All the criticism of the Pakistan captain before the game seemed misplaced: their problem isn’t his strike rate at the top of the order, it’s the inability of the middle order to slog spin or even read Rashid. While they looked like they were going over a glue trap after the Powerplay, England’s fastest bowler Luke Wood demolished them. Richard Gleeson picked up a back problem in the first match and is likely to open today, which will give England a chance to assess either how Olly Stone’s recovery is going or give Tom Helm a debut. Both can replicate Gleeson’s pace, which, given the sterility of the pitch, will be essential if they decide not to try Liam Dawson as the third wicket-taker given Pakistan’s struggles against Moeen and Rashid. Jos Buttler, Mark Wood, Chris Woakes and Reece Topley may not feature until the three Lahore matches… if at all. There is also some talk of a batting rotation, with Will Jacks or Jordan Cox possibly coming in for Ben Duckett, who did well in his recall with a 17-ball 21, but it may be fateful to play just two or three times on the tour because England want to give equal opportunities to each of the three middle-order prospects who are not in the World T20 squad. As for Pakistan, I’d like to see Aamer Jamal make his debut – he’s a batsman who can score consistently at a strike rate of over 150, while Mohammad Hasnain, the third man at 90mph, should come for Naseem Shah who seemed to have a very muddled approach to the first T20, ignoring his explosive physical assets for some Dernbachian obsession with clumsily disguised slower balls.
