Why have Pakistan done well in England?
Since 1987, their record shows they have been competitive with the very best teams on tours there
Osman Samiuddin04-Aug-2020The English cricket summer has long held a central place in the Pakistani cricket calendar. But you could argue now that it has become a mere subset of the Pakistani cricket summer. Including this year and the next, when Pakistan are scheduled to visit for a limited-overs-only series, they will have toured England six summers in a row.The frequency and familiarity have helped Pakistan’s modern* Test record in England, which stacks up remarkably well, and not just among subcontinental sides. They’ve won three more Tests in that period than India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh combined. Their win-loss ratio is third, behind only Australia and South Africa.*Pakistan’s modern era in England begins in 1987, when they won their first Test series in England. They had already had a few closely contested series by then, including a 1-1 draw on their very first tour, and narrow losses in 1971 and 1982.ESPNcricinfo LtdA better measure than individual matches is series results, and here, Pakistan stand out. Only Australia have won more series in England in that period, and Pakistan have won as many as India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh combined. And though they haven’t won a series since 1996, they have drawn their last two series (in a period where, for instance, India have lost their last three series, and resoundingly).England is less imposing a place than, say Australia or South Africa, for all teams. Still, Pakistan have stood out. Why? What is it about England that brings out their best?Start as you mean to go on
Pakistan’s record in the first Tests of series in England is exemplary, second in win and non-loss percentages only to Australia and South Africa.
Time and game-time in the country before the Tests does help. In 1987, Pakistan played 13 games before drawing the first Test; 11 in 1992 before drawing the first Test; and eight in 1996 before winning the first Test. But in this century, which doesn’t allow for those luxuries, it is a little more complex.Since 2000, Pakistan have drawn a first Test after four games (2006) and lost one after three games (2001). In 2010 they played nine games before the first Test against England, (including two Tests against Australia) and were resoundingly beaten. In 2016 they only played two warm-up matches, but had spent a month together in a tough conditioning camp in Pakistan, and they won the first Test. In 2018 they played four games – including a hard-fought Test win over Ireland – before winning the first Test at Lord’s.What is clear is that those earlier Pakistan sides were simply better than England. This century that balance has changed and so too have first Tests become a little more difficult to predict.It’s all about the pace
From headliners through to support acts Pakistan’s fast bowlers have thrived in England. In stark contrast to their performances in Australia or South Africa, and perhaps because of strong experiences in county cricket, Pakistan’s pacemen have intrinsically known what to do on English surfaces.
The interplay between the average and strike rate is interesting. While the former is, literally, middling in comparison to other teams, the strike rate is second best (excluding Ireland). It can never be reduced to such simple conclusions, but it does tie in to the theory that Pakistani fast bowlers, historically, have been willing to attack for wickets at the cost of runs, and in England that has paid off.Spin it to win it
Instinctively, you’d recall Mushtaq Ahmed in the ’90s, Saqlain Mushtaq in 2001, and Yasir Shah in 2016 and think spin has been vital for Pakistan in England. It has, though not in a straightforward way. Overall Pakistan’s spinners average 40.51 per wicket, with a strike rate of 85.6. For a country with as rich a tradition of spin to only have three spinners average under 40 in England (one of whom – Saqlain – has only played one Test) suggests they have not known how to bowl there.ESPNcricinfo LtdBut as the figures of other teams show, England isn’t an easy place for spinners. Take out the two greatest of all time – Shane Warne and Muttiah Muralitharan – and no visiting team has really thrived with spin.ESPNcricinfo LtdWhat Pakistan have done is consistently selected and played good spinners in England – only Australia, thanks to Warne, have more total spin wickets in this time – in the knowledge that when conditions are right, they’ll do what is expected of them. Like Mushtaq in 1992 and 1996, Saqlain in 2001, or Yasir in 2016.The meat’s in the middle
Pakistan’s openers are a horror story in England. Their average opening partnership since 1987 is 25, the lowest among all top nations other than India. Per player, their openers average lower than all countries other than Zimbabwe and Ireland. They’ve also burned through more opening pairs than any other side (18) and it has become more acute since 2006, when they famously went through four opening pairs in one series.Girish TS/ESPNcricinfo LtdIn that crisis, however, has been opportunity for Pakistan’s middle order. Ultimately it is this engine that is as much responsible for Pakistan’s record in England as the fast bowlers. Pakistan’s middle order averages 38 in England in this time, which compares well to the hosts’ own: 38.82.Girish TS/ESPNcricinfo LtdOnly Australia’s and South Africa’s middle orders average more in the same period. That is testament to the quality of middle-order players Pakistan have brought over the years, as duos (Javed Miandad and Saleem Malik) or triumvirates (Inzamam-ul-Haq, Ijaz Ahmed and Malik, or Inzamam, Mohammad Yousuf and Younis Khan).No surprises that when you look at Pakistan’s best batsmen in England – who have scored 400 runs or more – seven of the top nine are middle-order batsmen, and only Azhar Ali (who has opened and played in the middle) averages under 40.Girish TS/ESPNcricinfo LtdLondonistan
It will have escaped no Pakistan fan’s attention that they are not playing a Test in London on this tour. Eight of Pakistan’s ten Test wins in England since 1987 have been at The Oval or Lord’s (and ten out of 12 overall).Whether that is to do with the conditions, or the part of the summer that they play there – Pakistan have won Tests in May, June, July and August – is not clear. One of their two wins outside the capital did come at Old Trafford (in 2001) though, where they begin the series on Wednesday.With inputs from Rajesh S, Shiva Jayaraman and Gaurav Sundararaman