Shiny Happy People and Dumb Angry Boys, or: things I have learned from the Eng v Pak Test series
Wasim Akram must be the loveliest former player in world cricket
he is also a treasure trove of experience and insight, and I would be a very happy viewer if he featured in all cricket punditry forever more
seriously though, Sky’s The Verdict has been an absolute joy during this Test series, with Wasim (and Mark Butcher) bringing a great blend of easy humour and thoughtful analysis to offset Bob Willis
even Bob was more twinkly than cranky
probably because this series has been GREAT
I mean, ngl, as an England fan a part of me would’ve been delighted had my boys managed to somehow pull it out of the fire for the second Test in a row and take the series, but a draw feels like completely the right result
a fair reflection of the fantastic spirit, standout performances, and baffling collapses of both teams
standout performances including (off the top of my head) Yasir Shah, Misbah-ul-Haq and Asad Shafiq in the first Test, Alastair Cook and Joe Root in the second, Sohail Khan and Azhar Ali in the third, Younis Khan and Shafiq again in the fourth, Jonny Bairstow and Moeen Ali for multiple lower middle order masterclasses, and Chris Woakes for, well, everything (except this morning’s runout *sceptical eyebrow-raise*)
BLUSHY CHEEKS GOT MAN OF THE SERIES HELP I CAN’T EVEN
by halfway through day 3 of the final Test, I wanted Pakistan to win the match because I couldn’t bear the thought of them losing the series
(actual quote from me to @twistsofsilver yesterday, in a chirpy and what seemed to me perfectly reasonable attempt to cheer her up over England’s batting woes: “But think how smiley Wasim will be in the Verdict when Pakistan win!” I am a terrible friend)
this is partly because, tbh, I hate seeing anyone lose
(except the Aussies; sorry, Aussie fam, age-old rivalries die hard ;))
but also because Pakistan have been all sorts of charming this summer, what with the press-ups and how comprehensively Misbah has turned things around for them and the prettiness of Sohail Khan & Asad Shafiq and the general never-ending bouncy enthusiasm of Yasir Shah
this morning Yasir was warming up about ten feet from where we were sitting, and he never once stopped beaming
(except when some fans called him over to do a selfie with them, and then suddenly he was all srs face XD)
talking of warm-ups, it turns out that - during the England boys’ daily football match - Broady will always take a shot on goal, however futile, rather than pass the ball
talking of questionable strategy, when James Vince got a swansong duck yesterday driving straight to a fielder for the 600th time, all I could think about was him singing “I did it… myyyyy way” as he hit the ball
(because, y’know, it’s important for batsmen to express themselves)
questionable strategy #2: Hales, wtf were you thinking, going to harangue the third umpire after you’d left the field?
Jimmy, this is partly your fault; you set the tone with your 3rd Test dissent
the series draw was fab, but you know what would’ve been even better?
it’s too soon for this series (and thus the English Test season) to be over
much like with the NZ series last year, I’ve loved watching Pakistan play and I’ve loved watching England play Pakistan
why are there so many so many ODIs, anyway?
DESTROY ALL LIMITED OVERS CRICKET AND REPLACE IT WITH MOAR TESTS
so canon: Nasser Hussain and Michael Atherton are officially married
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