Key events
Preamble
Morning. When Ben Stokes became England captain in 2022, he was asked whether he might, like Nasser Hussain at the turn of the century, revive a struggling team by first making them hard to beat. “Nah,” Stokes laughed. “I don’t think there will be too many draws.”
He’s been as good as his word. In the Bazball era England have drawn only one Test, and that was because of two days of biblical rain in Manchester during the 2023 Ashes.
The next few hours will tell us just how much England hate draws. The logical approach is to try to bat for at least three hours and go well past Pakistan, but that increases the chance of the D-word. An early declaration would make a positive more likely – but that might mean another D-word, defeat.
