Multan, Oct 18 England captain Ben Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum have defended their team's aggressive approach after a 152-run defeat to Pakistan in the second Test in Multan, insisting it was the only way they could have challenged for victory.
England were bowled out for just 144 before lunch on day four, falling well short of the 297-run target. Pakistan spinners Noman Ali (8-46) and Sajid Khan (2-93) took all ten wickets on a turning Multan pitch. Despite the collapse, Stokes and McCullum were adamant that England's attacking mindset, a hallmark of the so-called "Bazball" era, was the right approach.
Stokes, who top-scored with 37 off 36 balls before being dismissed while charging down the pitch, said the team knew that taking on the bowlers was their only real chance. "It was going to be a massive task for us, because of how much was going on with the wicket," Stokes told Sky Sports. "We had to go out there with a method, both as individuals and as a batting unit."
England's aggressive play led to a flurry of dismissals from shots aimed at putting the spinners under pressure, a tactic Stokes said was necessary in the challenging conditions. "It was incredibly tough to try and just eek runs out," he said. "You always felt like there was a ball with your name on it."
Stokes pointed to Ben Duckett's first-innings century, which was built on a flurry of sweeps and reverse sweeps, as evidence that the best way to deal with Pakistan's spin attack was to take the game to them. "The way we took the game on today was the only way we were going to get close to winning," Stokes concluded.
McCullum echoed these sentiments, acknowledging that chasing 297 on a spinning pitch was always going to be a tall order. "290, on a ninth-day surface against spinners that know how to bowl in these conditions, was always going to be difficult," McCullum said. "The method of sweeping and reverse sweeping was the only way to put pressure on the opposition."
While some may question the strategy given the result, both Stokes and McCullum remained confident that playing with intent was the right choice. McCullum added, "We weren’t able to get there, but we saw that if you tried to sit in, it was nigh-on impossible."
The loss levelled the series at 1-1, with the deciding third Test set to take place in Rawalpindi on October 24.
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