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Pakistan vs England 2012 Itinerary

Sachinism

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Flower not afraid to drop batsman England coach Andy Flower is considering dropping a batsman for the third Test after their latest abject showing against spin. More... Pakistan v England: Andy Flower 'not afraid' to drop batsman Sunday, 29 January 2012 Flower challenges England batsmen to learn quickly England coach Andy Flower says he is not afraid to drop a batsman for the third Pakistan Test after their latest abject showing against spin bowling. England were bowled out for 72 as they lost the second Test and the series. "There were some familiar mistakes and we need our batsmen to learn very quickly," Flower told BBC Sport. "We must pick what we think is the best XI to win the game. If that means making the odd change here and there, then we won't be afraid to do that." England enjoyed the better of the first three days in Abu Dhabi, before imploding on Saturday afternoon after being set a modest 145 to win the Test and square the series. TEST MATCH SPECIAL ANALYSIS Michael Vaughan, Former England captain & Test Match Special pundit Four of England's top six batsmen are out of form and their confidence has gone. But I would go with the same XI for the third Tests and say to them that they are playing for their places on the plane to Sri Lanka. If they fail again then you will have to change it for Sri Lanka because you can't keep going with a unit that is clearly struggling against spin bowling It was the third time in four innings this series that England have been bowled out for less than 200. "It was a horrible day to watch and a horrible day to be involved in," said Flower. "We got ourselves into such a great position to win the Test so to be bowled out for 72 is devastating. "Of course we went into that innings wanting to be as provocative and aggressive as possible, but we didn't deliver that at all. We didn't put them under any pressure and we allowed their bowlers to bowl at us. You can't escape that fact." With 19 of their 20 wickets in the game falling to Pakistan's trio of spinners, Flower admitted England have a problem they need to solve ahead of the third Test in Dubai starting on Friday, and Test series in Sri Lanka and India later this year. "With any issue you have in any facet of your life, the first step towards dealing with it is an accepting there is an issue and we can't get away from that fact," he said. "We have another Test match here and then the one-dayers and a couple of Twenty20s. Then we have Test series against Sri Lanka and India before the year is up. "These issues are not going to disappear. We have got to face them front on and we have got to face them with skill and a bit of courage. "We've got to be a lot better than we were yesterday. Each individual needs to work very hard at working out his own method of scoring and putting the bowler under pressure. "It's very important for us to go into this third Test match and do something about it. One of our jobs is to learn quickly. "We have world-class batsmen in our side, but they need to adapt very quickly and we are going to get another opportunity in the third Test." AGNEW'S ANALYSIS The footwork of England's batsmen was all over the place, and it is clear some of them have no confidence when it comes to playing spin in these conditions England must win the final Test to be certain of holding on to the number one spot in the Test rankings beyond 1 April. If they lose or draw, South Africa will overtake them by beating New Zealand 3-0 in their series in March. Should Flower make changes, Eoin Morgan is the obvious fall guy, with Ravi Bopara the only batting option in the squad. Frontline batsmen Morgan, Andrew Strauss, Kevin Pietersen and Ian Bell have not scored more than 32 in 16 innings between them this series. "Continuity of selection has been a part of our strength but very obviously we have to pick players who are most adept at dealing with these conditions," said Flower. "Selection is important and sometimes tricky part of our job and there will be some important decisions to make."

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saneindian Enthusiast

saneindian

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Cook, Strauss, KP, Bell have all handled Indian spinners quite well on spinning tracks in India (though not with as much bounce as has been there on Dubai wickets) on the 2006 and 2008 tours. So to say they can't play spin isn't quite correct. A major factor has been the quality of bowling by Ajmal, Rehman and Hafeez. They have given absolutely no respite to the batsmen, no lose deliveries on offer with wonderful variations. Misbah's aggressive field setting has helped them too.

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rkt.india Grand Master

rkt.india

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Cook, Strauss, KP, Bell have all handled Indian spinners quite well on spinning tracks in India (though not with as much bounce as has been there on Dubai wickets) on the 2006 and 2008 tours. So to say they can't play spin isn't quite correct. A major factor has been the quality of bowling by Ajmal, Rehman and Hafeez. They have given absolutely no respite to the batsmen, no lose deliveries on offer with wonderful variations. Misbah's aggressive field setting has helped them too.
Thing is they all 3 bowlers bowl quicker in the air and were getting sharp turn and were accurate, while our spinners bowl slow in the air and try to give flight, even Harbhajan, and are not accurate and then our pitches does not turn that quick, mostly slow with low bounce in the recent years. Paki bowlers are not big turners but accurate and turn enough to create doubts and do not bowl long hop freebies. Field setting is an important aspect as well, but a field is only good if bowlers bowl to the field. If you set fields for long hops for cuts and pulls then it shows bowlers are not bowling well and you cannot set enough close-in fielders then. Look at Swann, he was bowling slower in the air and was less effective than quicker Panesar.
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ganeshran Explorer

ganeshran

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Cook, Strauss, KP, Bell have all handled Indian spinners quite well on spinning tracks in India (though not with as much bounce as has been there on Dubai wickets) on the 2006 and 2008 tours. So to say they can't play spin isn't quite correct. A major factor has been the quality of bowling by Ajmal, Rehman and Hafeez. They have given absolutely no respite to the batsmen, no lose deliveries on offer with wonderful variations. Misbah's aggressive field setting has helped them too.
This. Rehman and Ajmal complement each other very well. Rehman hardly offers any loose deliveries and Ajmal has the variations. Each feeds off the pressure that the other has built. So blanket statements like England cant play spin are incorrect and credit should go to Pakistan for their bowling. English batsmen need to play more shots to put some pressure back on the bowlers. They just go into a shell and get out soon.
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asterix Proficient

asterix

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Okay.. Is it right for the coach to express their views in public? Do coaches express their views in public? I don't know because I've never heard any views from our pathetic coaches..so far.. So don't even know whether they have any views or strategies at all? All I hear is players facing the media.. Is that chewtiya Biscuit Dunk Fletcher a 'silent assasin'?

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rkt.india Grand Master

rkt.india

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Okay.. Is it right for the coach to express their views in public? Do coaches express their views in public? I don't know because I've never heard any views from our pathetic coaches..so far.. So don't even know whether they have any views or strategies at all? All I hear is players facing the media.. Is that chewtiya Biscuit Dunk Fletcher a 'silent assasin'?
He is not allowed to speak and give interviews according to his contract given by BCCI. They did not want another Greg Chappal considering his image of frank spoken man when he coached England.
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asterix Proficient

asterix

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He is not allowed to speak and give interviews according to his contract given by BCCI. They did not want another Greg Chappal considering his image of frank spoken man when he coached England.
That's been one of the major problems.. Our senior players don't like to be criticised in public and themsleves give stupid excuses about their pathetic performances.. Almost like living in a La La Land.. :(( I wanted the seniors to be phased out so that they guide the young players. But now I hope they all should be shafted out and let a new bunch of players in and give coach all the powers and allow him to speak..
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