Stand-in captain falls to brilliant catch, but all-or-nothing innings have been feature of his year
Matt Roller08-Oct-2024A missed stumping, a dropped catch, an injured opener and a second-ball duck: this was the chaotic half-hour under the Multan sun which underlined the scale of England’s challenge.England were ground down across a 149-over innings in which Pakistan posted 556 all out. Rather than pulling the plug early – as they did in a recent 10-wicket defeat to Bangladesh – Pakistan drove England into the dirt, with their physical and mental exhaustion evident as the innings wound to its conclusion.The longest Ollie Pope had spent in the field in his first series as England captain, against Sri Lanka, was 89.3 overs. This was new territory, with his seamers flagging after more than 20 overs each in punishing conditions, no assistance in the surface for his spinners, and the lingering knowledge that he would likely have to bat on the second evening despite his fatigue.Before he knew it, he was walking out to open the batting for the first time in first-class cricket, let alone Tests. Pope was off the field for a comfort break when Abrar Ahmed, Pakistan’s No. 11, slashed Joe Root’s attempted bouncer straight into Ben Duckett’s left thumb at slip, and the decision was quickly made that he should replace him at the top of the order.After waiting five-and-a-half sessions to bat, Pope’s innings was over after two balls. Naseem Shah dropped short, Pope latched onto a pull and Aamer Jamal flung himself to his right at midwicket, holding onto a blinding catch. As Jamal ran off in celebration, Pope dragged himself off as though in disbelief.This has been a bizarre year for Pope, albeit one that has encapsulated his curious Test career. It started with an epic, match-winning 196 in Hyderabad, one of his three hundreds in 2024, yet he has also failed to reach 20 in more than three-fifths of his innings. His average for the year, 35.47, is almost identical to his career figure.In fact, his duck on Tuesday – his third of the year – brought his career average back below 35, midway through his 50th Test match. He increasingly looks as though he will be remembered as a player of great innings rather than a great player, and his all-or-nothing record is more that of a middle-order strokemaker than a long-term No. 3.Jamal’s catch was the culmination of a bruising couple of days for Pope, which started on the first morning when he lost an important toss. In the field, Pope then missed a diving run-out opportunity when Abdullah Shafique – one of Pakistan’s three centurions – was on 34, and could not cling onto a half-chance at point when Shan Masood had 133.Related
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If comparison is the thief of joy then Pope is doomed to a life of misery when held up against Ben Stokes, perhaps England’s best captain of the modern era. Even Stokes would have struggled to restrict Pakistan on this surface – they racked up 579 against his side on a similarly lifeless pitch at Rawalpindi two years ago – and Pope did his best to get creative.England’s seamers shifted between orthodox plans, sustained bouncer ploys and umbrella fields but struggled to find any lateral movement, while their spinners generally bowled to in-out fields after Shoaib Bashir’s expensive first spell on the first day. Pope tried almost everything, but could not bend the game in England’s favour.By the time Abrar joined Salman Agha, Pope had burned his 11th and 12th reviews of his tenure, and is still yet to enjoy his first success. He needed a quick kill and a chance to put his feet up in the dressing room, but instead watched Jamie Smith miss a simple stumping and an weary Gus Atkinson let a catch slip through his fingers at midwicket.In reality, Pope’s batting is significantly more important to England’s medium-term planning than his captaincy, which is only an interim solution. Just over a year before the start of the Ashes tour which they have been building towards, he remains the most vulnerable member of their first-choice top seven.Duckett’s injury was the last thing that Pope – or England – needed to cap off two gruelling days in the heat, compounded only by Jamal’s catch. The only relief for Pope was that Zak Crawley and Joe Root batted serenely to chip away at the daunting deficit before the close, and there is nothing in the surface to suggest that England should not bat through the third day.If they do, Pope will have the chance to reflect on two of the most challenging days of his England career. When ruling himself out through injury, Stokes said that England’s seamers would quickly learn in Multan “how hard Test cricket can be”. If the stand-in captain did not know it already, then this was a reminder to Pope of the same lesson.
