England has emerged the winner of their Test series against Pakistan with a 1-0 victory. The unusual scoreline was as a result of bad weather with heavy rain falling aggressively almost every match day. The final day of the third Test series would have gone to waste as the rain began early in the morning, with action resuming at 16:15 at Ageas Bowl, Southampton. The day ended in a draw but that was all England needed to claim victory over their Asian visitors.
One remarkable outcome of the event was that it witnessed the setting of a new record as England’s James Anderson became the first bowler to reach 600 Test wickets. He achieved this feat after he striking his 14th ball of the day, which caused Pakistan’s skipper Azhar Ali to be caught at first slip by the captain of the English side, Joe Root, who also caught Asad Shafiq. The game was uneventful after that as it was obvious that both sides could not play and both captains bumped fists to end the match nearly two hours later, settling for a draw. Pakistan ended the third Test with 273 & 187-4 while England finished with 583-8.
This is England’s second straight Test win after beating West Indies 2-1 last month. That Test also took place in England and marked the resumption of cricket in the country. This Test series was not very enjoyable as the rain made things difficult, especially the second test where a total of 134:3 overs was played in five days. Suggestions were made, such as starting the matches earlier or using floodlights to help with visibility. Sadly, none of the suggestions would have been useful in the final test as the rains started earlier than usual and the energy around the pitch was low.
But the Test was a real joy for Anderson who was already getting frustrated on the final day with fears that the match would be cancelled, leaving him at 599 wickets, especially as England would not be playing any more tests this year, meaning he would have had to wait a long time before creating his record.
Written by: Leon Osamor
