Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

[E10 Rifle]

Time to crank up the next Test series thread, ridiculously soon after the last one. Cricket fans can't really mock football anymore for nonexistent close-seasons, at least at international level.

Anyway, England have got a worse away record against Pakistan than anyone else in the past decade, so a draw would be an achievement, though there is obviously a somewhat anaemic atmosphere at these Pakistan "home" tests in exile in the UAE despotisms.

Moeen Ali's taken some wickets in the warmup this morning. But expect England to be outspun.

[longeared]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

England don't get much time off this winter do they? In the UAE until the end of November, a week and an half at home, then off to South Africa until late February. Then sometime in mid - March they head to India for the World Twenty20. When they get back from that the county season will be starting up and we'll be wondering what match practice they'll need before the Sri Lanka Tests begin.

[Satchmo Distel]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

Some England batsmen were actually using the last round of county games as warm-ups for this tour. Has that ever happened before?

[nmrfox]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

Slightly off topic (apols) but tickets for England Pakistan for Old Trafford go on sale soon and I was wondering if anyone can recommend a decent area to sit in there. We are the type who go in the Radcliffe Road End (upper) or Fred Truman stand, so prefer a quiet snooze in the afternoon sun rather than building beer snakes..

[longeared]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

We always sat in stand C, which was broadly idiot free and used to be behind third man. Not been though since they rotated the wicket so no idea what it's like now.

[Lucy Waterman]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

I predict a painful disaster.

England will go in with four seamers for the first game, get tonked, bring in Rashid for the second, he'll get destroyed, then Patel in for the third by which time the batsmen will have lost all confidence.

Hold on, Peter Moores has gone, hasn't he? Maybe 1-1 then.

[Satchmo Distel]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

Very odd tour game. Bell and Taylor retire not out then England lose six wickets in a flurry:

http://www.espncricinfo.com/pakistan-v-england-2015-16/engine/match/902633.html

[gjt]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

satchmo76 wrote: Very odd tour game. Bell and Taylor retire not out then England lose six wickets in a flurry:

http://www.espncricinfo.com/pakistan-v-england-2015-16/engine/match/902633.html

It's not really a tour game, more an extended practice. Definitely not first class, though. Pakistan A batted all day yesterday (and lost 12 wickets - somehow ESPNcricinfo's scoring software couldn't count them all), and England are batting all day today no matter how many wickets fall.

[Satchmo Distel]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

They are also playing very few shots - Ali and Buttler just blocking at the moment, as per a net session.

Infact it's not a "game" in any sense, i.e. a contest designed to produce a result. The should just call it a fucking net session.

[ad hoc]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

Lumme, this has started already. I hadn't realised it was so imminent. Our own E10 obviously had to get up very early this morning to do the OBO in the Guardian.

Anyway, Pakistan 82-1 at lunch

[E10 Rifle]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

And 173-2 at tea. Hard work. Undermined too by a terrible slip drop and a wearily predictable "wicket" off a no-ball.

[ursus arctos]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

Hafeez' last three innings in the UAE

96, 101, 98

Draw you own conclusions

[ad hoc]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

That he scores runs like I fill up the car with petrol? Shooting for a nice round number but either slightly overshooting or undershooting every time.

[Satchmo Distel]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

He gets nervous in the nineties then relaxes too much when he gets the ton? His dismissal today:

"Stokes to Mohammad Hafeez, OUT, targeting the stumps, Hafeez walks across and misses with a flick... Stokes bellows an appeal and up goes the finger! Hafeez, two short of a hundred, asks for the review but his best hope may be another no-ball. No, this time Stokes is behind the line and Hawk-Eye says the delivery was clipping leg stump (umpire's call), so the Prof will have to go back to the drawing board/dressing room having spent ten balls on 98. England, on the stroke of tea, have crow-barred one out."

There are easier ways to earn from a bookie.

[Satchmo Distel]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

The two spinners have gone for 133 from 29 overs.

[ad hoc]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

2nd easy catch dropped today by Bell

286-4 at the close

[E10 Rifle]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

Pakistan motoring this morning. They'll declare half an hour before the close today on 572-5. Poor old Rashid's having a tough time of it – he's bowling some decent deliveries at times and finding some turn, but Pakistan know what they're doing and have gone after him, punishing every loss of control.

[Rogin the Armchair fan]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

Nissan to sponsor next 2 World Cups

Let's hope they impress upon the ICC that what makes the World Cup interesting - in fact the only thing that makes it interesting in the group stages - is having the associate members in it. At least 6 of them.

[longeared]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

Rashid getting clobbered everywhere is entirely unsurprising for those who have regularly watched him bowl for Yorkshire.

[Satchmo Distel]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

572-5 looks a very good prediction right now. They need to score at around 4 an over.

The real damage being done here might be to England's seamers for the rest of the series. As they get more knackered, Pakistan can plunder even more.

England need to show some immense patience and concentration with the bat to come away with three draws. If they lose this first one, the series already looks gone to me, with a ragged attack that might not take 10 wickets let alone 20.

[E10 Rifle]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

Trouble is, it's such a long time since England batted on and on and on in the way Pakistan have (possible not since Trott was in his prime). Can't see anything but quite a heavy defeat here

[Etienne]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

Pakistan 199-7 against the England seam bowlers.

[Satchmo Distel]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

Four seamers might not have been a bad idea (if Finn was fit; not sure that Plunkett would have done more than Rashid except slow down the over rate)

So Ali is gonna open after bowling 30 overs?

[Etienne]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

Do you mean four seamers plus Stokes?

[Satchmo Distel]

Unjust deserts – England in Pakistan, 2015

Yes, but on reflection I'm doing him an injustice. His overall record is mediocre but he's improved a lot.