Published: Jul 22, 2016, 02:07 PM (IST)
Edited: Aug 30, 2016, 07:09 PM (IST)
Greetings everyone! Welcome to CricketCountry’s live cricket blog for the second Test match between England and Pakistan. With a spirited performance at the Home of cricket – Lord’s, followed by a memorable victory, Pakistan hold a 1-0 advantage in the four-match Test series. The action is set to begin at Old Trafford in Manchester and England as expected might come hard at the visitors. They have made relevant changes in their squad and it will now be interesting to see how it goes for them. But Misbah-Ul-Haq and his team, will still rely on their spin magician Yasir Shah who will now walk in to the Test as the World’s No.1 spinner. But will the pitch favour the spinners or the pacers or both, stay tuned to find out as we bring you the live action. LIVE CRICKET SCORECARD: Pakistan vs England, 2nd Test at Old Trafford
England after a humiliating loss at Lord’s would have had a lot to discuss and ponder upon as they head into the second Test. They were done in easily by Yasir Shah’s leg-spin as he claimed 6-72 in the first innings and followed it up with 4-69 in the next. If there was a star for England in the first Test it was undoubtedly Chris Woakes, who gave a remarkable all-round performance. The batting will have to step to the task at Manchester. Captain Alastair Cook did play a fine knock of 81 in the first inning sbut the rest of the batsmen failed to reach a half-century. Among the bowlers, Jake Ball and Steven Finn are set to be replaced after James Anderson, Ben Stokes and Adil Rashid were added to the squad. READ: Pakistan vs England 2016, 2nd Test at Old Trafford, Preview & Predictions
Pakistan meanwhile, won’t relax after their win and should further seek to find answers to their worries. They cannot afford to be complacent. Mohammad Hafeez’ form would be one of their concerns. If the top-order can somehow absorb the wrath of the pacers early on, Pakistan’s middle order can capitalize. Infact, the middle order has looked solid. If the lower order can contribute, Pakistan would me even more happy. The bowling attack with Yasir and the three left-arm pacers had done well and should look to trouble batsmen if the pitch offers swing early on.
Squads
Pakistan: Mohammad Hafeez, Shan Masood, Azhar Ali, Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq(c), Asad Shafiq, Sarfraz Ahmed(wk), Yasir Shah, Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Aamer, Rahat Ali, Sami Aslam, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Rizwan, Imran Khan, Zulfiqar Babar, Sohail Khan
England: Alastair Cook(c), Alex Hales, Joe Root, James Vince, Gary Ballance, Jonny Bairstow(wk), Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Stuart Broad, Steven Finn, Jake Ball, Ben Stokes, Adil Rashid, James Anderson
LIVE CRICKET SCORECARD AND COMMENTARY: Pakistan vs England, 2nd Test at Old Trafford
