England vs Pakistan: 5 players from Pakistan to look out for in the 2nd Test

In the first Test at Lord’s, Pakistan were clinical as they dismantled England in just 3 and a half days of cricket.

The bowlers put on a masterclass in both innings, while the top order and the lower-order did enough to pretty much bat England out of the game.

They need to avoid defeat in the 2nd and the last Test at Headingley to walk away with a well-earned series victory. However, it remains to be seen if they actually play for the draw since such an approach can often backfire.

After all, 2-0 is better than 1-0 and perhaps they will go for the win again. There is no reason for them not to go for it considering their brilliant show in the 1st Test and it could make for a gripping Test match.

Pakistan almost always have excellent cricketers who can light up a game of cricket and the Test match at Headingley will be no exception. Here is a look at the 5 players from Pakistan who will be closely watched by cricket fans.

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#5 Faheem Ashraf

The seam bowling all-rounder is a vital member of the Pakistani eleven and in the first Test match, Faheem Ashraf performed decently as the visitors recorded a famous win.

He is a steady bowler, who can fill in for the other fast bowlers during different passages of play and such attributes are extremely necessary for teams when they are playing away from home.

Although he took the vital wicket of Jonny Bairstow in the 1st innings, he would definitely like to add a few more wickets to his name in the 2nd Test.

As a batsman, Ashraf was crucial to the Pakistan batting effort in the 1st innings. He came in to bat at number 8 with Pakistan at 246 for 5 and then made an enterprising 37 to help them reach the eventual total of 363.

He is a very important player and in the 2nd Test, he would definitely like to make a bigger contribution to the team’s cause.

#4 Shadab Khan

Shadab Khan

He is one of the most talented young spinners in the world, but it was only because of an injury to Pakistan’s frontline Test spinner Yasir Shah that Shadab Khan was selected to play in this series.

In the first innings, he only bowled 6 overs as the fast bowlers did their job brilliantly while in the 2nd innings he bowled well and picked up the wickets of Stoneman and Ben Stokes to hasten the hosts’ slide.

However, it was his show as a batsman that came in for maximum praise. Batting at number 7, Khan made a brilliant 52 off 126 deliveries and helped his team put up a substantial score of 363.

The innings proved to be pivotal as England were pretty much batted out of the game. It would be very interesting to see how he goes about his business both with the bat and the ball at Headingley.

#3 Mohammad Amir

Mohammad Amir

He is Pakistan’s premier fast bowler and although he struggled to dominate at different points in the 1st innings of the Test match, Mohammad Amir produced two deliveries that will be remembered by all for a long time.

The first was the delivery to a well set Alastair Cook in the first innings, while the other was the beauty to Jonny Bairstow in the 2nd innings.

He picked up 5 wickets in the Test match in total, but he looked to be getting back in peak bowling form in the 2nd innings and he would like to start off from where left in the 2nd Test.

He is one of the most exciting bowlers to watch when he is on song, and if he manages to replicate his performance from the 2nd innings at Lord’s, then cricket fans are in for a treat in the upcoming Test.

#2 Asad Shafiq

Asad Shafiq

He is one of the most accomplished batsmen in the young Pakistani batting line-up and Asad Shafiq’s technical excellence, coupled with his stroke-making abilities makes him one of the most important batsmen in the team.

Moreover, he bats at number 4, a pivotal position in a Test match batting line-up and he has the perfect game for that particular positions.

At Lord’s Shafiq showed his skills as a batsman by making an excellent 59 before he was bounced out by Ben Stokes.

At Headingley, he would have to guard against the short ball and anything coming back into his stumps. However, there is no denying that Shafiq remains one of the most prized wickets in the Pakistan batting line-up.

#1 Mohammad Abbas

Mohammad Abbas

In the 1st Test, England were pretty much sliced and diced by the Pakistani pacemen and the man at the forefront of the carnage was their seam bowler Mohammad Abbas.

It was only the 7th Test match of his career, but Abbas bowled like someone who had been bowling in England for years.

He bowled the right lengths and moved the ball either way to cause all sorts of trouble for the English batsmen. He picked up 4 wickets in each innings and emerged as the best bowler in the Test match.

Abbas’ biggest strengths are his accuracy, seam movement and the ability to move the ball either way.

He does not give anything to the batsmen and so far it has proven to be quite difficult for the Englishmen to come to grips with his expertise.

In the 2nd Test, Abbas will try to repeat or better his performance from the 1st Test and how he performs will have a bearing on the direction of the Test match. Naturally, he is the Pakistani player everyone is most looking forward to watching in action in the 2nd Test.

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Who do you think are the key players to watch out for? Sound off in the comments!