Alastair Cook believes that England are ready for their Investec Test Series vs Pakistan Test, but he expects them to be a real challenge for the England squad and for him personally.
Left-arm pace has been Cook’s weakness since he faced Pakistan five years ago in a series in which he averaged 23.85 and for the only time in his career feared for his place in the team before a century at the Oval.
They have a very good bowling attack and backed up with spinners as well. We are ready to play them.
Alastair Cook
Since then Trent Boult and Mitchell Johnson have caused Cook problems and Pakistan have included three left-arm fast bowlers in their squad: Mohammad Amir, Wahab Riaz and Rahat Ali.
Pakistan arrived in England earlier than usual for a tour, with new coach Mickey Arthur wanting them to have extra time at a training camp in Southampton to adjust to English conditions. This is a clear statement of intent and it highlights just how seriously the tourists are approaching the Test Series.
“I am going to go away for a few days and then as always the hard work starts preparing for the next series and they obviously have a lot more left armers in their attack,” said Cook. “They have a very good bowling attack and backed up with spinners as well. We are ready to play them. We scored a lot of runs against Australia’s attack here this time last year and I think it is going to be a brilliant series.”
SEE PAKISTAN AT EDGBASTON
England will take on Pakistan on Wednesday 3 – Sunday 7 August at Edgbaston and tickets are available for just £6 for Under 16s and from £31 for Adults.
