England v
Pakistan: 1st Test, Day 1
Here We Go
Again
May 24th 2018
It is as if the last four years had never happened. Return from a
disastrous Australasian winter. Asian opponents in May. Easy wins. The health of the
England team is rosy.
So much for the theory.
As in 2014, when the guests in May were Sri Lanka, a very inexperienced Pakistan
was expected to provide a gentle re-introduction to Test cricket for the
England side and restore some battered confidence. Of course, the practice was
that, despite the efforts of Moeen Ali and Jimmy Anderson with the bat, England
were defeated for the first time on home soil by Sri Lanka and the crisis
simply got worse. Had India not suddenly and mysteriously imploded later that
summer, the situation might have reached quite catastrophic levels.
The 2013/14 Ashes series ended several careers. In particular, Jonathon
Trott, Graeme Swann and Kevin Pietersen. The 2017/18 tour of Australia and New
Zealand may well be the last time that we see Moeen Ali in England colours,
while a host of fringe players have decided to restrict themselves to white-ball
cricket. The 1st Test saw just one debutant for England – and that
injury-enforced – but the impression is that James Vince has played his last
Test and that a couple of others may join him on the sidelines after this
series. In particular, the development of Jack Leach and Dom Bess makes one
wonder about the chances of Liam Dawson and Mason Crane as spinners and Mark
Stoneman may have just said good-bye to his place too.
Grey day. Pitch with a little green, but fundamentally, a good surface. The
pundits thought that it was a day to win the Toss, see off a difficult first
hour or so and then make hay as the conditions eased and early moisture left
the surface. Having seen the Pakistan struggles against a skilful, but far from
lethal Irish attack on a seaming surface, many people expected Joe Root to
insert if he won the Toss, hoping to bowl out Pakistan quickly with his
rejuvenated new ball attack. The opposing school of thought was to bat on the
first day and take advantage of the pitch at its best, put up 400+ and use
scoreboard pressure. Either way, it might not be a bad Toss to lose.
Of course, these theories rely on the players themselves to perform. If
they do not, you look a proper Charlie.
The torrent of opprobrium for Joe Root has been awful. Hello Charlie Root! He saw his
batting order fail miserably and then the new ball bowlers were totally
incapable of bowling the right line and length in reply. And, to make things
worse, the captain himself was convicted of dangerous driving and fell cheaply.
If you are Mark Stoneman and have yet to make 30 yet this season, the
last thing that you need is to receive a fine delivery. However, just as James
Vince has made his signature move the prod outside off, guiding the ball to the
slips or gulley, Mark Stoneman’s has been to leave his feet rooted to the
crease until he finally gets the right ball. Credit to Mohammad Abbas for a
wonderful, inswinging delivery. Not so much to Mark Stoneman for not making a
better effort to deal with it. Eight innings of the season gone and Mark
Stoneman has 119 runs, with a top score of 29. Contrast that with Keaton
Jennings who, despite a very dodgy start himself to his season (lest we forget)
has 636 runs in all competitions in England this spring, with 3x100 and 2x50.
Unless Mark Stoneman can make a big score in the second innings, one
wonders if he will even get the 2nd Test of this series.
Of course, the skipper was far from blameless. He came in at #3, willing
to make a big statement. Hasan Ali offered him a ball outside off and he aimed
an uncontrolled drive. 33-2 was not the sort of start that England wanted and
it got worse when Dawid Malan got another fine ball that he could not control.
It was 43-3 and all those predictions that the first hour would be difficult
were coming true. However, at the other end, another of the patients who has
been in intensive care was doing okay, thank you. Alistair Cook has been
written off so many times and, like Lazarus, he keeps coming back to life,
although you know that he is going to try the Lazarus trick once too often in
the end. In partnership with Jonny Bairstow he set about re-building the
innings. Together, they brought up the hundred and seemed to have things set in
their proper context. Faheem Ashraf bowled one from wide of the crease, the
ball evaded the inside edge and crashed into Jonny Bairstow’s stumps.
Even then things seemed to be settling down again. Cook got his fifty,
Ben Stokes played himself in sensibly before unleashing a massive six. There
seemed every chance of a score around 350 that looked likely to be a winning
total. Instead, England provided the sort of pusillanimous collapse that was
embarrassing in its scope. 149-4 became 184ao and the Pakistan team could not
believe their luck. The lower order were awful. Pakistan were inspired. They
bowled like demons, caught everything and England had no answers.
England needed a devastating response but, instead, the bowling has been
dreadfully off-colour. Stuart Broad has looked a new man in the early season,
quicker, more accurate, more consistent and Jimmy Anderson was bowled into the
ground in Australia because he often was the only one who had the batsmen under
control. To back them up, we had Ben Stokes, back to full fitness and a full
run-up and Mark Wood, with his extra pace. Unfortunately, when the bowlers got
their line right, the length was too short and vice-versa. Mark Wook averaged
high 80s, which was what England wanted and sent down one ball at over 90mph,
but one feed-backer talked about his “probing thirteenth stump line”, which
more or less summed it up: it is not just about pace, it is quality pace. Broad did get an early
wicket but, after it, there never seemed any danger of a Pakistan collapse.
England needed Pakistan 40-4 at the Close and no worse than 50-3 but, instead,
it is 50-1 and, unless England have a really good first session, the match may
be almost over by Tea on the second day. It seems all too familiar from the 1st
Test in New Zealand: in a 2-match series, a poor start means that the series
may be lost before it has even properly started.
The biggest cheer of the day was reserved for the penultimate over of
the day. On came Dom Bess to a huge ovation, which must have made him feel
pretty good. Five really nice deliveries, with flight, drift and air. The last
was a little short and went to the boundary, but enough there to suggest that
if he gets into some rhythm he may make the batsmen think a bit. One would like
to think that he will have his maiden Test wicket before Lunch on Day 2.
Which Pakistan were going to turn up at Lord’s? It was the tiger.
England though, do not look like tiger hunters.
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