England 274 for 6 (41 overs)
Davies 87, Trott 69, Ajmal 4-49
Steve Davies resumed his one-day international career in style with an impressive 67-ball 87 before Jonathan Trott compiled a more sedate 69 as England reached 274 for 6 at Chester-le-Street after the match was cut to 41 overs per side.
Saeed Ajmal did his best with four wickets Pakistan struggled to regain control. Mohammad Irfan’s much-anticipated introduction into international cricket didn’t quite go to plan. Umar Gul also didn’t do any better. While Shoaib produced a superb and unrewarded opening five-over burst.
England took the batting Powerplay in the 29th over and Paul Collingwood immediately broke free following a four over midwicket with a six in the same direction as he took it upon himself to make use of the fielding restrictions. But his next attempt at a boundary-clearing strike ended in the hands of deep square-leg. Trott registered his first boundary off his 54th ball when he back-cut Shoaib through third man and briefly Eoin Morgan threatened to take charge before becoming the second man to fall cutting. Trott brought up his fifty from 64 balls and immediately stepped on the gas with the confidence of a man who is in the form of his life. He finally dragged on against Ajmal and Tim Bresnan fell to that rarest of beasts – a Pakistan direct hit from long-on – but Ravi Bopara hit three sixes to ensure the momentum was all England’s.
No comments:
Post a Comment