England v Pakistan - First Test

Lord's, London

England: JB Hobbs, *L Hutton, WR Hammond, KF Barrington, MC Cowdrey, IT Botham, +LEG Ames, JC Laker, H Larwood, FS Trueman, DL Underwood.
Pakistan: Mohsin Khan, Mudassar Nazar, Majid Khan, Javed Miandad, Saleem Malik, Asif Iqbal, *Imran Khan, Wasim Akram, +Wasim Bari, Fazal Mahmood, Waqar Younis.

Debuts: Nil
Umpires: BC Cooray (SRI) & LH Barker (WI)
Toss: Pakistan

Season 6 of ATG cricket got under way at a sunshine-drenched Lord's, and after Imran's somewhat surprising decision to insert his opponents it was England that made hay, rattling up an imposing 515-6 before Hutton declared on the second evening. A magnificent, undefeated 243 from Hobbs was the cornerstone of the innings, although it must be said that he did enjoy more than his fair share of good fortune during his twelve hour stay at the wicket. Barrington and Cowdrey both contributed to consecutive century partnerships, and then Hobbs hooked up with Les Ames to put together a new Test record for the sixth wicket, with Ames' 137 coming out of a stand of 236. With Qadir and Tauseef both pulling out before the Test, Pakistan's attack was one-dimensional on a flat wicket, and the tourists would now be on the back foot for the rest of the match.

After both openers fell cheaply, everyone bar Wasim Bari at number nine got a start in Pakistan's reply, but only Majid's 75 provided any real substance, and all of the English attack took wickets as poor shot selection saw the tourists subside to 228 all out on the third evening. Botham put in his best performance with the ball for some time to record figures of 4-44, and with a lead of 287 Hutton decided not to enforce the follow-on, armed as he was with the knowledge that the pitch was likely to offer up some uneven bounce the further the match went.

For now though the pitch was still playing well, and Hobbs and Hutton's eleventh century opening stand put the game far beyond Pakistan's reach. Both fell in the seventies as England made a final push for quick runs on the fourth day, and Hutton eventually made his second declaration of the match midway through the afternoon session, England's total of 206-3 setting Pakistan an impossible target of 494 for victory. More realistically the tourists now had four and a half sessions of batting to save the match, but a devastating spell of 3-0 in six balls from Trueman reduced the innings to 4-3 before tea, and with Mudassar unable to bat due to a broken finger he sustained in the field, the writing looked on the wall for the tourists.

Majid (31) and Imran (17) both dug in to offer Asif some support, but from 91-4 overnight England were able to wrap up proceedings before lunch on the final day, Asif last man out after riding his luck for a heroic, but ultimately fruitless 85. Trueman completed a triumphant return to the England team with figures of 6-40, his best ever analysis in ATG Tests, and England's 338 run margin of victory accurately reflected the gulf that was apparent between the two sides over the course of the five days. Pakistan will need to regroup quickly before the second Test, and they will be sweating over the fitness of a number of the squad before the teams reconvene at Edgbaston.

1st innings scorecards (click to enlarge)

2nd innings scorecards (click to enlarge)

Scores
ENG 1st Inns 515-6 dec. (Hobbs 243*, Ames 137, Cowdrey 47, Barrington 43)
PAK 1st Inns 228 (Majid Khan 75; Botham 4-44)
ENG 2nd Inns 206-3 dec. (Hutton 75, Hobbs 73)
PAK 2nd Inns 155 (Asif Iqbal 85; Trueman 6-40)

ENGLAND WON BY 338 RUNS


Man of the Match: JB Hobbs