Pakistan resume their acrimonious rivalry with England as they take on the top-ranked Test team in the first of the three matches that starts in Dubai today.
After leading his team through a dream run that saw it remain unbeaten in Test and One-Day International (ODI) series in 2011, Pakistan captain Misbahul Haq will be eyeing his biggest scalp yet: England.
Having got the better of relatively weaker sides in recent series, Misbah will be hoping for a repeat performance against stronger opponents, who have depth in batting and bowling.
The rival captains, however, believe that the greater pressure will be on the batsmen on both sides with the pitch likely to help spinners. Misbah maintained that his batsmen have a crucial role to play if Pakistan are to win.
“In Dubai, whichever team bats well has an edge,” he said. “It’s not only the game of spinners. Fast-bowlers will also play a very important role here. If you look at the series against Sri Lanka, the team which batted better, won.”
Misbah wary of England
The Pakistan captain was aware of the great challenge that Andrew Strauss’ men posed to his side despite his team’s familiarity with the conditions in the UAE.
“We have a balanced attack and the conditions here favour us but at the same time it’s important to play good cricket against England. They’re the top side in the world so we just can’t rely on the fact that we know the conditions well. We still have to play good cricket to beat them.”
Spin showdown expected
With Pakistan enjoying depth in their spin-bowling department, they will be hoping that Saeed Ajmal lives up to the hype that has been surrounding him after he revealed that he had come up with a ‘mystery ball’.
Pakistan are certain to play with both Ajmal and left-arm spinner Adul Rehman, while England’s Graeme Swann has also advocated the use of two spinners, an option that Strauss has not ruled out.
“It’ll depend on the pitch,” said Strauss. “You always pick the team which you think gives you the right balance to win and if the pitch turns a hell of a lot, then obviously two spinners become an option.”
Pietersen vows no spot-fixing jibes
Although the rivalry between both teams has often been plagued by controversy and bitterness, England batsman Kevin Pietersen promised there will not be any spot-fixing jibes aimed at Pakistan during the series.
The series is the first between the two teams since the 2010 spot-fixing scandal, which ended in lengthy bans and jail terms for then Pakistan captain Salman Butt and fast-bowlers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir. But Pietersen said the scandal will be banished from players’ minds when the cricket starts and dispelled any suggestions that England could use the issue to sledge their opponents.
“There won’t be an undercurrent about what happened in 2010,” he said. “We’ve spoken about it and it’ll not happen at all with us. Of course there’ll still be on-field chat because we play our cricket hard. There’s no way Jimmy Anderson, who’s a grumpy bowler, won’t be grumpy. But there’ll be no hangover from the past.”
The bad blood between Pakistan and England
1987 Gatting-Rana row
England captain Mike Gatting had a finger-wagging row with umpire Shakoor Rana in Faisalabad after the skipper was accused of moving a fielder during the bowler’s run-up. Rana stopped the game and called Gatting a ‘cheat’ to which the England captain prodded his finger at the umpire.
1992 ‘Ball-tampering’ saga
Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis demolished England with unprecedented reverse-swing but were accused of ball-tampering. Pakistan won the series 2-1 with Younis claiming 22 wickets and Akram 21.
Afridi damages pitch
Shahid Afridi was caught scruffing up the pitch with his boots when play was held up after a gas cylinder exploded during the Faisalabad Test. Afridi pleaded guilty and was banned for a Test and two ODIs.
2006 Oval fiasco
Darrell Hair penalised Pakistan five runs for ball-tampering in the Oval Test. So incensed was Inzamamul Haq that he refused to take the field after tea and was thus deemed to have forfeited the match. Pakistan were later cleared of the ball-tampering charges.
2010 Spot-fixing scandal
Mohammad Asif, Mohammad Amir contrived with captain Salman Butt and agent Mazhar Majeed to bowl deliberate no-balls during the Lord’s Test. All four were handed down prison sentences.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 17th, 2012.
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