Hi Guys!
Greeting to all hope, hope you all are well and good and enjoying happy moments of life. I am also good Alhamdullillah. My best wishes and prayers are always with you. Today's report is about the match between Pakistan And England's first test match in Rawalpindi.
England stay true to their word on changing the face of Test cricket
Commitment to the brand just became a little more meaningful
Declaring to give your opponents a target of 343 in four sessions on a pitch where 1,500 runs had already been scored at a rate of 5.14 per over. A short-ball tactic with the brand new ball with just one fielder (gully) in the cordon before he was switched to leg gully. James Anderson, the greatest swing bowler of all time, kept out of the attack until the ninth over and then joining in the bumper barrage. Joe Root batting left-handed. Shining the ball on Jack Leach's head.
Pick out any of those in isolation and you could probably make a strong case for England to be stopped. Test cricket is serious business, you know, what with its whites, history and penchant for low strike rates and high society. Right sorts of family, and all that. You're barely allowed in with trainers, never mind skipping through the joint with such brash disregard for how things are supposed to be done.
With context, however, it all made sense. Chaotic brush strokes in a wider piece of abstract expressionism hard to compute at first glance but impossible to take your eyes off.
England could have batted Pakistan out of the match, but that would have made their route to victory trickier considering how easy it would have been to deadbat on a surface that has stayed together longer than your grandparents. The hosts chased down 344 against Sri Lanka just two games ago, and with 243 left to get with eight wickets remaining - provided Azhar Ali does return after retiring hurt - they'll fancy this. Which is exactly the point.
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Agha Salman's spark helps Pakistan shift Rawalpindi narrative
Given there was precious little lateral movement off the seam or through the air, going short immediately served a dual purpose. It is usually a secondary tactic which means its real value is hard to quantify because batters are often set before it is employed. Abdullah Shafique's top-edge pull-hook, Azhar's blow to the hand - both by Ollie Robinson - and the precious wicket of Babar Azam that silenced the crowd and sent a few home vindicated the approach. The other aspect to banging it in early is fast-tracking you to a point when the ball might reverse. And though we saw little of that in the evening session, the fact only 20 overs have been bowled in the fourth innings means the ball will still be hard - and thus travel through the air quicker - if it does appear at some point in the morning session tomorrow. With the early morning dew adding moisture to the pitch, conventional movement will also be on the cards. There will also be another new ball to come, if required.
Root's turn as a southpaw was a reaction to leg spinner Zahid Mahmood targeting the rough outside the right-hander's leg stump in a bid to slow down the rate of scoring. The sweep shot played led to a catch that should have been taken by the fielder stationed at what had been backward point. As for shining the ball on Leach's head, maybe that's where we come up short. Bald tampering? Who knows.
Perhaps those last two bits highlight how true to their word England are when it comes to going about their Test cricket in a new way. Unwavering intent, a sense of fun and a respectful understanding that, sometimes, the traditional whims of the format can only get you so far.
"I can't think of another England team that, on this pitch, would have given themselves a chance to win this game," said former captain Michael Atherton on Sky Sports.
"In my day we were always worried about consequence," reflected 68-Test veteran Paul Collingwood, now assistant coach of this group. "Ringing the wife, what you guys (the press) would say."
There were times over the summer when the utterances from those in the dressing room - players and staff - felt a little contrived. Talk of entertaining fans (fine), redefining Test cricket (yeah, OK), saving Test cricket (steady) and putting smiles on faces after the Covid-19 pandemic (noble, but come on). While it wasn't as cringe as Gal Gadot and her mates singing into the front of their camera phones, there was a sense England were being too altruistic.
But they have stayed true to their word, specifically of not resorting to draws, and it strikes more of a chord here because they won the toss and batted first for the first time under Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes. Commitment to the brand was a little easier in the summer when it was about chasing. Being willing to defend less than you needed to is a little more meaningful.
"There's no shame in losing, if you put yourself in a position to win," said Collingwood. "We're not here to draw, we're here for results. If it goes against us, we've still made it entertaining."
Does it matter if England lose? Well yes and no.
When you consider how seriously their fans take Test cricket, defeat will jar. In the context of this match, surely the amount they have invested in it from the get-go means it will hurt more if they come out on the wrong side?
And at the same time, probably not? England aren't going to make this cycle's final of the World Test Championship. Given the historical context of this first Test match in Pakistan since 2005, let alone this series, why not do something memorable with it?
England, of course, do not think they are going to lose. Because they believe there is nothing to lose.
One of the more remarkable things about this group is how the two in charge have managed to imprint themselves upon everyone who steps through the dressing-room door. Both are well insulated from the ups and downs of their respective gigs. McCullum could walk away tomorrow and pick up where he left off as a franchise tzar. Stokes, two World Cup final-winning cameos and plenty else with the red ball, did not need captaincy to enhance his standing among fans.
Indeed, you could argue he's perhaps gone too far the other way given his approach to batting. His dismissal today, flaying a delivery too short to flay, straight to cover for a three-ball duck, reflects his general approach since taking over from Root at the start of the summer. It is almost a deliberate tanking of his average to play an extreme version of what he wants from everyone else. He is Sam Neil hooting and hollering with a flare in hand to distract the T-Rex so the kids can get away. Here on day four, those kids did what they needed to do.
Zak Crawley punched 50 from 48 to go with his first-innings 122, Harry Brook put the frighteners up Gilbert Jessop once more with 87 off 65 after a stunning 153, and Will Jacks was emboldened enough to take 6 for 161 - a maiden five-wicket haul in all first-class cricket - before a quickfire 24 off 13. They were the main propellers of a third innings that went at 7.36 an over and gave their skipper the opportunity to walk the walk.
"It's magnificent in terms of the bigger picture," concluded Collingwood. "When Baz and Ben took over, the number one priority was to make Test cricket entertaining, like T20 has been, and it's the most important thing.
"When you ask players what they want to play, it's Test cricket, but we have to make it more entertaining. We already feel like pioneers, the way we're bating is putting opposition under pressure. It's exciting to experience. If the byproduct is winning, so be it. If we lose and it's been exciting, it's still a win for Test cricket."
To many, England have left the door open unnecessarily for Pakistan. But they've done so with every intention of inviting them in. To have a bit of fun and see what's what. Pakistan, to their credit, are obliging. Just when it looked like the Rawalpindi pitch was winning out, we are going into day five with all results on the table. As it should be.
Will Jacks continues quiet rise to help give England window of opportunity
Novice offspinner showcases good fundamentals as well as a knack for taking wickets
Babar Azam walked slowly off the ground in Rawalpindi on day three, a fifth century in Pakistan in his back pocket, receiving every bit of deserved acclaim from the 15,000 strong crowd. A flat pitch is still only just a stage, and after England's punk rock effort in the first innings, Babar's turn was so classic he may as well have had a violin in his hands.
The departure was spine-tingling but the end itself was pretty, well, basic. Off balance, snatching at the ball and a duff connection straight into the hands of Jack Leach at point. Pakistan were now five down, England still 184 ahead, and Will Jacks had dismissed one of the best batters of this generation on a whim.
"A bit of disbelief really," responded Jacks when asked his feelings about the stature of the man he had just removed with his offspin. "It was the first ball of my spell, probably a bit of a loosener outside off and he cut it to point.
"He's obviously a very high-quality player, playing in his dream conditions really, so I can't complain about that one and I'm very happy."
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Jacks' three wickets so far won't make a particularly impressive reel. His maiden scalp broke the opening partnership on 225 - Abdullah Shafique botching a cut himself to present an edge to Ollie Pope behind the stumps - and the third relied on Naseem Shah's tempestuousness, and a seriously good running catch from Leach out at deep midwicket this time. But among his 33 overs, particularly the 21 sent down for figures 3 for 82 on Saturday, the resolve shown by Jacks belies the fact that those dismissals, his place in the team, heck, even the fact he is bowling spin at all were more through accident than design.
Perhaps "accident" is a little harsh. But were it not for the virus getting to Ben Foakes at the last possible moment, Jacks would have been carrying drinks here. In the end, he was handed his cap two minutes after Ben Stokes told him he was in the XI. And the peculiar silver-lining in that scenario is Stokes would have been up against it without Jacks after losing Liam Livingstone's wrist-and-or-finger-allsorts through a jarred right knee picked up in the field.
Coming into 2022, Jacks had bowled just 86 overs in first class cricket for Surrey since a debut in the format back in June 2018, with an additional six for England Lions, and as many wickets in that time as he managed here. He was utilised more in T20 cricket as someone able to fulfill four overs which, along with opening the batting, allows Surrey greater dexterity with their line-up.
It was in the 2020 Blast when he first showcased there was more to him than just someone who could burgle a few overs here and there, with 4 for 15 in semi-final against Kent. At the start of the last summer, Surrey head coach Gareth Batty, as a fellow offie, wanted to push Jacks into assuming a greater role with the ball for their Championship season. He responded with 17 wickets at 47.00. While not spectacular, it felt something of a breakthrough.
Batty noted the parallels with Moeen Ali, another offspinner who had to be coaxed into taking the pursuit seriously, or at least believing they themselves could be taken seriously while doing it. Jacks' stock spin ball was "beautiful" in Batty's eyes, the issue was changing the mindset of a batter who bowled a bit and get him to be more of a bowler invested in a sole purpose. And to watch Jacks here in the Pindi Stadium, toiling away with that upright action, back stiff before the arms spiral like propellers, was to watch someone slowly believe that not only was he an offspinner, but one who could make a difference. He turned far more than he should have done, and noticeably extracted a bit more bounce than his more seasoned spin partner Leach, on account of a taller action and coming over the top of the ball with his release.
"Bowling is getting more and more enjoyable as I'm getting better at it," he said with refreshing honesty, like a uni student warming to cooking. "I'm incredibly keen to - not perfect because you can never do that - but get as good as I can and play for England as an allrounder."
He was proud to announce this was the second time he has "topped" 30 overs. The previous instance came in May when he bowled exactly than many to earn career-best figures of 4 for 65 in the first innings of a Division One match on a turning Beckenham track against Kent, who were bowled out for 230 after the visitors had posted 671. An innings victory fell flat due to the rain, but Jacks still managed to go through now England team-mate Zak Crawley before it came. Batty maintains Jacks was on a roll, primed to win the game on his own.
Jacks will have to go some to do that here, even if the pitch is starting to show something. But he did help set-off the chain of three wickets for 24 inside 7.4 overs of the evening session.
"Pretty happy - it was almost a game-changing moment," Jacks said. "If we go on to win this Test then I guess that could be seen as a big moment in the game to take that wicket of Babar and then Rizwan the very next over and one more in the last hour.
"It finished up being a great day for us, seven wickets in the day is something very very good, so we'll be looking to get those three wickets as quickly as possible in the morning and then giving them a score to chase."
Jacks is by no means the finished article as a bowler, and it is not too cynical to think he might never be. The batting alone is worthy of commendation, especially against the white ball. That the only other person with a century in the Hundred (Will Smeed) has opted for an exclusively limited-overs path is reflective of the times we're in. And though Jacks probably won't take such a severe option, there will be other interests that perhaps take him away from fine-tuning those tweakers.
But there is definitely plenty to work with, from a lovely action, good go-to delivery and a real game sense, which came through when he opted for wider landing spots having noticed there was more turn out there. Crucially, he has thick skin: unperturbed by some of the unique fields being set, particularly as the day wore on, with short leg, silly point, regulation slip and a leg gully.
A lack of cover goes some way to explaining the run rate, which he did manage to drag down to an even 4.0, though there were a few full tosses in there. His 28th over was ransacked by Mohammad Rizwan, four fours a clear effort from the wicketkeeper-batter to get him out of the attack.
It didn't work. Jacks stayed on, kept plugging away and in turn England have broken into a match and a pitch that looked set to keep them out.
England, Pakistan in victory race as bold declaration transforms Pindi Test
Brook's high-tempo fifty and early breakthroughs keep all results possible for day five
Stumps Pakistan 579 (Babar 136, Imam 121, Shafique 114) and 80 for 2 (Imam-ul-Haq 43, Shakeel 24) need 263 runs to beat England 657 and 264 for 7 dec (Brook 87, Root 73, Crawley 50)
Another fearless performance by newcomer Harry Brook, a calculated declaration and a short-ball barrage that had Pakistan reeling initially in pursuit of a lofty 343 runs for victory: Bazball was on a Rawalpindi rampage on the penultimate day of this first Test.
When England's fresh, aggressive approach to Tests was still in its infancy during their home summer and they came a cropper against South Africa at Lord's, new head coach Brendon McCullum's message was simple and effective, along the lines of: if you think you've pushed hard enough, push some more.
His charges have wholeheartedly embraced the message, positioning themselves to claim the remaining eight wickets they need - possibly seven depending on how Azhar Ali pulls up overnight from a finger injury - on a pitch that has proven to be a batting paradise.
Pakistan are not out of the contest with Imam-ul-Haq, who made 121 in the first innings, steadying the hosts from 25 for 2 and unbeaten on 43 at stumps, and Saud Shakeel not out 24, needing another 263 runs.
An enthralling day's play began with Test debutant Will Jacks completing a six-wicket haul on debut after the hosts had put up an hour-and-a-half's worth of resistance, thanks to Agha Salman's fifty which contained England's first-innings lead to 78 runs.
But Brook upstaged all others for a second time in just his second Test. Having top-scored in England's first innings with a rapid 153 off just 116 balls, he threatened to post another quickfire century with a boundary-laden 87 off 65 balls. Three times Brook powered Zahid Mahmood over the rope for six, his big shots looking effortless much of the time, before he was bowled by Naseem Shah on the stroke of tea going for one swing too many.
Agha Salman's spark helps Pakistan shift Rawalpindi narrative
His quickfire fifty played a part in what has suddenly turned into a very exciting Test match
For the first three days, it was England who shouted their intentions from Rawalpindi's rooftops; they were here to win this Test match. That was made obvious by the record-smashing onslaught of the first day. Will Jacks said 24 hours later Pakistan looked like they were content with a draw, whereas his side was going all in on victory. Joe Root on day three echoed those sentiments. Pakistan, meanwhile, were rather more taciturn; the match situation had ensured a more optimistic assessment would have bordered on the delusional.
But at stumps on Sunday evening, setting up a final day climax this pitch scarcely deserves, Pakistan's tenor began to change, and the first hints of confidence seeped back into their outlook. A surprise declaration at tea from England had set them a target of 343 on a surface that looks like it could withstand another four days before the first signs of deterioration. It looked foolhardy at the time, though two quick wickets - including that of Babar Azam - had sceptics swiftly putting their faith in England's intrepid tactics once more. Add to that an injury to Azhar Ali that threatens further involvement in this match, and a tail that begins at No. 8 for Pakistan, and the ingredients for a historic English win had begun to blend together nicely.
But an unbeaten half-century stand under the setting sun between Imam-ul-Haq and Saud Shakeel, with neither batter looking troubled in the least, meant Pakistan's hopes of running England's score down were reinvigorated. Pakistan now need a further 263 runs for victory, and with a full day's play left, the draw has been taken out of the equation altogether. This time, though, it is Pakistan who were bullish with their match evaluation.
"We're talking in the camp that we need to go and win this match," Agha Salman at the end of play. "We don't know how the pitch will react on the fifth day, but we have it in our minds that we'll go for it and try to win it."
England managed to pack so much into another truncated day of Test cricket it's easy to forget that when play commenced, Salman was the only roadblock to the visitors taking complete control over this Test. Pakistan were still 160 runs behind in their first innings when the seventh wicket fell overnight. A collapse from that point would have left the hosts facing an insurmountable target and the best part of two days to survive. The sledgehammer is England's scoring rate had virtually guaranteed that.
But Salman, playing just his third Test, and the first at home, counter-attacked in a 67 run-stand where his partner, Zahid Mehmood, scored just 5. By the time he fell, Pakistan had whittled England's lead down to just over 100, and taken most of the first session out of the game. It was a breezy knock (though given England's truculence, that is relative), his 67-ball 53 decorated with seven fours and a six.
"The management tells us to play as we naturally play," he said. "My game is such I try and score runs and attack. I applied myself today and looked to keep them on the back foot. When you're playing with the tail, you know you have to score runs, so that decision gets made for you."
The day wasn't all rosy for him, though. With England making a mockery of a Pakistan bowling attack further depleted by the loss of Haris Rauf, he had the misfortune to be called upon to turn his arm over for five manic overs. England plundered 47 off those 30 balls, but Salman said that was simply a matter of accepting how England play and the advantageous position they found themselves in at the time.
"When we started bowling, we tried to restrict the runs and not give them boundary opportunities. But you have to give them credit, they're playing positive cricket. That shows in their declaration too, which was quite positive. The way they've been playing in the last few months, this was expected from them, and we believed they'd put us in to bat around this sort of target. But now we have a chance to win, and that's what we're aiming for."
There's little reason to doubt England's commitment, but the tone post-match had shifted ever so subtly. The visitors had spoken only of the pursuit of victory over the first three days, but for the first time this Test, assistant coach Paul Collingwood framed the same point in slightly different terms.
"It's been pretty clear we're willing to lose games for the sake of putting ourselves in a position to won. Some will say it was an early declaration, we'll see tomorrow if it was. We're not scared of losing, it takes the consequences away from the players - tomorrow we can hopefully get on the right side of it.
"It's exciting isn't it - on a pitch that's been docile, to be in a position to watch an exciting game on the final day is great for everyone. The bigger picture for Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum is for Test cricket is to be entertaining."
That now looks set to happen in spite of the conditions both sides have had to play in, rather than because of them. In a Test where every string has been pulled by England. But tomorrow, they might find out that in Test cricket, control and victory are two very different things.
56.083 SRY