England will be relying on some returning stars and a massive turn around in fortunes as they take on a strong Pakistan outfit in the second Test of their series. Join The Roar for live scores of Day 1 from 8pm (AEST).
Pakistan were dominant in the first Test, although that maybe didn’t show quite as much as it should have in the result, with Pakistan ‘only’ winning by 75 runs.
Of course, batting last on a pitch that gradually turned more as the match went on didn’t help England, but it is a problem they are going to have to contend with all series as Yasir Shah is in a purple patch of form.
The spinner would take 10 wickets across the course of the match and dominated the England batting order who simply couldn’t play him.
The real problem for England when it comes to the bowling stakes is that their premier spin bowler is Moeen Ali – an all rounder. While he does a respectable job, if the pace bowlers don’t make early inroads Pakistan will once again be able to rack up a substantial total.
England will be relying on a returning James Anderson in a big way, especially given the dominance he showed against the Sri Lankan outfit, who couldn’t deal with him all series.
Given Chris Woakes now looks to be in form – and was just about the only bowler to do anything in the first Test for England he will be another key to the puzzle.
Misbah-ul-Haq looks to be going brilliantly for Pakistan as well, with a big century guiding their first innings to the above par score of 339.
The Poms must also find a way to improve their top order batting. It always looked like bringing them undone against Sri Lanka, and would have if not for a few individual big scores and a woeful Sri Lankan batting performance.
They only had one half-century across the whole first Test, scored by Alistair Cook in the first innings, so if that is the case again then England simply put, can’t expect to win.
Prediction
Pakistan were strong during the first Test, but taking into account England’s form – albeit against the woeful Sri Lankan outfit, they should be able to bounce back here, particularly if James Anderson can slot straight back in and bowl like he did in the previous series.
Be sure to join The Roar for live scores of Day 1 in the second Test from 8pm (AEST) and don’t forget to add your own comments in the section below.
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