England captain Ben Stokes, who is returning with the second Test, believes that Pakistan’s decision to re-use the pitch for the second Multan Test will ‘bring a lot more into the game for both teams’ as well. However, the pitch came under the scanner after the first Test where Pakistan lost despite scoring over 500 runs. Moreover, England too posted an outrageous 823 for 7 in 150 overs.
When Stokes was asked about this, he said: “I think if we went 1-0 down at the home, we would probably be going to our groundsman saying ‘can we have a bit more of this, bit more of that’ to use our home advantage in our favour. If you look at the way that first Test played out, if another like that was produced maybe it would have given us more of an advantage just because of the way that we take the game on and how we play it.”
He again shared, “Using a used pitch brings a lot more into the game for both teams, actually. So, if it does spin more, if it does reverse more, there’s more options there for both teams. It could be a tactic, but I am not sure. I have never seen a used pitch before used in back to back games, and I have also never seen fans that big standing as umpires.”
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Meanwhile, the big fans that Ben Stokes mentioned were industrial fans that the Multan Cricket Stadium’s groundstaff had used each day end to dry out the surface after watering it in the morning as well. Pakistan gave clear instructions to their head curator, Tony Hemming, to prepare a surface where the ball turns from day one, which demanded relatively lower moisture levels in the pitch as well. However, the groundstaff laid the pitch bare until late afternoon on Monday so it continues to dry under scorching Multan heat as well.
“It’s the first time I will ever be playing on a used pitch in a Test series. I think we could sit here and say ‘it’s going to do this, it’s going to do that’, but who knows? You’d like to think it’s going to offer the spinners a bit more than it did last week with it being used and hot. It is a slightly drier square so you might see a little more reverse swing which will bring seamers into the game,” Ben Stokes added, “We will have to wait and see what happens.”
Meanwhile, England would be overjoyed to see the return of Stokes. He will be returning to action two months after suffering a hamstring injury. He has earlier stated his intentions not to rush back into the game, considering the high chances of getting injured again.
“I have worked really hard on other parts of my fitness while I was injured,” he said. “I’ve had a fair few injuries. It is a part of what we do, part of how I play cricket, and my role. Injuries are frustrating but I like to keep a positive mindset. The thing that allows me to do that is telling myself, ‘when you get back on the field make sure you’re fitter than you were when you got injured’. Not only do I have a goal of getting my body back into a state of being able to play, but I also have an individual goal of making sure I’m physically fitter than when I got injured. It keeps me on track and keeps me positive throughout injuries, which are obviously frustrating.”
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“I am obviously playing as a third seamer. To be honest, playing on a used wicket sort of made the decision a little bit easier. But, you like to think that this is going to spin a bit more. We have got two workhorses in the team in Carsey [Brydon Carse] and Pottsy [Matt Potts] who are just going to keep going and going and going. But, I am available to bowl and obviously when I sense the time is right for me to maybe come on and make an impact there will not be any doubts in my mind that I can come on and bowl. You would like to think it might be a bit more in favour of the spin, hence playing on a used pitch made the decision a little bit easier,” he further added.
However, England have now won four consecutive Test matches in Pakistan. They handed Pakistan their first-ever whitewash at home with a 3-0 sweep in December 2022 as well.
