Attack leader says England are aiming to replicate the one facet of the 2012 series that did go well for them
Andrew McGlashan in Abu Dhabi11-Oct-2015On one hand, England hope history does not repeat itself against Pakistan in the UAE. On the other, they are aiming to replicate the one facet of the 2012 series that did go well for them.England’s bowling was not the problem during their 3-0 defeat on the previous visit. In the second and third Tests James Anderson, Stuart Broad, Graeme Swann and Monty Panesar combined impressively and looked to have sealed each match in turn. In Abu Dhabi, a chase of 145 was botched spectacularly as England collapsed to 72 all out, then in Dubai England removed Pakistan for 99 in the first innings, only to be thwarted by Azhar Ali and Younis Khan second-time around.Anderson and Broad are among the five surviving players from that tour to make it here again (Cook, Bell and Finn the others) with Anderson set to return as the father-figure of England’s pace attack having missed the final two Ashes Tests due to a side injury. He and Broad shared 22 wickets during the 2012 series and will be delving into their banks of experience over the next few weeks to help an attack that remains raw.”When conditions are this alien to a lot of the younger guys it’s important we try and give them as much information as possible so they can prepare themselves. Passing on advice is crucial,” Anderson said”Last time we were here we had a decent amount of success, myself and Stuart and the two spinners, so we know how to get 20 wickets out here. We know we’ll have to bowl very well to do that. It’s an exciting challenge; the conditions, the heat, if we do perform well it will be very satisfying.”James Anderson bowls in the nets ahead of the first Test•Getty Images
Anderson will resume his Test career on 413 wickets – in a neat twist, given the opposition as well as the Lancashire connection, one wicket will bring him level with Wasim Akram at joint 10th on the all-time list. His preparation has been limited – 12 overs and one wicket, with a catch down the leg side – but he is not alone in that and at least ended the season playing county cricket.There has been the notion floated that, in a horses-for-courses selection, similar to that justifying Moeen Ali opening, Anderson’s place could be under threat as his greatest strengths are likely to be diminished in the prevailing conditions where traditional swing is a rare sight.At 33, his days as the leader of the attack are numbered but you don’t easily shelve 400-plus Test wickets. Even if there is just a modicum of swing for a short period Anderson should still be better than most at finding it.”I’m itching to get going again,” he said. “It was frustrating to miss the last couple of Test of the summer but I’ve played a bit for Lancashire which was good, got some wickets, so felt in good in form and since being out here all of us have acclimatised quite quickly and are raring to go.”Despite the acclimatisation, conditions will remain very tough for England and Anderson knows it is vital, especially for the quicks, that they make every over count. In such searing heat, spells will rarely exceed five overs so they will need to assess very swiftly what tactics should be employed.”We saw Steven Finn bowl seven [in the warm-up], that’s probably pushing it a little bit, but we are aware we’ll have to be used in short spells,” Anderson said. “Me and Broady have brought it up with the lads already, when we came out here last time we bowled four-five overs maximum which means you have to be on the money from ball one and that puts a bit of emphasis on you as a bowler – you can’t just ease into a spell. You have to nail it.”You’ve got to assess the situation very quickly, if the ball isn’t swinging you have to go to Plan B,” he added. “You have to quickly assess if it will reverse-swing, while cutters and little changes in pace are crucial as well. It’s about finding the right skills for the situation, the pace of the pitch is important, whether you bring the slips out and things like that. It’s about being sharp and aware.”Anderson acknowledged that success in this series would rank alongside the away wins in the Ashes in 2010-11 and India in 2012-13, but insisted that the team – in the spirit that carried them through the home season – are not overawed by what is in front of them.”We put a lot of pressure on ourselves,” he said. “We want to improve on the performances from the summer. We know we can play better than we did even though we won that series, we want to continue to improve and show people how exciting we can be.”We are aware of how we performed last time we were here. As we saw in the Ashes, we lost them in 2013 but then won them back, so it’s all about how you prepare and play in that particular series. What happened in the past doesn’t really matter that much.”Except, of course, if you are remembering how to take wickets.