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BY DAVID LLOYD
FORMER ENGLAND SUPREMO DAVID LLOYD GIVES HIS POST TEST ANALYSIS
England came back down to Earth with a bump after their Ashes triumph, losing by 22 runs to Pakistan in Multan. Chasing 198 to win was just too much for the batsmen with only Bell and Jones exceeding 30.
There are those who will say that 198 in three and a bit sessions should be a piece of cake, but I tell you it never is - not in Pakistan anyway.
I'm not one to play the blame game, but I lay the blame fairly and squarely with the England bowling attack. If they hadn't successfully bowled Pakistan out twice in this match, England would have drawn it comfortably. Causing the Pakistan line up to collapse late yesterday was the worst thing that could have happened. If we had a less potent seam attack Pakistan, with their instinct for caution, would have batted on into the fifth day, and England would have only had two and a bit sessions to bat out with neither team fired up for a win.
It was because of England's bland bowling attack that we won the series here in 2000. We drew the first two tests, boring our hosts stupid in the process. Then, in Karachi, we accidentally bowled them out so late on there were only two possible results: a draw, or an England win. Of course on that occasion England scraped home just in time.
Quite simply, the problem with having a penetrating bowling attack is that you cause batsmen to get out. This creates a window of opportunity for a result. On this occasion it meant Pakistan had to go for it, all or bust. And they did it, making us look like chumps in the process.
I would like to see Ian Salisbury and Dominic Cork called up for Faisalabad. That way Pakistan will rack up two huge scores and not leave any time for themselves to win. That will give us a chance going to Lahore of escaping with a respectable series defeat.
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