England v Pakistan: 5 player battles in the first Test

#4 Jonny Bairstow v Shadab Khan

Shadab Khan

He has been England’s best batsman over the past 7 months or so and it is no surprise that the management has finally decided to promote Jonny Bairstow to number 5. That gives him the opportunity to make bigger contributions and at the first Test at Lord’s against Pakistan, he would definitely like to celebrate this development with a good show. A number 5 batsman has to be equally at ease against both pace and spin and the English wicketkeeper-batsman has shown that he is comfortable against both.

That sets up an intriguing battle between him and Pakistan’s young leg-spinner Shadab Khan. Although Khan has become a seasoned professional in limited overs formats of the game, he has still only played 2 Test matches and only an injury to first-choice spinner Yasir Shaw opened up a place for him in the side. That being said, his talent as a spinner is beyond doubt and it would be very interesting to see how he does against one of England’s best batsmen.