Pakistan will be one half of an all-Asian final at The Oval on Sunday. Here they out-bowled, out-batted and out-thought an England side neutered by the occasion, the nature of a secondhand pitch and vibrant, skilful opponents
Against the odds Pakistan raced to the most emphatic of victories by eight wickets with 77 balls to spare to the delight of their fans, who were certainly noisier and probably more numerous than those supporting the home side.
England scored an improbable 211 from 49.5 overs. In this era one can expect them to be dismissed for such a low score now and again but surely from no more than 35 overs, so aggressive has been their modus operandi. That total was nowhere near enough. Triggered by another exotic innings from Fakhar Zaman (57 from 58 balls) Pakistan’s batsmen spared their ecstatic supporters any stress, apart from the puzzle of acquiring some tickets for the final.
The semi-final was really won by Pakistan in the field. A makeshift attack, devoid of Mohammad Amir, who was suffering from back spasms, and expertly marshalled by the increasingly Napoleonic Sarfraz Ahmed behind the stumps, bowled with great discipline and controlled aggression. A couple of dropped catches were of no consequence since the much-vaunted England batting lineup invited a variety of cliches. Were they flat-track bullies, one-trick ponies or all mouth and no trousers? Or a combination of all three?
We know Eoin Morgan’s side can devastate opponents on benign batting surfaces in routine ODIs. They have done this consistently over the past two years. Here they encountered a surface that was tricky, though, as Pakistan demonstrated in the afternoon, hardly impossible. And it was a match with all the obvious consequences. They could not adapt.
In their first 25 overs England had managed 118 for two. Progress had been slower than usual but there was surely scope to accelerate. In their second 25 they mustered 93 for eight. Their travails were highlighted by the innings of Ben Stokes, who scored 34 from 64 balls without hitting a boundary, the highest boundary-free score for England in ODI cricket since Paul Collingwood “struck” 47 from 71 balls against Pakistan in 2010 at Southampton – in a match England won. Stokes’ innings was the equivalent of Ernest Hemingway striding into a bar and asking for an orange juice. – Cricinfo
