[ad_1]
After the sledgehammer comes the scalpel.
England clobbered Pakistan with their run scoring, but it is the surgical way in which they picked their way through the home batting that may ultimately decide the first Test in Rawalpindi.
In Test cricket, runs are for show and wickets are for dough.
It is all very well slapping stacks and stacks of runs, breaking enough records to make Roy Castle proud (ask your parents, kids), but that counts for little if you don’t actually win the match.
On a sapping Saturday in Rawalpindi, with the sun high and the pitch sleeping, England’s tireless effort to take seven Pakistan wickets was just as important as the staggering 506-4 they piled up on day one.
“We’ve got a captain in Ben Stokes and coach in Brendon McCullum that don’t want draws. We’re not playing for draws,” said James Anderson before the Test.
“With the ball we’re trying to take wickets. The captain…
[ad_2]