The England cricket team displayed the true meaning of Bazball as they took on Pakistan in the first match of the red-ball assignment that started in Rawalpindi on Thursday (December 1). It was England’s first-ever Test match series in Pakistan after 17 years and they kickstarted with a blockbuster note as they thrashed Pakistani bowlers for 100 runs within 15 overs. At the end of the first day’s game, England posted a total of 506 runs on the scoreboard for the loss of just four wickets in only 75 overs.
After openers Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett gave a flying start to their side by registering stunning centuries as the tourists took the driver’s seat in the first session only, all the other batters except Joe Root took the hosts’ bowlers to cleaners. England batters hammered the young Pakistani bowlers all around the ground. Interestingly, four out of the six batters from the England side that came out to bat registered a century and made runs with a strike rate of more than 100. Yes, you read that right.
It has to be noted that several members of the English team were down with virus but just two hours before the start of the day’s play, England confirmed that they can field 11 players and the game went on.
Meanwhile, Pakistani bowlers are receiving criticism from all corners for their disappointing performance. Former Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Akhtar also took to his social media and showered praises on the way English batters performed on the first day of the Test series opener. In a video shared by Akhtar via his official Twitter account, he hailed England players for playing the way they did, despite being unwell. He said:
“Shukr hai abhi England team ki tabiyat kharab thi, jo kal report aa rhi thi, England ki team ki tabiyat theek nahi hai. Jab tabiyat theek nahi hai tab 500 maar diye, agar theek hote to bahut bura haal krte”
(Which roughly translates to: They scored 500 when they are sick. They would have thrashed us if they were fit and fine).
Akhtar showered praises on England’s Test coach Brendon McCullum and his “Bazzball” approach. He said: “Inke jo coach hai Brendon McCullum, vo ye believe ni krta ki Test matches aise khele jaye ruk ruk k.Vo believe krta hai run a ball khele jaye. Vo jab se aaya hai Test cricket mai, England ne maarna shuru kr diya hai. England nahi rukta. Batting line up unke pass bahut lambi hai. Vo kehte hai ki run a ball khelo bhyii Test matches bhi “
(Which roughly translates to: “Their {England’s} coach Brendon McCullum doesn’t believe in batting slowly in Test cricket. He asks his players to score run-a-ball. England have playing aggressive cricket since he came to the helm. They don’t stop. They have depth in their batting line-up. So, I think, Pakistan also needs to change the mindset”),
England batters made a mockery of Pakistan’s bowling attack with their sensational hitting. Speaking about the same, Akhtar pointed out how it will take a lot of hard work for Pakistani bowlers to become Test bowlers. Akhtar feels that the young lot has a long way to go and accepted that it wasn’t a pleasant sight to watch. He said:
“Nothing against the fast bowlers. T20 k fast bowlers hai. Inko Test fast bowlers banne k liye bahut mehnat krni padegi. Hamari team hai, abhi baccho ki team hai. Kafi innocent hai. Kafi arse baad khel rahe hai but it was not a pleasant sight to see ki hamare bacche was really hammered “
(Which roughly translates to: It’s a young team, full of innocent people. But Test cricket is actually very bruising. Pakistan need to assess where they are standing because it’s not easy. It wasn’t pleasing to see our kids getting hammered).”
