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Anderson leads England rout of Pakistan

Sports Desk |
Update: 2010-07-31 20:30:22
Anderson leads England rout of Pakistan

NOTTINGHAM: James Anderson took ten wickets in a Test for the first time as England beat Pakistan by a crushing 354 runs in their series opener at Trent Bridge here on Sunday.

Pakistan were dismissed for just 80 - their lowest Test total against England, replacing the 87 they made at Lord`s back in 1954 - before lunch on the fourth day.

They had been set a fourth innings target of 435 for victory that would have been a new world record had they acheived it.

But they got nowhere near, with swing specialist Anderson taking six wickets for 17 runs in 15 overs, including five wickets for 10 runs in 45 balls on Sunday, to add to his first innings five for 54.

That gave Anderson, who turned 28 on Friday, his best match haul of 11 for 71 in his 49-Test career, beating the nine for 98 he took against New Zealand on this ground two years ago.

Danish Kaneria (16 not out) and opener Imran Farhat (15) were the only Pakistan batsmen to make double-figure scores in the innings.

Pakistan resumed on 15 for three after their latest collapse in the face of accurate swing bowling in helpful, overcast conditions.

It wasn`t long before they were 37 for five.

Farhat edged Anderson to England captain Andrew Strauss at first slip before Umar Akmal was lbw after missing an inswinger.

Fast bowler Steven Finn then took two wickets for no runs in four balls as Pakistan`s wretched slump continued.

He struck fourth ball Sunday to end nightwatchman Mohammad Aamer`s hour-long resistance, courtesy of Kevin Pietersen`s catch in the gully.

Wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal, who had a poor game behind the stumps, then suffered his second nought of the game, lbw aiming across the line at Finn.

Anderson then had Umar Gul brilliantly caught by a leaping Paul Collingwood at third slip and the duo combined again to give the Lancashire seamer his 10th wicket when Shoaib Malik exited for nine.

And he wrapped up the match when last man Mohammad Asif fell for nought, caught in the slips by Graeme Swann.

England`s batsmen too found runs hard to come by against Pakistan`s pace trio of Mohammad Aamer, Asif and Gul.

But former Ireland left-hander Eoin Morgan, whose 130 was his maiden Test century, and Collingwood (82) shared a stand of 219 that saw England to a first innings total of 354 despite the accurate Asif`s five wickets for 77 runs.

Pakistan were dismissed for 182 in reply and only managed to save the follow-on thanks to tailender Gul`s Test-best 65 not out.

England, 172 runs ahead, strengthened their grip with a second innings total of 262 for nine declared built upon Matt Prior`s unbeaten 102, after the wicketkeeper had come in with the side struggling at 72 for five.

That enabled England to set Pakistan a target in excess of the world record fourth innings victory total of 418 for seven scored by the West Indies against Australia in Antigua in 2003.

Victory, achieved with more than a day to spare, put England 1-0 up in the four-match series and left Pakistan with little time to turn things around before the second Test starts at Edgbaston on Friday.

However, Pakistan did bounce back from their 150-run first Test defeat by Australia at Lord`s to square a two-match series 1-1 after a three-wicket win at Headingley last week.

BDST: 1833HRS, August 1, 2010





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