Can’t judge England too harshly, Woakes didn’t look like taking a wicket: Michael Atherton

Chris Woakes averages 51.88 with the ball in Test cricket away from home. Despite so, the England team management showed trust in him for the three-match series against Pakistan but Day 1 of the first Test didn’t go too well for the seamer. Ahead of the match, head coach Brendon McCullum showed confidence in Woakes and expected him to bounce back but the pacer couldn’t live up to the expectations.

Analysing his bowling, former cricketer Michael Atherton noted that Woakes showed no urgency in picking wickets. He analysed that the track in Multan and stated that there was no reverse swing in the offing, which made Woakes ineffective for the majority time. He picked up the wicket of Babar Azam towards the fag end of the day but Atherton wasn’t too impressed.

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He also remarked that the England bowlers shouldn’t be judged harshly for having a tough day on the field. Notably, Pakistan posted 328/4 on Day 1 as England bowlers couldn’t make much of an impact. Atherton stated that the surface was flat in nature and had nothing for the bowlers, but he reminded that the England bowlers didn’t try enough to pick wickets.

“You can't judge England too harshly. You have to remember that Test cricket in this part of the world, generally, you have flat pitches and long hot days. It's also a reconstituted attack and England haven't looked like taking wickets,” Atherton told Sky Sports.

Also Read - Twitter Reactions: Pakistan capitalize on flat Multan track as Shan Masood, Abdullah Shafique bring up tons on Day 1

“Chris Woakes has a point to prove in overseas conditions, but he didn't look like taking a wicket with the new ball and there has been no reverse swing for him. And Brydon Carse is on Test debut, and Gus Atkinson playing his first Test abroad... so they are mitigating circumstances," Atherton added.

Abdullah Shafique and Shan Masood were the stars for Pakistan on Day 1, both scoring a century each. On Day 2, Pakistan would hope to continue in the same fashion and put more pressure on England bowlers, who had a very rough day to start the series.