Cricket-Match-Special ... A forum for discussion

Mon, 07 Oct '24
1st Test • Multan, October 07 - 11, 2024, England tour of Pakistan
Pakistan
England

Tue, 15 Oct '24
2nd Test • Multan, October 15 - 19, 2024, England tour of Pakistan
Pakistan
England

Thu, 24 Oct '24
3rd Test • Rawalpindi, October 24 - 28, 2024, England tour of Pakistan
Pakistan
England

This starts tomorrow. Stokes won't be fit for the first Test and might not bowl on the tour... and Carse makes his debut! Which feels like a punt.

Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope (captain), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith, Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Bryson Carse, Jack Leach, Shoaib Bashir.

Also in squad, Stone, Potts, Stokes, Rehan, Cox.

Wood, Hull, Pennington, Tongue are injured.

A few new names- to me- in that Pakistan side. England bowlers struggling in the first hour after an early wicket.

Pakistan flying...174-1 I'm surprised root hasn't had a bowl yet

A few months ago, we farmed our greatest bowler in decades out to pasture because he was too old and wouldnt make Australia, and dropped our best averaging seamer in 70 years because he was apparently disastrously out of form ...

We replaced the "too old, wont make Australia" legend with a 36 year old player who has arguably the worst away record for any player in test history when taking into account the amount of matches (and who is probably one bad test from being dropped for away tests forever).... and replaced the horribly out of form Robinson with someone who took 4 FC wickets at 100 in the season...

Nothing says the future and picking players on fire like that, ay......

Some of the recent decision making has been utterly baffling. How the frigging hell is Brydon Carse in the test team?

200 partnership!! Bashir struggling with his length

With temperatures expected to hit near 40 degrees this afternoon, this could be a long day for England in the field

All the pre-series talk was about a Pakistan side in crisis, but crikey... England are getting creamed here

210-1 after 45 overs

Leach doing his normal and keeping it tight without looking threatening...he's the more experienced spinner yet he has plenty of sweeprs and yet Bashir has the field up....not much sense there especially when leach has better control today

Been much more there for the seamers with some nibble off the deck and a little wobble in the air. Nothing so far for the spinners at all, which at the moment makes fielding two spinners look a tactical error - although one gets the impression with the haze/humidity and high 30s temperatures, the second spinner is there just to avoid killing your pace attack in the afternoon. England look sun-kissed and bothered in the field.... more red cheeks on display here than your average row of pensioner filled deck chairs in Benidorm

England have bowled far too short this morning, and then over compensated by pushing the ball too full. Could do with a 10 over spell where they tighten it up and string some dots.

Ollie Pope puts down Shan Masood. It was hit pretty hard at him in a shortish position square on the offside, but you should really be catching those. Was a bit of a wide-ish ball from Carse, but not wide enough to cut, and he can't got on top of it and get it down and behind square.... big let off for Pakistan.

Carse responds by bouncing a few quick balls about 3 meters over the batsman's head.... too short again. Just do not understand this tactic from Atkinson and Carse this morning.

EDIT - Commentator suggesting the ball was just short of Pope, but for me that's a chance.

Meanwhile, Shafique puts Leach into the stand and goes to 100..... England got him into the 90s and a little nerves came in, and he chose to go for the big shot to get there, but the execution is perfect. Played very well, Shafique.

Carse getting tap now and his pace is down...hard pitch to bowl fast on but can't help but feel missing mark wood here

andy wrote:Carse getting tap now and his pace is down...hard pitch to bowl fast on but can't help but feel missing mark wood here

The annoying thing is, he's put it fuller a couple of times to Shan in the last 2 overs, and Shan has went after it and made mistakes. But after bowling a few balls and getting the batsman playing loose, he goes back to trying to destroy the centre of the pitch, and not very well either. Its just aimless short pitch stuff going all over the place and not testing the batsman.... both are passed a hundred and seeing it like a beach ball, they arent playing at this filth.

Good grief, this has started already? Totally missed it.

Some of the preview chat was how different the bowling is now. England are definitely missing Anderson and Broad's control and Wood's pace.