England target repeat of Pakistan Test whitewash

LONDON: Ben Stokes' England take on Pakistan in a three-Test series starting on Monday, buoyed by memories of an astonishing 3-0 series sweep in 2022.

England, third in the world rankings after winning five of their past six Tests, are facing a Pakistan team at a low ebb after being crushed by Bangladesh.

AFP Sport looks at some of the key talking points for the tourists ahead of the series, which starts in Multan.

Stokes factor

England last month wrapped up a 2-1 series victory against Sri Lanka 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 bowl when he does return.

The inclusion of Stokes as a specialist batsman would alter the balance of the side England favoured in the recent Sri Lanka series, where they played five frontline bowlers.

The visitors could opt to replace one of their regular top order with the skipper but it is more likely they would play four specialist bowlers and rely on Joe Root's off-spin to supplement the attack.

Stokes has not played for two months but he showed his worth against the West Indies, scoring three fifties in his last four innings of the series.

Bazball Mark II?

England’s tour of Pakistan in 2022 came in the first few heady months of the "Bazball" era — a method of all-out attack encouraged by Brendon McCullum, who had become coach earlier that year.

The visitors set the tone for the series on the first day in Rawalpindi, smashing a remarkable 506-4, with four men making centuries.

After England’s 4-1 series loss in India earlier this year, McCullum spoke about the need to "refine" their style and a less gung-ho approach of controlled aggression has paid dividends.

England demolished the West Indies 3-0 before beating Sri Lanka 2-1 on home soil.

"I think the 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 to Pakistan in 2022. All the players really enjoyed it and ultimately, England’s batting group are wonderful players of spin.

"I think they’re really positive and aggressive, they can find the boundary and don’t get tied down by spin.

"England will have to play fast-paced cricket to force results over there because you generally do need five days to make something happen."

Inexperienced attack

The era of Broad and James Anderson is over for England, who are trying to build a new pace attack that can take the fight to India and Australia next year.

Chris Woakes is the senior paceman and enjoyed a superb summer at home but his figures in overseas Tests 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 games.

But he, Matthew Potts and Olly Stone have just 19 caps between them and Brydon Carse will make his debut in Multan.

Aside from left-armer Jack Leach, who is back in the fold after being deemed surplus to requirements during the English season, the spin attack is also inexperienced.

Leach’s Somerset team-mate Shoaib Bashir has played just nine Tests while Rehan Ahmed has not featured since the India series, having made his debut in England’s memorable 2022 series win in Pakistan.

Broad warns that inexperience could cost the visitors.

"It’s very difficult to go into a Test match, particularly when Ben Stokes isn’t playing or not bowling with three very inexperienced bowlers because if it goes wrong and the spinner’s inexperienced you could lose a Test match in an hour," he said.