Shouting from the Hop

England almost fell to defeat in the second test against Pakistan which finished today. Set 285 to win (after man of the match Inzamam's second hundred of the match) in about 45-50 overs (before bad light would finish play), they collapsed to 20-4, before rallying to finish the game on 164-6. Trescothick, Strauss, and Bell all got ducks, while captain Vaughan scored just 9 runs in this innings (making it 11 for the match).

England were saved by Pieterson (42) and Flintoff (56), who rallied the score to over a hundred, and then Jones (30 n.o.), who batted very sensibly toward the end.

With one test to go and Pakistan 1-0 up, the series cannot now be won, ending a run of six consecutive series wins by England.

Andy Strauss will miss the third test, as he is flying home tomorrow for the birth of his first child. Shahid Afridi will be banned for the next test too, following his own scrape on the pitch on Monday.

It's tough to see how England can drag the win they need to draw the series from the next game in Lahore; with (probably) Collingwood brought into the team to replace Strauss, the batting is weakened further, and the side looks even more fragile. Unless we see some heroics from both batsmen and bowlers, I predict either a draw or another defeat sadly.