England scrape to narrow win in Dubai
Visitors beat ICC Combined XI in tour opener.
DUBAI:
Steve Davies and Stuart Broad shared a resolute seventh stand of 61 to help an unimpressive England win the three-day tour opener against ICC Combined XI by three wickets.
It was a case of another batting failure for the tourists as, chasing 261 to win, England owed the win to captain Andrew Strauss (78), Ian Bell (39) and Jonathan Trott (35) on the final day of the match.
Kevin Pietersen (one) and Eoin Morgan (three) flopped for the second time and when Bell departed at 199 for six, England looked down and out before Davies (37*) and Broad (31) saved their blushes.
Despite the win England’s batting looked rusty ahead of the Test series that starts from January 17.
Earlier, the ICC Combined XI declared their second innings at 164 for nine with Afghanistan’s wicket-keeper batsman Mohammad Shahzad notching a defiant 74.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 10th, 2012.
Steve Davies and Stuart Broad shared a resolute seventh stand of 61 to help an unimpressive England win the three-day tour opener against ICC Combined XI by three wickets.
It was a case of another batting failure for the tourists as, chasing 261 to win, England owed the win to captain Andrew Strauss (78), Ian Bell (39) and Jonathan Trott (35) on the final day of the match.
Kevin Pietersen (one) and Eoin Morgan (three) flopped for the second time and when Bell departed at 199 for six, England looked down and out before Davies (37*) and Broad (31) saved their blushes.
Despite the win England’s batting looked rusty ahead of the Test series that starts from January 17.
Earlier, the ICC Combined XI declared their second innings at 164 for nine with Afghanistan’s wicket-keeper batsman Mohammad Shahzad notching a defiant 74.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 10th, 2012.