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Ben Stokes’ England face Pakistan in a three-Test series starting on Monday, buoyed by memories of a stunning 3-0 series sweep in 2022.
England, third in the world rankings after winning five of their last six Tests, face a Pakistan side at rock bottom after being crushed by Bangladesh.
AFP Sport looks at some of the key talking points for tourists ahead of the series, which begins in Multan.
Stokes factor
England cruised to a 2-1 win over Sri Lanka last month without skipper Ben Stokes, but he remains the team’s undisputed leader and talisman.
The 33-year-old all-rounder misses the first Test after failing to recover from a torn hamstring and it remains to be seen whether he will play on his return.
Stokes’ inclusion as a specialist batsman would change the balance of the team favored by England in the recent series in Sri Lanka, where they faced five frontline bowlers.
The visitors could opt to replace one of their usual top players with the skipper, but it is more likely that they would play four specialist bowlers and rely on Joe Root’s off-spin to complement the attack.
Stokes has not played for two months, but he showed his worth against the West Indies, scoring three 50s in his last four innings of the series.
Bazball Mark II?
England’s tour of Pakistan in 2022 took place in the heady early months of the ‘Bazball’ era, an all-out attacking method encouraged by Brendon McCullum, who became manager earlier that year.
The visitors set the tone for the series on day one in Rawalpindi, batting out a remarkable 506-4, with four men making centuries.
After England’s 4-1 defeat in India earlier this year, McCullum spoke of the need to “refine” their style and a less enthusiastic approach of controlled aggression paid off.
England demolished West Indies 3-0 before beating Sri Lanka 2-1 at home.
“I think this style will work in Pakistan, for sure,” retired England bowling great Stuart Broad said ahead of the launch of Inside Lord’s, Marylebone Cricket Club’s new digital platform.
“It was a great tour of Pakistan in 2022. All the players really enjoyed it and in the end the England batting group are wonderful players of spin.
“I think they’re really positive and aggressive, they can find the boundaries and don’t get caught up in the spin.
“England will need to play fast-paced cricket to get results there as it usually takes five days to get things done.”
Inexperienced attack
The era of Broad and James Anderson is over for England, who are trying to build a new fast-paced attack capable of taking the fight to India and Australia next year.
Chris Woakes is the senior pacer and has had a superb summer at home, but his overseas Test figures are poor, while express bowler Mark Wood is out of action.
Surrey seamer Gus Atkinson has enjoyed a remarkable start to his Test career, taking 34 wickets in his first six matches.
But he, Matthew Potts and Olly Stone have just 19 caps between them and Brydon Carse will make his Multan debut.
Apart from left-armer Jack Leach, who is back in the fold after being deemed surplus to requirements during the England season, the rotating attack is also inexperienced.
Leach’s Somerset teammate Shoaib Bashir has only played nine Tests while Rehan Ahmed has not played since the India series, having made his debut in England’s memorable 2022 series win at the Pakistan.
Broad warns that inexperience could cost visitors dearly.
“It’s very difficult to go into a Test match, especially when Ben Stokes isn’t bowling or bowling with three very inexperienced bowlers, because if it goes wrong and the spinner is inexperienced, you could lose a Test match in an hour,” he said.
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