1st Test: England vs Pakistan
England take on Pakistan in the first of a two-match test series, beginning at the headquarters of cricket on Thursday.
As pleasant weather sweeps through the United Kingdom, Three Lions supporters will be hoping for a lovely five days watching Joe Root and his team return to winning ways after a difficult tour of Australia and New Zealand.
You should always beware of betting advice from a fan, but England fares much better on home soil and, against a Pakistan side short of experience in the British climate, will start as clear favourites to win. And, of course, you can get the best odds with SBOBET, while you pull up a chair and enjoy the battle.
Talking Points
After a losing winter run, England have dropped to fifth in the ICC Test rankings, just two places above Pakistan, and so will be keen to get back on track, as the firepower at their disposal suggests they should. The Three Lions have big hitters in every discipline, with batsman Joe Root, bowler James Anderson and all-rounder Ben Stokes all in the top five of the ICC player rankings.
And when it comes to hitting, they don’t get much bigger than one day specialist Jos Buttler, who has been recalled to the test team, backed by new selector Ed Smith who insists the Lancashire man is a unique batting talent. Who would argue with him after the attacking batsman has taken the IPL by storm with his spectacular and innovative range of shots? Last week he smashed 28 in an over, four fours and two sixes off seamer Shimam Mavi, batting for Rajasthan Royals. And that was after equalling Virender Sehwag’s record of five consecutive fifties in the competition.
But England desperately need a lift in the five day game, thrashed in the Ashes and failing to win a test in New Zealand over the winter tour. Middlesex skipper Dawid Malan had a decent tour, averaging 35, while Jonny Bairstow also did okay and could find himself moving up the order to five, at the start of a potentially destructive middle order with Ben Stokes and Buttler to follow.
And there’s excitement down in Somerset at the call-up of uncapped off-spinner Dominic Bess. It could be a big summer for the young West Country star as England continues its search for a world class slow bowler.
Both teams have changed captain since they last met in 2016, with Root taking over from Alastair Cook, the latter hoping to rediscover his prolific run-scoring. Misbah-ul-Haq has retired, leaving the tourists under the command of wicketkeeper-batsman Sarfraz Ahmed.
Pakistan survived a bit of a scare recently in beating test debutants Ireland by just five wickets, and that won’t do much to cheer their fans. Strike bowler Mohammed Amir can turn a match single handed when he’s at his best, but he’s likely to need more support from Rahat Ali, who is yet to hit form, wicketless in his last three outings, including the drawn warm-up match against Leicestershire. Ali has raw pace, and that may be enough to unsettle England’s top order if he can find his line.
Azhar Ali has been Pakistan’s most consistent batsman in recent times, ranked 12th in the ICC list and above England’s Jonny Bairstow and Alastair Cook. The experienced campaigner, alongside Asad Shafiq, carries much of the batting responsibility in an inexperienced squad, and they will know full well they have a better chance at Lords than at Headingly, where the swing and seam of Anderson and Stuart Broad could be at its most devastating.
England have undoubted talent, highly fancied in both the One Day and T20 World Cups. You can compare betting odds on SBOBET’s cricket pages.
But this is a five-day contest. Winning One Day tournaments is one thing, but the big question is, can England transfer its undeniable short match skills to the longer game?
History
Joe Root has struggled to convert fifties to hundreds in recent times but he scored a monster 254 against Pakistan to win the second test at Old Trafford two years ago.
That series was drawn after the first test had been won by Pakistan. On that occasion Rahat Ali skittled England’s top three while Jonny Bairstow was the only player to dominate the tourists’ attack, before Amir finished off the tail.
Pakistan celebrated that win by, famously, doing press-ups on the famous Lords pitch! But with skipper Ul-Haq retired they may be a little more circumspect this time around, that’s if they can get another win of course.
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