England vs Pakistan | Predictions for Day 2 of the Old Trafford Test

Brief Scores: Pakistan 139/2 (Babar Azam 69*, Shan Masood 46*, Chris Woakes 1/14, Jofra Archer 1/23) against England at the end of Day 1.

Weather forecast for Day 2

As the match is being played in Manchester, no one can really say with any sort of certainty that there won’t be any rain. However, if Accuweather is to be believed, the highest chances of rain exist way before play restarts tomorrow. While it is expected to be cloudy throughout the day, the chances of rain are just 7% so we can expect a full day’s action of Test cricket tomorrow.

Pitch report for Day 2

With the pandemic still raging on, England decided to stick to just the two grounds to play international cricket - Southampton and Manchester. The latter has already seen two full Tests being played on its surface and it is beginning to show. Even though the ECB are using a hybrid pitch to keep the wicket as fresh as possible, the effects of the last match are quite visible. While the seamers got virtually no real help despite the conditions, Bess was able to generate some turn off the surface from the get-go. Do be surprised to see the spinner having a huge say in the eventual result of the game.

Key Batsman

Babar Azam

Was it going to be anyone else? Anyone who saw him bat today would have understood why he is rated so highly by anyone who is anyone in cricket. He has already surpassed his career average of 46.80 and his average of 57.00 in the first innings of Tests on the first day. He looks in great touch and it would be hard to imagine that he will not convert this into a big score. However, a bigger reason for 1xBet’s confidence in Azam being the top batsman for Pakistan is that the three men that follow him - Asad Shafiq, Shadab Khan, and Mohammad Rizwan - don’t even average 40 in Test cricket. This seems to be as simple a pick as you can expect and . 

Key bowler

Jofra Archer/Chris Woakes

Even though the wicket has already shown us that amount of help that it can provide for spinners, Dom Bess does not fill one with confidence that he can lead the attack against the Pakistan batting lineup. So the question that now arises is who among the pace quartet can come off big. While most fans would much rather side one of the experienced heads in the form of either James Anderson or Stuart Broad, 1xBet have decided to go with Jofra Archer or Chris Woakes. The duo share identical numbers averaging 30.11 and 29.40 and have economies of 3.01 and 3.06 respectively. They are so similar that of becoming the best bowler for their team in the first innings.

One surprising fact out of the Pakistan duo is one that Masood’s conversion rate from the half century to a century is better than Azam. While the former has scored three centuries and six fifties, Babar has just two more in their triple digit column but a massive 14 to boast of when it comes to half centuries. With England expected to come out all guns blazing, 1xBet have put their belief in Pakistan’s No. 4 to outlast his compatriot on the field tomorrow.

When to watch :  July 10, 3.30 PM IST

Where to watch : Sony Six, Sony Six HD and Sony LIV