England vs Pakistan, 2nd Test, Pakistan tour of England, 2020 - CommentaryENG vs PAK, 2nd Test, Pakistan tour of England, 2020 - Commentary

Keshav Gupta: I feel Pakistanis are overusing Abbas here. Even if he is getting wickets doesn't mean that they should stick to him given that this match is heading towards a draw.

Sai: How many overs are remaining? - 3 more after this one

Pradeesh Reddy: Root is taking a step ahead to bat against Abbas so that he can reduce the movement.Rather than that he should take one step back so that he can play late and probably by that time ball would have swung.He will get a fraction of second to counter the movement

Ravi: @Sairam kunchala You jinxed it man. Poor Pope got out just when you praised him

Saras Quadi: Abbas to Pakistan is what Philander is to South Africa. Not too much pace but dead accurate in line and length.

Sairam kunchala: Ollie pope will be a next big thing in England test cricket .

Rishabh Wadhwa: Abbas usually has a good track record almost everywhere except on bouncy pitches. On English and flat pitches, he bowls like many of the greats, but on pitches like Australia, he proves to be a simple medium pacer.

Tamonash: @Arpit_Mishra: I think both the teams are playing this match as a practice match. England will try to improve their batting in trying conditions, whereas Pakistan is trying to take wickets.

Priyansh: They may not be playing for a result here, but it still is valuable experience for the new comers from both sides in these conditions.

sasank: From tomorrow onwards CPL will fulfill my hunger for cricket

Rahul: Abbas has to be one of the most exciting test bowlers going around right now. Every ball he delivers is a wicket taker!

Arpit Mishra: What exactly both teams are playing for? Can't they shake hands and accept a draw!

Zain: It will be a tough task for the officials to decide MoM for this Test Match, as there has been extra-ordinary performances by both #rain & #badlight

Hari Susi: @Krishnan - Archer doesn't bend his back always & Woakes is not fit enough compared to fitness and durability of Anderson-Broad duo. Anyway it is not about finding one-to-one replacements. The got to keep ready the high quality backup too.

Zainul Abideen: This Pakistan Bowling attack is potent only till the time the Ball is new, once it gets old they start looking very ordinary. Lack of experience clearly evident.

PRAKASH: @Shashwat Though their perfect replacement is difficult , still England have Woakes, Curran, Archer to rely upon and they have proved also at crucial times.

Bad Light: I'm not gonna lose this test on the 5th day! I'll be back.

Anantha Krishnan: @Shashwat, They have the fiery Archer and swingy Woakes

Yash: Experts said this is a weaker English side and predicted India will win the series in England (Lost 4-1), Australia will win the Ashes (Draw 2-2), Pakistan with a great armoury of fast bowlers will win easily (Cannot win the series), just because the opponent is weaker doesn't make you favourites.

Shashwat: England are relying too much on Broad and Anderson. Now they they are over 35 and they will retire in a few years. They should try get some new bowlers so they are still a strong side when Broad and Anderson are gone

Himal: Pakistan have a lot to gain from Rizwan, an absolute brilliant keeper and a handy lower order batsman

Venktesh: Such a long session coming up, I hope they gave them biscuits too along with tea

Chinmay: Just like India produce great batsmen, Pakistan produce great bowlers

Umang: When can the players shake hands for draw as per ICC rules? -- The mandatory hour starts at 18:00 or after 41 overs bowled, which ever is later.

NILESH RATHOR: This is the special thing about a Test match. We know that this match is going to end in a draw, yet there's fun in watching the match.

Kishore: Great opportunity for Crawley to show his mettle....looks solid in technique.

Gowtham Chintalapati: Pakistan must come up with ultra-aggressive fields . They have the score on the board, they need to give their everything with the ball and field!!

Himanshu: @Himal: With so much of competition in England team, I don't think anyone is looking for rest, they have had it enough in this Covid era. Everyone is eager to go out and perform.

Himal: England are in win-win situation from this test. Still got 13 WTC points + shouldn't work on rotation policy for bowlers, can simply go with the best attack they have on the deck as bowlers have had enough rest.

Varun: Why 13 points? Why not 20 each as the game is of 40 points. -- The ICC decided that a tie should be worth half of a win and that a draw should be worth a third of a win.

Punetha: What's the latest update? Let's say the day has been called off, would we call this test match a draw or a rain abandoned test? -- It will be a drawn Test with each team getting 13 WTC points.

Saurabh Jain: The forecast for next week also looks horrible. Can they not move this match back to Manchester as they already have the bubble there and there is no tickets issue which would have been an issue in normal course. -- Logistically it is not possible.

ARBAZ: The Fab 4 all rounders should be Pat Cummins, Ben Stokes, Ravindra Jadeja and Jason Holder.

Abdul H: Let's not put Stokes and anyone else in the same category. The FAB 3 or 4 batsmen are in the same league but Stokes as an all-rounder currently has no competition.

PRATYUSH SINGH: Any guesses for new fab four of all rounders? -- Stokes, Holder, Jadeja and probably Shakib when he is back.

Vinay Kothari: Rain finishes things off in style a magnificent puddle in the ground (full of water) and its the England team to lead the series 1-nil, its rain and bad light that has been awarded as Man Of The Match.

Sparsh T: It would've been a treat to watch the likes of Shaheen, Abbas and Naseem operate on this deck. But, the English weather...

Asad: @Dwip The result would probably go in favor of badlight. Coz more then rain it was badlight that spoiled all the fun.

Eddie: Timeless tests definitely won't work in England. Some games may still take weeks to complete!

Dwip: RAIN v/s BAD LIGHT 1st Innings- BAD LIGHT took the lead. 2nd Innings- RAIN took the lead. Who wins??

Atharva: Not a bad idea to bring in timeless tests in England.

joyson christian: Why Ben Stokes is not in fab 4?? -- Because he is in a league of his own.

Dev: According to Me, today we get around 50 overs of cricket!! -- That's more than half the overs we have got till now. Fingers crossed!

Kash: I would love to see England all out before lunch. Pakistan declare half an hour before tea and bowl out England again before the day close :) Some small wishes may come true :) -- This is the definition of optimism. Let's first take small steps and have a start time for the day.

Uday: The only way to make this match interesting is to declare the winner based on first innings lead as done in the Indian Ranji Matches, Provided both the captains agrees for this.... -- Or they can forfeit an innings each and make it into a one innings game like an ODI.

ajay: Extremely bad day yesterday for Barca and Dhoni fans..

Tabish: On a serious note, changing the venue for the next match should be considered. The weather forecast does not narrate happy tales at all. If only one international match is being played, at least it should be PLAYED

Kishore: Thought Raina still had some cricket left in him and could have competed for a slot in the next year T20 World Cup. But nevertheless, a great player and waiting to see him in IPL

Ravi Trivedi: My favourite MSD memory is surely his double century vs Australia at Chepauk, that was a statement innings tbh, my favourite Raina memory would be the two cameos he played in the 2011 World cup quarter final & semi final, 2 very brisk & useful innings for the team.

Fahad: There should have an option to call off test matches on day 4 when weather is disrupting games like this and still the first inning is going on...

sonu: "Dhoni and Raina deserve a farewell international match."

Akhilesh: Can't wait to see Raina and Dhoni in action @IPL 2020

Shubham: Let's agree, this match is not going anywhere. Why not call it off and give players and everyone else a mental break?

Smit: Thalla and Chinna Thalla would be back in IPL.

Laxman Viswanath: Considering the weather in Southampton for the past 3 days and today, even a reserve 6th day would not have helped.

Chaitanya Dhumal: This partnership (between rain and bad light) looks like the partnership between C.Pujara and R.Dravid which can help teams draw matches.

Prasad: Unbeaten partnership between the rain and light continues...

Ali Hamza: "If Pakistan can bowl England out anything below 200, things might get interesting." --- Given the time lost in this game, below 150 is the need of the hour from a result's POV although even then, it will be a really minute probability.

Sudeesh: Extravagant moment from the pitch will surely test the top order batsmen. Patience is the key

Ikhlas Masoodi: Two sessions without an action. Waiting for game to start feels more painful than waiting for lockdown to get over.

Santhosh: Double heart break for cricket fans , 2020 can't be even worse #Dhoni #Raina

Aamir Salati: If weather and light permits, Pakistan should go ahead and bat for at least 8 overs. Rizwan should go helter-skelter in that period. You never know, quick 30 more and England will feel some pressure going into bat...

Muhammad Ibrahim Ilyas: I don't think that Pakistan will or should declare..

Abhay bakshi: I think ICC should ponder of a reserve 6th day in Tests at least in England, if not all countries, given the weather conditions here..

Varun Chhabria: It's highly frustrating when the only international match going on is being interrupted due to rain and you have to wait day after day to see some action..

Kulkarni: Only way we can have result in this test match is playing only one innings per side provided Root and Ali - both captains agree. Else, this inclement weather and rain will win.

Sudeesh: Thought batsmen, bowlers will decide result of the match. Disappointing to see rain/bad light playing crucial role in deciding

Sankar Muthineni: Southampton has a lot of movement for bowlers and if weather supports at least on day 4 and day 5 we definitely have a result

Rehan: Urging everyone out there to start singing rain rain go away! :D Can't really wait anymore, especially when it's the weekend! -- We have been trying that since day one.

Prajwal Karmarkar G: I am completely against 4 day Test match just imagine this situation in 4 days Test match rain & bad light affecting in those matches will make the idea of ICC flop so there should not be 4 day Test matches, there should be 5 day Tests only as of now.

Shivam Porwal: @Rohith Specially in this Covid situation where we put so much on line to have some cricket.

Mohanpriyan: @prabhat result can also be found if Pakistan bowl out England for a low score and score some quick runs and set 300 target for England on last day.

Rohith Karumachi: There should be some remedy in place for this rain and bad light stoppages at-least in countries like England where there is a high chance of rain in every season. Disappointing to see truncated matches which will be thrillers if played for 5 days.

Shailendra: Weather is still unbeaten and continued its innings smoothly!

Prabhat: With the amount of runs Pakistan have in their account and keeping the rain in mind, the only way this match can have a result is if England take a hefty first innings lead and try to bowl out Pakistan as soon as possible but without Stokes, that would be an uphill battle!!

Jawad: You can not rule out Yasir Shah on any type of wicket. He will be a crucial part of Pakistan's bowling attack in this test too.

Yusuf: I don't see why both teams have gone with a specialist spinner, when the conditions are probably going to stay wet and seam/swing friendly. Bess is not getting the ball anyway, and I don't think Yasir Shah will be very effective on a pitch like this one.

Shahnil Tukdi: I don't understand this bad light concept.. as long as both teams are comfortable play should continue!

Imran: If Pakistan can add upto 240 to 250, it would be respectable total on this wicket, and also considering the rain and light aspects which are very crucial aspects in the coming days.

Skanda: "If England were sure of not giving bowling to Bess, they could have played another specialist batsman" -------- To be fair, no team can come out with such predetermined plans as a lot depends on how the surface behaves and in England, the weather too. With regards to Bess, it's too early to comment, given that Southampton does assist spinners later on in the game.

Muhammad Zubair Afzal: Well Played Riz-Wall

Sujith: @Athul Hussain - I remeber him playing a brilliant hand alongside Babar against Australia last year to try and keep PAK out of an innings defeat. Babar scored a hubdred and Rizwan got out in the 90's, but Pak couldn't avoid the innings defeat

Swaroop: Come on Root! Give Anderson a chance to get his five-fer!

Hrithik Bagoriya: Now at this stage, England should look forward to attack both the batsmen. They have been leaking the runs to Rizwan in search of wicket from the other end.

Anany: That's why handy wicketkeeper lower down the order are very crucial. These 20-30 odd runs can change the course of the match

Athar Hussain: Rizwan is playing the inning of his life here. Never seen this kind of an inning by him before.

Abhay bakshi: Experienced batsmen not stepping to the stage when required and ordinary running between the wickets are some of the raising concerns that Pakistan need to look into

Jawad: Rizwan is justifying his selection here

Hrithik: @Chinmay both Anderson and Broad have completed their spell. They also need rest. And there are other bowlers who are fresh that's why the bowling change has been done.

Sayee Narayanaa: New ball is for Anderson and Broad!

Chinmay: Root needs to bring back Anderson and Broad @both ends to wind up this innings quickly

Vision: Again, rubbish approach here from Pakistan. They are down to their last few wickets and are still playing defensively. Singles won't get them anywhere.. They need to counterattack!!

Sudarshan Padubidri: England playing with 6 batsmen, 4 bowlers and one fielder - (Dom Bess)!

Ravish Kumar: Rizwan is the key here for Pakistan. If he can somehow get Pakistan to 220-230, will be a really respectable score given where they are right now.

MANTHAN: Pakistan have lacked for a good all-rounder for a long time now

Shahnil Tukdi: Pak should at least try to inch closer to 200 with which they will have something to fight

Swaroop GAIKWAD: Seven to go for Andersonnn!!!

Ayush Chugh: @Mohit we have seen that Bess had performed better in the second innings as compared to first innings. Since the English team has so much battery in their pace department, why not leverage the 4 fast bowlers in the first innings!

Mir: Now Pakistan should try to smash its way to a decent score..

Mohit: @Laxman England has picked Bess to bowl, I am pretty sure he has not been picked as a batsman, they must be aware of how Pakistani batsmen play spin and still they picked him so why not make him bowl if he is in the team?

Juzer: @Rahul if Bess is in the Team he should be bowling irrespective of the opposition playing spin well. It's just that the rain breaks have kept the pacers fresh!!

Rahul: As usual it's Broad again who has produced a crucial wicket at the crucial time!!!

Laxman: Answering Mohit's question about Dom Bess not bowling - Pakistani batsmen are good players of spin, pressure will be released as they can score runs easily and quickly against him.

YK: Its fascinating to see Babar being compared with the likes of Kohli, Smith, Kane at such an early stage of his career. But to be honest, let him enter the elite FAB club himself through powering performances rather than people just canvassing him into the club.

Fadi Mughal: Only way to dismiss Babar Azam at this stage, bowling him outside the off stump and remove that cover fielder.

Mohit: 61 overs of play has already been completed , can't understand why Dom Bess hasn't bowled yet!!

STOKES: Root missing BEN..!!! SERIOUSLY....!!!

Anand J: Where is Dominic Bess? -- At Point, most of the time..

Sarath: Root missed the trick of using Jimmy and Broad in the same spell and the Pakistanis seem to settle well

Abdus Salam: Everyone is talking about Babar for fab-4. But Marnus Labuschagne is also waiting.....

Bhanu: Babar needs to gift a century on this historic occasion for pakistan

Raja: Wicket less first session will make this Test match an interesting one !

Dawood: A match between England and Pakistan but the audience is full of Indians...That is the love for cricket in India.

Moxley: Again baffled why Root didn't start with Broad this afternoon!!

SHAHU: Rooting for Jimmy to complete 600 wickets this match......

Ayush Chugh: Perfect opportunity for Babar Azam today to score big in this tricky situation and prove his capability. He has the caliber of scoring quickly which he can capitalize while batting with the tail.

Ani: It's a great pleasure to see Anderson at his best in this age. He should definitely play till Ashes 2021.

Romil Bhandari: Babar Azam has a great chance to amend Fab-4 to Fab-5.

Abdulqadir: @AmirShaharan I dont think ICC needs to consider that because even if we lose overs, we are still getting the results

Amir Shaharan: Its high time for ICC to consider of having a reserve day for Test Match cricket to compensate for overs lost. Don't even remember of a Test match in recent past where complete quota of overs where bowled.

Shantanu: Life is a nice game of test match cricket but 2020 is the rain!

Rahul Chaudhary: Given the overcast weather, it would be a decent total if Pakistan could add another 80-85 runs to their overnight score. Batting looks difficult and it could be tricky stop-start cricket for English batsmen too.

Samyak: One of Babar or Rizwan needs to counter-Attack as they don't have much bating to come.

Kjain: what a day it has been.. all three teams had their share of fun so far. Pakistan in opening session, rain in second session and England in third.

Tarun: Poor Fawad made a comeback against most difficult bowlers to face in the most difficult conditions

Muhammad Asim: 350 must be on the board from Pakistan. -- Long, long way to go.

Sairam kunchala: That dive from Anderson can prove that he can play Ashes 20-21.

Aashish UR: Anderson is 38 and yet clocks 135+ and even 140s occasionally! We got to give credit to the fitness of this man!

Anand: I think Babar should enjoy his game and express himself on the field rather than think about fab 4 or rankings. He has a long way to go.

Nikhil Pisharody: Babar Azam has another chance to stake a claim into the Fab group..

Shivam Porwal: One thing I like about England is that once the rain has stopped, you don't have to wait long for live action.

Raymond: If only match was happening at Old Trafford, match would have been in progress now. Great weather for cricket. -- Isn't it always the case? Doesn't rain where you last played or are going to play.

Gowtham Chintalapati: Azhar Ali hadn't scored a single run after lunch and finally nicked one!!! That was obviously coming.

Muzakir Lone: Just like last test Pakistan are showing good performance in the first innings but they need to keep their performance steady throughout the game and not to get over confident during their play like they did in previous test. -- They were not overconfident in the previous Test.

Inzamam ul Haq: Boys are playing well

Yash Verma: Southampton has a lot of movement for bowlers and Pakistan have done quite well to just lose one wicket.

Alex: Looking forward to Curran vs Azam, I think it will be a great battle!

Sachin Tendulkar: England team is having a rough day in the slip cordon without Ben Stokes

Ahsan Shahid: Last time Fawad Alam played a test, Kohli, Smith, and Williamson weren't even Test cricketers. Now they all are in Fab 4!!

Nikhil Pisharody: Last game, Shan Masood got 2 reprieves and he went on to make a big score. Now Abid Ali gets two. Let's see what he does..

Mohit Chouhan: Would be extremely mesmerising to see Curran with his curvy late inswingers to both the right handers.

Mustafa Moudi: Stat Alert: Azhar Ali needs 57 Runs from this innings to reach 6000 Test Runs. But if his recent records is anything to go by, he last scored 50+ outside Home (UAE/Pakistan) 2 years ago in May 2018 !!

Francis Koya: This is a good chance for Azhar Ali to showcase his skills and play a captain's knock.

Vaibhav Tripathi: England without Broad & Anderson will be like Sri lanka without Jayawardene and Sangakara...

saurabh: Anderson 600 loading..

Saahil: Old yet gold #Anderson

Dipu: Aaanderrrrrrsonnnnn!!!!!

Theo: Who are England going to turn to when they need someone to dig the ball into the pitch time and again in a tough period for bowling, when neither Stokes or Archer are playing? It's a worrying prospect!

Amandeep Singh: For a country with limited bating resources, Pakistan should have shown more confidence in a player averaging 40+ in Test and ODI cricket and exceptional domestic record! Happy to see Fawad back in the playing 11!

Nikhil Pisharody: At last, England have opted for a more versatile option in Sam Curran. He can score some handy runs lower down the order and give you timely breakthroughs..

Commentary not available for this match