Asked if England’s performance and victory during the last tour of Pakistan in 2022 had a lasting impact, Shan Masood did not hesitate to say: “It had an impact on the world.” The series is considered the greatest achievement of the British team to date. They were the first, second and third teams to score over 250 runs at a batting average of 5.30 against Pakistan, winning 3–0 on a flat pitch and in unfamiliar conditions. In the second innings of the first Test match, they scored a maximum of 7.36, a score of 8.22 which was unmatched in cricket history until India scored 285 against Bangladesh last month.
“The way Ben [Stokes] has led this series has been fantastic,” said Ollie Pope, who will captain England in the opening Test in Multan on Monday morning. “He took a big risk in the first Test, it paid off and the nature of the pitch showed he had to make a move if he was going to get a result.”Pakistan have been trying to adopt the team core approach of late. “We always play our best cricket when we are not too concerned about the result and play gutsy cricket and take the game to the opposition,” said captain Masood. “The best thing England did was realize that there are different perspectives and things that suit them. The most important thing is to find new ways. This is how the world has evolved and cricket is no different. You try to develop and create new ways, and Britain has been a pioneer in that direction.”
England have talked about “refining” the style this year, but Brendon McCullum said on Sunday it was a misunderstanding. “When we talked about sophistication, we were talking about some of the personnel in our group,” the England manager said. “It wasn’t the approach that was the problem. “The approach has never changed.”England know the path to success in this series could be very different to the one they are charting in 2022. “The key to the tactic a few years ago was to understand that you needed enough time to take 20 wickets in every Test, so you had to force the run-rate,” McCullum said. “We will see what happens in the coming weeks. If that’s the tactic we need, we’ll go all the way. “Otherwise, hopefully we’ll be smart enough to adjust our [tactics] and get to the end.”
What makes this visit significantly different from previous visits to the UK is that it took place in December. Two months ago, in McCullum’s words, “things got a little more difficult… It is very hot at first. We believe we need to be very flexible with our plans and adapt as quickly as possible. That’s how it works in games, right?McCullum praised Stokes’ futile efforts to get fit before the start of the series. “I’ve never seen a professional athlete train so hard. I don’t think most people would have come close’ – and defended his fast bowling coach Jimmy Anderson’s decision not to play golf for the first six days of the tournament. He said of Anderson, who will arrive on Tuesday: “He’s always in touch with the kids and it’s a good sign that he will be missed by everyone after just two months in the role.”
“Jimmy lives his life like everyone else. We always strive to help people enjoy their family life, hobbies and fun. “I don’t think it’s a big deal.”Pakistan faced some serious problems last year as they lost all the five Tests they played. The first was a 3-0 defeat in Australia under Masood’s captaincy and worse, a 2-0 defeat at home in Bangladesh. “We kept winning, but the game was out of our hands,” Massoud said. “These are things we have to learn. The point is to make sure we finish the game. There is a lot of disappointment among the players. 2024 has not been a good year for Pakistan cricket and I would like to see the fans happy. We suffered. The answer should be yes. “We leave the past.”
