Battle for control over Sharjah Test begins

Sharjah: The mystery about the Sharjah Cricket Stadium wicket ended soon after the match commenced on the first day of the third Test. It’s no longer a batsman’s paradise like in the past but a wicket on which batsmen have to toil hard for runs and only bowlers who bowl intelligently can reap their rewards. The battle to wrest control over the Test is in full flow.

Pakistan skipper Misbah Ul Haq once again led from the front through an elegant knock of 71 runs with seven boundaries and two sixes. It was with his fifth fifty plus knock in his last six Test innings and with Sarfraz Nawaz (39) he put on a vital eighty runs partnership after half the Pakistan side were back in the pavilion for 117 runs. A total of 300 or more in the first innings would have been a winning one but with Pakistan being bowled out for 234, England is set to capitalise on it.

England’s pacer James Anderson was the pick among the bowlers with a deadly analysis of 15.1 overs, seven maiden, 17 runs and four wickets. Broad too bowled intelligently with spinners Samit Patel and Moeen Ali to take two wickets each. It was an excellent display of disciplined bowling. In the two overs before close, England made four for no loss on a wicket that is showing signs of prodigious turn.

Misbah won the toss for the sixth time in a row and may soon break the Pakistan record of seven times on the trot set by his manager Intikhab Alam. England’s Colin Cowdrey holds the world record with nine consecutive toss win in a row.

Opener Azhar Ali was brought in place of Shan Masood, who was dropped despite a half century in the second Test. Ali disappointed everyone by falling for a duck to the third ball of the third over by edging Anderson’s good length delivery that moved away. Wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow coming in place of out of form Jos Buttler took his first catch after nearly three years ago in the Sydney Test.

Shoaib Malek joined Mohammad Hafeez wanting a big score especially after his knock of 245 in the first Test in Abu Dhabi he had poor scores of 0, 2 and 7. Anderson after his first six overs for just six runs was replaced by left-arm spinner Patel in the 13th over. A surprise inclusion in the eleven, Patel hasn’t played since the tour to India in 2012.

Hafeez-Malek pair put on 44 runs in 17.2 overs when Hafeez on 27 virtually threw away his wicket by going for a mighty pull and top edging off spinner Moeen to Stuart Broad, who took a running catch moving in from deep backward square. Three balls later, Malek on 22 was given out leg before off Moen’s delivery but the review went in favour of the batsman.

Younis Khan carried the same form he displayed during his half century and century in the Dubai Test picking the right balls to hit.

Stuart Broad ended Malek-Younis 39 runs partnership in the third over after lunch when Malek on 38 poked outside the off stump to give Bairstow his second catch. Broad generated excellent reverse swing and at one stage he bowled seven maidens out of his eight overs giving away just one run and taking one wicket. However it was Anderson who replaced Broad that picked the prized wicket of Younis, trapping him leg before for 31.

Next man Asad Shafiq played 35 balls to score five runs and edged to wicketkeeper to give Patel his first wicket. Five down for 117, Pakistan needed a strong partnership and next man Sarfraz by stroking freely from the start settled down.

Misbah even hit Rashid for a six wanting to gain the upper hand. After Sarfraz fell rest of the batsmen made a bee line to the pavilion with single digit scores. In the end, Misbah too fell playing an unbelievable shot of poking at a wide delivery from Anderson to be caught at slips. It looked like a shot played out of disappointment at the fall of those quick wickets.