NEWS
Follow UsOne of England’s assistant coaches, Jeetan Patel said it was "a hell of an effort" to pick up three wickets in the final session of day one of the first Test against Pakistan. The surface in Multan turned out to be a belter and Shan Masood (151) and Abdullah Shafique (102) put on 253 runs for the second wicket to put England on the mat.
The visitors, however, made a comeback of sorts in the third session. Gus Atkinson dismissed Shafique before Jack Leach got rid of Pakistan captain Masood. Chris Woakes then sent Babar Azam back to the pavilion with a peach of a delivery.
"I couldn't commend them anymore. I think the toil they put in today was high-end: the way they tried different things to take wickets, the different fields they had, the way they fielded. To take those three wickets tonight was testament to the work they'd done in the first two sessions. We're pretty happy with how it's ended up, with them four down,” ESPNcricinfo quoted Patel as saying.
"The guys were fizzing all day. Back in the day, it would have got a lot of people down. But we talk about the positive moments ... The guys went out in that third session knowing what they had to do, but also with enough energy to be able to effect it.
"I'm just really proud of them going through that. It's pretty hot out there. It was pretty docile at times. We probably expected (the ball) to do a little bit more this morning. It didn't, but that's okay. We'll figure it out, find out if it does the same tomorrow or not. But it was a pretty strong day for the lads."
Pakistan ended day one with 328/4 on the board, but Patel feels England could get back into the contest if they take a couple of early wickets on day two. "We always talk about putting two [wickets] on it: how does the game change? Now you've got a nightwatchman in, so maybe we could put three on it… 350 for 7? We'll just see what happens when we bat because we don't really know."
Patel has also been working with England's fast bowlers in the absence of James Anderson, who is in Scotland for a pro-am golf tournament. The former England seamer will join the squad on October 8 (Tuesday). "Two months ago, you guys were saying that he didn't deserve to be a coach just yet," head coach Brendon McCullum told Sky Sports.
"Now, it's like, 'We're missing him' - and I think that's a great affirmation of how good an impact Jimmy Anderson has made in a short period of time. He's got [WhatsApp] groups set up with the bowlers and is always feeding information through Jeetan Patel.
"We live in a world where you can still communicate without being face-to-face… I don't have any qualms whatsoever. I'm absolutely delighted for him that he gets the opportunity to do something he loves doing and when he gets here, he'll be right in the thick of it as he has done as bowling coach since he came in."
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