Just after lunch, I looked up at a scoreboard that read 118 for six, and down at a surface that shouldn’t have produced that kind of total.
The problem was that England were still batting in the manner required in Multan last week.
That second Test pitch spun big and the ball bounced. When faced with those characteristics, cross-bat shots are important for run scoring.
Both England and Pakistan were successful sweeping on that surface, hitting with the turn, but when it’s only spinning a bit and keeping low, as here in Rawalpindi, those shots square of the wicket become very dangerous.
Actually, what you need to do is play with a straight bat and Jamie Smith and Gus Atkinson learned from the mistakes of their team-mates.
Gus Atkinson and Jamie Smith learned from the mistakes of their team-mates in Rawalpindi
They contrasted to the likes of Ollie Pope, who swept at straight balls and were left vulnerable
Ben Duckett should not be getting an unplayable delivery on the first morning of a Test match
You can sweep, but do so dependent on the line of the ball. If it’s way outside off stump, get your pad outside the line – as Smith did towards the end of his innings when he started slog sweeping for fours and sixes – and use it as a second line of defence. You are not going to be given out LBW if you miss out there.
Contrast that to Ollie Pope and Harry Brook, who swept straight balls and were left vulnerable because the ball was never going to be bouncing over the top of the stumps.
Getting trapped on the crease proved another danger. I don’t mind a pitch spinning, and if it had been day five, fair enough, but on the first morning of a Test match, Ben Duckett shouldn’t be getting an unplayable delivery, rolling along the ground.
Joe Root got done on length early on too, and so the seventh-wicket pair of Smith and Atkinson got their bats out in front of their pads and the more they played, the more they got used to the lack of bounce.
With his 89, Smith in particular epitomised what is wanted from this England batting lineup. He went in just before lunch when it was important to soak up pressure, but most importantly transferred that pressure onto the bowlers when they tired in the afternoon.
It was a brilliant innings, and he has fitted into Test match cricket absolutely perfectly. His tempo, and the tempo of that partnership was absolutely spot on.
People often ask whether this England batting line up should be going harder or be more circumspect, but this was the perfect example of having a good method of batting.
The shot selection of the top order on a low pitch was high risk, but during the initial phases of that century stand the cuts, pulls and sweeps were put away.
England’s shortest batsmen Duckett adapted best to the conditions of the top six in the order
Smith epitomised what is wanted from this batting line-up by putting pressure on the bowlers
The wicketkeeper produced a brilliant innings and has fitted into Test cricket perfectly
It’s a unique pitch. One prepared with patio heaters and fans, and left exposed to the sun for a number of days. It was no coincidence that with the ball bouncing shin high, the top six player that adapted the best was England’s shortest – Duckett.
Smith and Atkinson aren’t massive sweepers. They’re quite big units, which makes it quite hard for them to get down to play the shot. And Smith recognised that things had even been difficult for a renowned sweeper like Duckett.
Equally, only once he was used to the low bounce did Smith get out his favoured pull shot.
In cricket, when you first walk out to bat, there are shots that will cause you more concern than others and he clearly gets that.
The brilliant thing about Test match cricket, though, is that conditions change over time and it might be spinning a lot by the time England bat again, presenting them with an altogether different challenge. Like Smith and Atkinson, they will all have to adapt.
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