James Anderson took 10 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 yesterday.
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 achieved it.
However, 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 yesterday, 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 the same 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 leg before wicket 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 yesterday 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 duck of the game, leg before wicket 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 9.
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.
However, 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.
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