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England vs Pakistan | 3rd Test | Southampton | Aug 21-25, 2020 | Day 1

That’s why we should’ve played Shadab here instead of Shafiq.

He can score some runs and is a proper spinner.

Misbah made him the sacrificial goat of our first Test loss.
 
In Tests, Babar and Labuschagne are a level above everyone else.

Zak Crawley has potential. But he has to score consistently. Agarwal and Rassie aren't good enough to be counted in this group.

Future Fab 4: Babar, Mayank Agarwal, Crawley and Rassie van der Dussen.

These 4 batsmen have great potential.
 
Pak is one bowler short. They should have played Shadab, given how well Yasir is bowling.
 
5th bowler would have been handy on this soft surface with not much help.
 
In Tests, Babar and Labuschagne are a level above everyone else.

Zak Crawley has potential. But he has to score consistently. Agarwal and Rassie aren't good enough to be counted in this group.

Oh yeah I agree about Labuschagne! I seriously think Agarwal and Rassie have potential. However Rassie is a bit too old.

Anyways almost every team has at least one bat which have huge potential.
 
Its AZhar Ali Captaincy which has cost pakistan the series first match and now again. He is not a ideal man to lead we need aggressive captain here.
 
We need to remember that it is a flat batting wicket ,,,, as per the reviews.

While its definitely not much difficult to bat here, its a slow surface in comparison to previous tests but considering Pak's batting potential Eng still need to be bowled out for less than 300 atleast.
 
I wish Naseem Shah the best but his lack of height isn't going to help him make it in international colours.
 
Shafiq should have been dropped for Shadab.

Why we have our saviour ‘Shafiq’ in the team I have no idea. Considering how much of a big player he should have sat this game out
 
Woakes may have played well in the first test, but he is not a proper batsman and he along with the rest can't be relied upon for scoring more than 50 runs put together.

Tail? England still have Woakes, Bess, and even Archer to come
 
Its AZhar Ali Captaincy which has cost pakistan the series first match and now again. He is not a ideal man to lead we need aggressive captain here.

The question will remain: would Sarfaraz have let the game slip?

I have seen many times that Pakistan gets top order very cheaply and they cannot capitalize on that.
 
Need to give Fawad and Masood some overs to offer something different
 
Around 76 mph. Abbas the leader of the pack. What chuck pies is being bowled barring Yasir
 
The question will remain: would Sarfaraz have let the game slip?

I have seen many times that Pakistan gets top order very cheaply and they cannot capitalize on that.

Actually this has been happening quite a lot in this decade especially. 2016 too, Woakes/Bairstow caused problems.
 
Pakistani fans are so impatient unbelievable. This is England Team one of the best in the world dont forget that.
 
Buttler becomes English version of Bradman vs Pakistan across the formats.
 
Woakes may have played well in the first test, but he is not a proper batsman and he along with the rest can't be relied upon for scoring more than 50 runs put together.

I mean Woakes has 10 FC hundreds and a test century too, he's a fairly genuine all rounder more than capable of scoring runs
 
You keep blaming your captain. You are up against one of the worlds best teams, in their backyard, it’s not your captain - it’s your teams ability. That’s why you are ranked 7.

That’s why a long test series separates flash in pan performances from overall quality. Had Pakistan been playing 5 test series in England your supposed “neck and neck’ record would be in tatters.
 
Worst decision was to sack Mickey. Pathetic team and management

It was not a worse decision, even worse was replacing Mickey with Waqar and Misbah. Pakistan should have got in Tom Moody, Andy Flower, Stephen Fleming etc kind of coach.
 
I wish Naseem Shah the best but his lack of height isn't going to help him make it in international colours.

So how did Steyn and marshall succeed in test cricket to be considered arguably in the top 5 best fast bowlers of all time
 
That's true. Ok, so two more wickets in that case.

Pakistan needs to be alert and aggressive here even though the scoring rate has increased. Looks like a repeat of the first test second innings is happening here with these two batsmen.

I mean Woakes has 10 FC hundreds and a test century too, he's a fairly genuine all rounder more than capable of scoring runs
 
That third Test against WIN literally sealed Pakistan’s fate in this series - I knew this guy Josh Butler will trouble PAK. PAK bowlers can produce gems, but in between that bowls loose one which players like Butler will feast on. Attritional bowling isn’t PAK’s strength and they’ll pay tolls against every attacking batsman, once set.

PAK’s current bowling coach had an ODI economy of close to 5 playing mostly in 90s & a Test economy close to 3.5..... but, he was venomous - the deadliest I have seen in his rhythm, so he compensated that wi a SR between 35-38 for his first 200 wickets. These boy wonders unfortunately have taken the first quality of their guru, second one .... not yet.
 
I am going to take a slightly different line and ask if PAK have a good off-spinner in the waiting? Perhaps PSL provides a good eye test but anyone really Test level/capable in the domestics?
 
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It is a shame, Pakistan has some really capable bowlers - with match practice and good management you would have a great bowling attack with many years ahead of them.

Babar is also a good batsman with really strong potential.

I hope for the sake of these gems Pakistan is able to get the match practise and management that allows them to flourish.
 
That comes with experience, but Misbah/Waqar are too stubborn to realize this. Needed more experience for this Test and Sohail was phenomenal in Derby/Worcester.

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Welcome :))
 
That comes with experience, but Misbah/Waqar are too stubborn to realize this. Needed more experience for this Test and Sohail was phenomenal in Derby/Worcester.

No. I don't agree with that approach. Sohail's experience doesn't count when he bowls at 125kph in his spells with no control like Abbas. He would've been pillaged here on this slow pitch. It's just that our bowlers need to develop patience especially Naseem.

232-4 is a par score right now on this pitch. There is nothing in this pitch for the bowlers. We're panicking because we all know Pakistan can get themselves bowled out for 70 on a cement pitch.

And it's not Misbah or Waqar's fault. Too many times we want to find a scapegoat and we turn to coaches. Did Mickey Arthur make Pakistan a potent bowling attack? No he couldn't. Nobody can. If you want to find a scapegoat, it's the bowler himself. The bowlers themselves have to develop patience. No coach in the world can develop that for you.
 
That third Test against WIN literally sealed Pakistan’s fate in this series - I knew this guy Josh Butler will trouble PAK. PAK bowlers can produce gems, but in between that bowls loose one which players like Butler will feast on. Attritional bowling isn’t PAK’s strength and they’ll pay tolls against every attacking batsman, once set.

PAK’s current bowling coach had an ODI economy of close to 5 playing mostly in 90s & a Test economy close to 3.5..... but, he was venomous - the deadliest I have seen in his rhythm, so he compensated that wi a SR between 35-38 for his first 200 wickets. These boy wonders unfortunately have taken the first quality of their guru, second one .... not yet.

Good piece. I want to focus on the attritional part - outside of the UAE (primarily interested in the last decade) where spinners can play that attritional game, PAK are not proponents of channel bowling at mid-80s, for long periods. Lack of bounce (height) is not helpful either.
 
Wasn't Shaheen supposed to be a consistent 90 MPH bowler ?

He's barely touching 85.
 
Not much in the pitch honestly after first 20-25 overs.
Babar and Fawad will have a lot of responsibility.
Shan too. Can't afford a start like 40-2 or 80-3 on this pitch.

I am still not convinced PAK can take 20 wickets with just 4 bowlers.
We definitely needed another bowler here. Maybe Wahab or Shadab instead of Shafiq.
 
Wasn't Shaheen supposed to be a consistent 90 MPH bowler ?

He's barely touching 85.

In tests? No. In LOIs he can go upto 145kph+ (Highlights of Pak vs NZ in UAE can be seen for reference) but in tests it’s different ball game.
 
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