The last time England played away from home, I was deeply concerned about where they were going.
The series defeat by the West Indies, a 10-wicket defeat in Grenada, was like a car crash. There was no coach and obviously Joe Root could not continue as captain. ‘Red Ball Reset’ was a fluke.
If you had told me that nine months later England had won eight out of nine Tests, including two against Pakistan, I would have said that there was no possibility.
And yet, here we are in Multan, England have scored as many wins in Pakistan in one week as they have in 61 years.
This is an incredible change. Being up 2-0 and winning the series is a huge accomplishment. No England team has won two Tests in an away series against Pakistan and their last victory came 22 years ago against the same opponents outside Great Britain.
In between, and including some matches in the UAE, some of England’s most talented teams, captained by Michael Vaughan, Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook, left nothing to chance.
The success of Ben Stokes’ team is a reflection of his style of play. The turnaround from the beating in Grenada has been built on instilling unwavering confidence in the players.
What England has to say about players having a license to play freely is nothing new. However, the main difference now is that when it was said in the past, there was always a nagging suspicion that it wasn’t quite right, that if someone played a poor shot or made a mistake, they would be dropped.
Certainly not that feeling under Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum.
Even after England’s monumental win in the first Test in Rawalpindi, it was hard not to worry that the second Test had all the makings of a rout.
There was a lot going on off the pitch, especially with tight security around everyone who had traveled to Multan. A day before the start of the Test, gunshots were heard near the team hotel.
Defeated on a flat pitch in the first Test, Pakistan wanted Multan’s level to change and its wish was fulfilled. There were questions over England’s selection, with Ben Foakes left out.
In Abrar Ahmed, Pakistan had a debuting mystery spinner whom England have beaten on several occasions.
And yet, despite Abrar taking 11 wickets in the match, England prevailed.
They batted with their trademark positivity on the first day, reaching 281 in just 51.4 overs, when few England teams of the past had reached half the runs in the same amount of time.
Then, after that, England was able to adapt. Stokes was happy to set up a more defensive field for spinner Jack Leach on the second morning and England were rewarded. Later in the day, Stokes and Harry Brook stopped their attacking intent to consolidate England’s lead.
If we’re being picky, it could be said that England missed the chance to finish the match completely on the third morning, when they lost five wickets for 19 runs. The same thing happened on the second day in Rawalpindi, when they fell 100 runs short of the target of 750, they set themselves up to get it.
Positivity and ruthlessness are not mutually exclusive. There will be plenty of bravado from the England camp about “that’s the way we play”, but they will know there is little room for improvement.
The epitome of England’s success is, of course, Stokes. He is an inspirational leader, whose style is to set an example. This makes him an easy guy to follow.
The all-rounder has taken over the captaincy in a ridiculous manner. It’s not like these wins have fallen into his lap – he’s had to work for them. His strategy, especially on the day of the final in Rawalpindi, was brilliant, like nothing hidden in a coaching manual.
McCollum has a kindred spirit to Stokes. They are two men who do not allow any outside force to influence the team. All the players respect him immensely and hence buy the mantra.
England already hold a place in the record books, but head to Karachi for the third Test in pursuit of another piece of history – no team in Pakistan has recorded three wins in a single Test series.
There is room for some flirting with XI. Fuchs should return to the team in place of Will Jacques. Ollie Pope has done well behind the stumps but Fowkes is England’s number one and the best keeper in the world.
England should also consider taking a look at 18-year-old leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed at Leach’s expense.
They are due to play five Tests in India next winter and will need at least one more spinner, so what better place to learn about Ahmed than in the subcontinent he has already won the series?
England knows all about Leach. He bowls a lot of balls that good players can hit for four. If Ahmed really has the potential, it would be a waste for him to come here and sit out all three Tests.
We’re less than a year on from England’s hammering in Australia, but Stokes’ side have just four more Tests before they try to recapture the culture – Karachi, two New Zealand, Then meet Ireland.
It is hard to see England going off the rails at this point. The challenge for them will be mental. Can they get themselves to a place where they truly believe they can beat Australia, after being so badly beaten down the stretch?
Australia will be rooting for him, confident he can win in England for the first time since 2001.
England will do the same. I’m so excited already.
