England vs Pakistan: England Announces Squad for 1st Test, Eoin Morgan replaces injured Ian Bell
Hosts England have announced a 12 man squad for the opening Test match against the rampant Pakistanis, who will come into the match fresh from a historic Test win over the Australians at Headingley, Leeds, that broke an embarrassing sequence of 13 consecutive test defeats that spanned 15 years.
The opening match of the four test series between the English team and Pakistan will be played at Trent Bridge in Nottingham.
The English squad includes Irishman Eoin Morgan, who has been drafted in the team after batsman Ian Bell suffered a foot injury during the One-Day International series against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Bangladesh-c747 that has ruled him out of the entire series.
England’s T20 captain Paul Collingwood has been slotted back into the squad after being rested for the last two Tests, and Morgan had looked likely to be the one to sit on the sidelines until Ian Bell suffered the broken foot at Bristol during the second Bangladesh ODI.
England National Selector Geoff Miller told the media that he was happy with the team that has been shortlisted for the series against Pakistan, as he feels that they have the ammunition to topple the Asians who are high on confidence after their win at Leeds.
"We have picked a very strong squad for the first Test against a Pakistan side that will be high on confidence following their recent win against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Australia-c746,” said Miller.
He added that Bell’s injury has provided Morgan with a big opportunity of succeeding at the highest level of the game, considering the formidable attack that their opponents possess.
"Bell's untimely foot injury during the NatWest Series was obviously a disappointing blow, but he is now focused on his rehabilitation and should make a full recovery in due course. Ian's absence provides other batsmen with the chance to impress against a world class Pakistan bowling attack."
The team also possesses a formidable pace attack, with the likes of Steven Finn, James Anderson, Stuart Broad and Ajmal Shehzad all expected to make life difficult for the inexperienced http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Pakistan-c755 batsmen who had a tough time against the Australians and are set to be severely tested by the English attack.
Off-spinner Graeme Swann, who has tasted considerable success at the highest level in recent months, is also expected to play an influential role, as the wickets are expected to take spin with the latter half of the English summer approaching.
Despite the absence of Ian Bell, England’s batting order looks solid in the presence of skipper Andrew Strauss, Kevin Pietersen, Jonathan Trott, Alastair Cook, Morgan and wicket-keeper batsman Matt Prior.
Their task will, however, be cut out in the presence of the three pronged seam attack possessed by Pakistan, with the likes of Umar Gul, Mohammad Aamer and Mohammad Asif bundling the Australians out for 88 in the first innings of the second Headingley Test (MCC Spirit of Cricket Test Series).
The last time the two teams clashed in a Test series was in 2006, when the English team won two out of the first three tests, before being awarded the final test match at the Oval when Pakistan staged a walkout in protest over ball tampering allegations leveled against them by Australian umpire Darrell Hair.
The match was awarded to England as the umpires deemed that the match was forfeited by http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Inzamam-ul-Haq-c64383’s men.
England squad: Andrew Strauss (capt), James Anderson, Stuart Broad, Paul Collingwood, Alastair Cook, Steven Finn, Eoin Morgan, Kevin Pietersen, Matt Prior (wk), http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Ajmal-Shahzad-c42489, Graeme Swann, Jonathan Trott.
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