Final Test match ends in a draw- England vs Pakistan, Test 3, Day 5
A long rain delay saw the final day of the Test begin at 4:15pm. The long delay to proceedings meant that the possibility of a positive result for England was cast into doubt.
England got off to the best possible start with Jimmy Anderson claiming his 600th Test wicket. Anderson caught the edge of Azhar Ali’s bat which was caught by England captain in the slip cordon. Anderson is the first fast bowler in the cricket history to reach this landmark and was the second quickest to reach the historic landmark. This significant milestone cemented Anderson as England’s greatest bowler and as one of the greatest of all-time.
The innings stalled, Pakistan were content in seeing out the day and drawing the Test match. Whereas, England were unable to threaten the Pakistani batsmen and the soft ball offered nothing for the bowlers.
Only one more wicket fell in the innings, England captain Joe Root took the wicket. But it was simply a consolation prize.
The game was ended and ended in a draw. England won the series 1-0 and finish off the summer winning both of their Test series against the West Indies and Pakistan who both played in the toughest of conditions and gave a great account of themselves.
Review:
This Test match was hampered by rain with the result being heavily influenced by the rain and the bad light much like the second Test of the series.
There were however many positives for England as they look to future Test series. First off, the emergence of Zak Crawley as a true number three batsman for England is a huge positive. He looked poised and calm throughout his innings finding it easy to score.
Crawley looked like an experienced batsman on his was to 267. He was the standout player of the Test and England can take great positives from Crawley finding his feet and showing his class on the international stage. As Nasser Hussain said on Sky’s broadcast, the next step for Crawley will be how he deals with the interest, intrigue and fame that this fantastic knock brought him.
Another positive for England is Jos Buttler’s return to form, behind the stumps the Lancashire keeper was brilliant. He took three great acrobatic catches one off the bowling of Dom Bess and one from Stuart Broad. His keeping has improved vastly over the series and he has shown why the England management has places so much trust in him. He also found form with the bat. He scored a much-needed half-century in the first Test which was crucial in winning the first Test. Buttler then backed that up by scoring an impressive 152 in this Test. He looked confident, assured and had clearly adapted his game to suit Test cricket; Buttler’s hard work in transforming his game to Test cricket is a welcomed delight for England as he provides much needed depth to the batting line-up.
The final positive of the series for England is James Anderson reaching his 600th Test wicket. This is a milestone that is very well deserved and is one that cements Anderson as a cricketing legend. Although this has no bearing on England cricket, this feel good story provides a good note to finish on.
England can look positively on this Test series and the summer. There were marked improvement throughout the summer. They have adapted to the way in which new coach Chris Silverwood wants to play, they put runs on the board and then bowled from a strong position allowing England to adopt attacking tactics. They have played well under difficult circumstances and have seemed to work as a cohesive unity under new direction under Chris Silverwood.
As for the visitors, they gave a good account of themselves with some good batting from Shan Masood and captain Azhar Ali. Pakistan showed their class with the ball, Abbas and Yasir Shah were fantastic all series long and placed England batsman under constant pressure. They also found two new bowlers with great promise. The youth of Naseem and Afridi showed talent and potential. Both have room to grow and learn but the future is bright with both.
Both teams can be pleased with the way they played and represented their countries with both teams heading in the right direction.
They will meet in a one match ODI series.
