England Will Go Into Test As Favourites: England v http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Pakistan-c755, 1st Test
The Match
England will play Pakistan in the first Test match of the four-game series. The match will be played at Trent Bridge in Nottingham.
England will go into the game with a lot of confidence, as they have been in very good form in this variety of the game. However, they will also realise that in the recent times, they have not been tested too much in Test matches – thanks to the back-to-back series against the lowly http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Bangladesh-c747.
On the other hand, Pakistan will also feel good about themselves, especially after the series against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Australia-c746 was drawn. The win at Headingley would have given them the boost to go into this Test match, thinking, that they can also win it.
The Pitch:
The game will be played at Trent Bridge in Nottingham. The track has had a result in each of the last six Test matches played here and the sporting pitch and the strong bowling line-ups in both the sides will ensure that even this one should see one or the other team winning it. A drawn game seems highly improbable.
England:
England does have a couple of injury issues, but the return of Kevin Pietersen and Paul Collingwood should augur well for the side. Ian Bell is obviously out of the game due to his fractured foot, but that gives the opportunity to the likes of Jonathon Trott or Eoin Morgan to make it to the playing eleven.
The bowling department will also be bolstered by the return of Graeme Swann, but how he bowls after being asked to appear in the court on a charge of drunken-driving, remains to be seen.
The Playing Eleven:
Andrew Strauss, Alastair Cook, Jonathon Trott, Kevin Pietersen, Paul Collingwood, Matt Prior, Steve Finn, Graeme Swann, James Anderson, Stuart Broad, Ajmal Shahzad
Players to watch out for:
Pietersen’s return will be the one to watch out for, but one also gets the sense that the fans will be interested in seeing how Trott bats against an opposition of considerable strength after his recent exploits against Bangladesh
Pakistan:
Salman Butt may have led them to a win in his very first game as a Test match captain, but now the pressure will be squarely on him. He will be looking to prove that the previous win was not a flash in the pan, and make sure his charges play as well as they did in the Headingley Test match.
What will be of particular worry for Butt is the fact that the game was won by the seam bowlers, and the batting continued to struggle. Against a side that will have the advantage of home conditions, things could get difficult if the batsmen do not step up and perform to the expected levels.
Of the two youngsters, Azhar Ali did well in the games, but Umar Amin’s spot could be in a bit of jeopardy. http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Yasir-Hameed-c2811 could be given his first chance in this game, after three years in wilderness.
The Playing Eleven:
Salman Butt, Imran Farhat, Azhar Ali, Yasir Hameed, Umar Akmal, Shoaib Malik, Kamran Akmal, Umar Gul, Saeed Ajmal, Mohammad Aamer, Mohammad Asif
Players to watch out for:
Mohammad Aamer’s excellent bowling had spelt trouble for the Aussies, and it will be a worth a watch against the English side as well.
Team and Player Odds:
England (1.91 at Stan James) strong favourites to win this game, but it will be difficult to ignore the Pakistani win in the previous match against Australia. The visitors go into the game at 4.33 (Ladbrokes) to win it.
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