By Ewan Day-Collins

England will grace pastures new for the next two months as they play Pakistan in a three-match Test series, followed by four ODIs and three T20s in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. According to captain Andrew Strauss it will be a “stern challenge” for England who have to combat not only the relatively unknown pitches of the newest additions to the cricketing world, but also a Pakistan team in better form than many are aware of. England must especially be aware that their opponents’ squad includes the potent off-spinner Saeed Ajmal, who took exactly 50 wickets in just 8 Test matches in 2011.
 
The new-found difficulty for England will also be of dealing with the pressures of residing in the highest Test position. Though Strauss referred to it as “only a sheet of paper”, its standing and the expectation that comes with it are not meaningless or inconsiderable. England will be anticipated to beat difficult opposition including South Africa at home and India away after this series. Strauss is too pragmatic, however, to get preoccupied with distant thoughts. “I honestly believe it is dangerous for us to look too far into the future at this stage. These next two tours coming up is going to be what sets the tone for what’s coming up in the rest of the year, so it is important to focus on those first of all,” he said.
 
The England captain would be correct in fearing a Pakistan team overshadowed by claims of spot-fixing, ultimately leading to three players being sent to jail. They have played nine Tests in 2011, winning six, drawing two and losing only one. This appears formidable, albeit they played Bangladesh and Zimbabwe, who occupy the two bottom places in the rankings, during that period. Even though a team at the other end of the rankings will inevitably hold a more difficult task, Strauss is mindful of Pakistan’s brilliant form and their supposed home advantage.
 
Playing in Abu Dhabi and Dubai is “an advantage to Pakistan because they are more familiar with the conditions than we are.” Pakistan has played 37 matches in all formats at the grounds, winning over half. The pitch is “more sub-continental that it would be in England”, pitches on which sides from these shores are notoriously inept at playing on.
 
This will also be a reoccurring theme for England. “We have got three sub-continent tours this year so to do well in the sub-continent has got to be a goal of ours.” Strauss also believes that “to maintain our position on the Test ladder, but also to keep improving would be an obvious thing for us to focus on.” Whilst he admits he does not want all the energy in this series to “be at the expense of ignoring the English summer ahead of us because both West Indies and South Africa will be stern challenges,” he does accept that Pakistan is tougher than most realise.
 
England starts their first Test match on the 17th January, though play two warm-up games prior to that. It will be a tricky outing for a side not used to losing. During this contest they will look to retain their unquestionable momentum heading into the summer and beyond. Yet, complacency here could spell trouble if their thoughts are on times ahead, rather than the unmentioned prospect of a Pakistan victory, and the subsequent equilibrium shift.

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