Rain-marred series

Rain prevented what could have been one of the worst Test performances by a Pakistan cricket team on English soil. Pakistan lost the first Test at Old Trafford, Manchester by three wickets. The other two of the three-game rubber, both played at Southampton, were truncated by rains and thus drawn – to the good fortunate of the Azhar Ali Eleven.

The second Test saw Pakistan batsmen struggle to the pace and swing of English bowlers, managing just 236 runs in their first innings. In reply, England could not even complete its first innings due to rain interruptions, and the match was drawn. In the third Test, the Joe Root men grabbed the driving seat from the word go. The English batsmen dominated the much-vaunted Pakistan pace attack and piled up 584 for 8. The English bowlers, then, bolstered their team’s position by bowling the visitors out for 273 runs in their first innings and forcing follow-on. However, when the Pakistan batsmen were required to play out of their skins to save the game, the rain came to their rescue. Still Pakistan lost the Test series – their first loss in England in a decade.

In terms of individual performances too, Pakistan batsmen and bowlers were outshined by their English rivals. James Anderson bagged 10 wickets for 159 runs in the three innings of the two Tests he played and, in the process, became the fourth bowler, and the only paceman, in the history of cricket to reach the 600-wicket feat. In contrast, none of the Pakistani pacers could pick up more than two wickets in an innings. Spinner Yasir Shah, however, claimed 11 wickets for 368 runs appearing in all three Tests with 66 for 4 as his best. Besides, a century each by skipper Azhar Ali and Shan Masood failed to translate into a win for Pakistan. Babar Azam too could not make big runs. Wicketkeeper Mohammed Rizwan, however, hit two gusty half centuries for a well-deserved Man of the Series.