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England will be heading into their upcoming test series against Pakistan full of confidence having recently beaten Sri Lanka by a comfortable 2-0.
As the first test begins on July 14 at the Lord’s Cricket Grpund England will know they will face a bigger test after they were beaten by Pakistan last winter.
England go into the series with a relatively settled side. Alex hales has currently cemented his place at the top of the order alongside Alastair Cook Cook while most of the other spots look pretty much taken. However, Nick Compton will not be taking his place at number three after announcing that he would be taking a break from cricket.
This opens up another batting spot, which could be sorted with the return of Jos Buttler, and moving each batsman up one place, which would mean Joe Root at no. three, James Vince at no. four, Bairstow at no. five, Buttler at no. six and Moeen Ali at no. seven.
Obviously, if the same is to happen, the selectors would be hoping for Vince to get a few more runs, after he never misfired in the series against Sri Lanka.
England’s bowling attack seems in good form too, and should pose the Pakistan batsmen a lot of problems if they can get the ball swinging and seaming. Once again, James Anderson and Stuart Broad will be spearheading the attack.
As for Pakistan, they have brought over a squad with a mixture of experience and youth, with the return of Mohammad Amir making this a must see series for those who love the sport.
The quick left-arm bowler has only just returned after his five-year ban from cricket, but will be out to show everyone how good he really is.
The key men with the bat for Pakistan will be Mohammad Hafeez, Younis Khan and their captain Misbah Ul-Haq, who have a wealth of experience between them.
All in all, this series has all the ingredients to be a tight and exciting battle, and much will depend on how the tourists play the moving ball, while England will be looking to keep their momentum going.
