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Why Nasser Hussain called Ben Stokes’ approach as one of the greatest Test captaincy he had ever seen: How England won a famous Test in Pakan

Pakan’s Salman Agha falls to a reverse swinging ball from Ollie Robinson. DRS gives England the lbw. Pakan need 84, with four wickets left. Final session on. Drama on.
Naseem Shah bowled but….
Naseem Shah is bowled first ball. Wait. The bails don’t fall. Ollie Robinson can’t believe it. “Lower your back lift, Naseem Shah,” says Nasser Hussain on air. It’s reversing. End of the over. Ollie Robinson walks across, lightly taps the off stump with his foot to check what was going on there. The bail does fall this time. Such is life.
Robinson strikes again
New ball has been available but England haven’t taken it. 83rd over. The ball has been reversing. Wise decision. And it’s proven again as Azhar Ali flicks a reverse-swinger straight to Joe Root at leg slip. Robinson is delighted, to say the least. Just 3 wickets remain now.

Unbelievable Robbo!! 🔥
This is Test cricket at its very best.
🇵🇰 #PAKvENG 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 pic.twitter.com/y5geMkeUP8
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) December 5, 2022
Seamers from both ends, let the reverse swing take over
What’s the field for Ollie Robinson for Mahmood? A leg slip, a forward short-leg and another very squarish short-leg. Interesting to say the least. Will Ben Stokes bring on the seamers from both ends now? Jack Leach had been bowling with Robinson. Time to let reverse create havoc from both ends?
Remember this was considered an absolute road of a pitch. England then spiced things up declaring their second innings, setting Pakan 342 to win in about 100 overs. And now England are doing in Pakan with the most Pakani art of them all: reverse swing.
Pressure ‘closing in’ on Mahmood
This is the legspinner Zahid Mahmood’s debut Test. He finished with most expensive figures for a debut in Tests with 33-1-235-4. Now, the Test hangs on his bat. Can he hold on? Wow. Three men around the bat for Ollie Robinson. The short leg is so so close, he can pickpocket Zahid Mahmood if he wishes. And two men behind him- squarish and to his left.
Anderson and Stokes take over, time running out  
For Naseem Shah, James Anderson has a silly point, leg slip, leg gully and a short-leg. Naseem hanging on for his dear life. Ben Stokes brings himself on to replace Robinson, who gets a high-five from McCullum in the pavilion. Stokes produces the away-reversing ball to both Mahmood and Naseem. When will he shape one in ? Watch out Naseem.
45 minutes remain. 12-13 overs. But the light dips out rather quickly here. So England will have to strike now if they want that famous win. Will they try the new ball or stick to the old reversing one?
Lightning strikes twice inside three deliveries
Ollie Pope goes diving to his left to pluck a superb catch to take out Mahmood. It was the short one from Anderson on the rib cage, and Mahmood tries to glance, but edges it down leg. Out flies Pope, the wicketkeeper.
5 men close on the leg side for Anderson. The leg slip, the leg gully, short leg, squarish short leg and short midwicket. All of them jump in air to appeal for a lbw against Haris Rauf off Anderson. Umpire gives it out. DRS makes England hop in joy. Just one more left.

The Anderson fielding setup
Former Australian first class captain Keith Carmody had a field named after him: The Carmody field – he had fielders peppered across the arc from gully to square-leg. Now Anderson extending it to have men around from short covers to short midwicket.
Bazball with the ball, in the field
How many English newspaper will go with this photo of the field. Barring the mid-off, they are all clustered around the bat, from short cover to short midwicket. Three in variations of short-leg alone.
When it started Bazball was about the way they batted. now, it’s visible in the way they bowl and field.
Shah survives, only just
OH! What a miss. Naseem Shah had done a Kris Srikkanth type shot through the slips, opening his bat face. But Joe Root at first slip, shuffled to his right, to let the keeper take it but Ollie Pope had frozen, staring at him. The ball flies through to the boundary.
Game resumes after drinks break
Mohammad Ali, the fast bowler on debut, takes time to don his gloves. Ben Stokes shakes his head. so do his team-mates. England ready to bowl, obviously. Pakan not ready to bat, of course. Around 25 minutes left. Last wicket standing.
Ben Stokes fires in two bouncers at Naseem Show in a row. One cracks his gloves. Surprisingly, Naseem doesn’t call the physio to take out some time. Mohammad Ali even ran all the way across to say something but Naseem just takes strike. Sunil Gavaskar would have been so disappointed with that!
Modern day Jacques Kallis
Stokes is the modern-day Jacques Kallis. As far as bowling goes. Like Kallis, he loves his bouncers. At least three in that over to Naseem. Two troubled him and one flew over. Now, Stokes brings in the left-arm spinner Jack Leach instead of Anderson.
Down on knees 
8 men around the bat. Short leg on his knee. A very short mid-off and mid-on in. Waiting palms all around Mohammad Ali who has defended pretty stoutly and pretty well so far.

8 men around the bat. Short leg on his knee. A very short mid-off and mid-on in. Waiting palms all around Mohammad Ali who has defended pretty stoutly and pretty well so far.
Screengrab: Sony Liv#ENGvsPAK pic.twitter.com/eq4OS3elC1
— Express Sports (@IExpressSports) December 5, 2022
Captain in a hurry
Ben Stokes runs back to the top of his run-up between deliveries to save time. He has produced two outer edges from Naseem (partly steered) down the ground. Stokes takes the new ball and sails it down the leg side. “He is rushing here. Needs to gather himself,” says Nasser on air. In comes the bouncer. Of course.
With the light set to fade, it remains to be seen how long will the umpires allow the fast bowlers to be on. For the last few days, spinners have been finishing up the day. Robinson and Stokes on now.
Bouncing the last pair
Robinson tries a bouncer after Mohammad blocked the length balls pretty comfortably. Mohammad Ali lets that one go and defends the next one. Naseem applauds. The last wicket pair of Naseem Shah and Mohammad Ali have played out 8.2 overs so far. Just 15 minutes remain now.
Jack Leach does it again
The in-drifter and it beats the forward prod to trap Naseem Shah in plumb. He has taken the DRS. Don’t think it’s going to change. England on brink of a famous win. And it is out. Game over. England have not only shown the world how to play T20 and ODIs. They are now the leaders in Test cricket. Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum – take a bow!
The GOAT Test match win
“One of the greatest Test match wins you will ever see. One of the greatest Test captaincy you will ever see. Their charismatic captain does it,” coos Nasser Hussain on air. Can’t argue with that.
“I don’t think I have seen better captaincy than what we have seen this week from that man – Stokes,” Nasser, not shy, again. Stokes is wandering around the field, soaking it all in.

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