in 12 matches. Waqar Younis is 3rd with 45 wickets in 10 matches while Anderson is currently 4th on the list with 41 wickets in 9 matches.
