Andrew Strauss finds form as England close in on victory target against ICC Combined XI

Strauss and Alastair Cook took advantage of the absence of injured strike bowler Hamid Hassan in an opening stand of 63 in less than 12 overs until the latter was much too early on a pull in Craig Williams' first over and fell to a fine catch by Majid Haq.

Jonathan Trott was in grave danger of departing caught down the leg-side for the second time in the match, this time for a duck, until the umpires concluded the edge off Boyd Rankin had not quite carried.

Strauss dominated the second-wicket stand, bringing up his 67-ball 50 with his 11th four. But he too was to pay for an aerial pull, off Haq.

Kevin Pietersen then managed only a single before falling to a tumbling catch by Rankin at mid-on off his Irish compatriot George Dockrell, the second wicket in the space of six balls.

Trott and Ian Bell steadied the chase again either side of tea, but neither could complete the assignment.

Trott's attempt to dominate Mohammad Nabi (three for 66) failed when he reined in to defence from up the wicket and fell to a sharp bat-pad catch at short leg.

Eoin Morgan went cheaply to Rankin, the latest of several in this match to fall to a catch behind down the leg-side.

Then after Bell's bizarre dismissal, paddle-sweeping Nabi via a deflection into the hands of slip running round to the leg-side, at 199 for six the outcome was in the balance.

But Broad and Davies, who survived one close call off Nabi with a half-chance to wide mid-off on 20, did not panic.

Broad had a moment of fortune too, reprieved with 18 still needed by a poor throw and Nabi's failure to gather when he seemed sure to be run out.

The seventh-wicket pair were therefore able to settle the match in a stand of 61 - with almost nine overs to spare, even though Broad holed out with scores level.

Earlier, Mohammad Shahzad's second 50 of the match had frustrated England this morning.

Broad (three for 22) struck in the fifth over of the day, to take his match haul to seven wickets, when Nabi mis-pulled to mid-off.

But Shahzad again looked in control. He brought up his 76-ball half-century with an edge wide of the slips for his ninth four, in a James Anderson over which cost 16 runs.

He had been joined by Christi Viljoen, whose match tally went past 100 following his first-innings 98 before he was run out when he was sent back for a single and unable to beat a throw from Monty Panesar - on as a substitute fielder for Graeme Swann.

Shahzad then aimed one big shot too many at Pietersen's stand-in off-spin, holing out at long-off - and after Rankin missed a swipe at Steven Finn, Will Porterfield called his batsmen in.

- Swann did not bowl and stayed off the field with tightness in a leg muscle, until coming out to bat with one run required.

England captain Andrew Strauss finds form as tourists beat ICC Combined XI by three wickets

Strauss and Alastair Cook took advantage of the absence of injured strike bowler Hamid Hassan in an opening stand of 63 in less than 12 overs until the latter was much too early on a pull in Craig Williams' first over and fell to a fine catch by Majid Haq.

Jonathan Trott was in grave danger of departing caught down the leg-side for the second time in the match, this time for a duck, until the umpires concluded the edge off Boyd Rankin had not quite carried.

Strauss dominated the second-wicket stand, bringing up his 67-ball 50 with his 11th four. But he too was to pay for an aerial pull, off Haq.

Kevin Pietersen then managed only a single before falling to a tumbling catch by Rankin at mid-on off his Irish compatriot George Dockrell, the second wicket in the space of six balls.

Trott and Ian Bell steadied the chase again either side of tea, but neither could complete the assignment.

Trott's attempt to dominate Mohammad Nabi (three for 66) failed when he reined in to defence from up the wicket and fell to a sharp bat-pad catch at short leg.

Eoin Morgan went cheaply to Rankin, the latest of several in this match to fall to a catch behind down the leg-side.

Then after Bell's bizarre dismissal, paddle-sweeping Nabi via a deflection into the hands of slip running round to the leg-side, at 199 for six the outcome was in the balance.

But Broad and Davies, who survived one close call off Nabi with a half-chance to wide mid-off on 20, did not panic.

Broad had a moment of fortune too, reprieved with 18 still needed by a poor throw and Nabi's failure to gather when he seemed sure to be run out.

The seventh-wicket pair were therefore able to settle the match in a stand of 61 - with almost nine overs to spare, even though Broad holed out with scores level.

Earlier, Mohammad Shahzad's second 50 of the match had frustrated England this morning.

Broad (three for 22) struck in the fifth over of the day, to take his match haul to seven wickets, when Nabi mis-pulled to mid-off.

But Shahzad again looked in control. He brought up his 76-ball half-century with an edge wide of the slips for his ninth four, in a James Anderson over which cost 16 runs.

He had been joined by Christi Viljoen, whose match tally went past 100 following his first-innings 98 before he was run out when he was sent back for a single and unable to beat a throw from Monty Panesar - on as a substitute fielder for Graeme Swann.

Shahzad then aimed one big shot too many at Pietersen's stand-in off-spin, holing out at long-off - and after Rankin missed a swipe at Steven Finn, Will Porterfield called his batsmen in.

- Swann did not bowl and stayed off the field with tightness in a leg muscle, until coming out to bat with one run required.

England v ICC Combined XI: in pictures

Leader of men: England captain Andrew Strauss is first out onto the pitch

Picture: GETTY IMAGES

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England frustrated in opening tour match against ICC Combined XI as they prepare for Pakistan series

"The period from 50-80 overs is going to be a real holding role, which highlights how wisely we'll have to use the first and second new balls," said Broad. "The bowling unit was aware of how difficult it might be to take wickets out here and that has been highlighted for us."

Callow shots certainly played a part in that lunch scoreline, but Broad, surely as zealous a convert to the value of pitching the ball up as there can ever have been among the fast and nasty fraternity, drew the batsmen into their misadventures. William Porterfield edged to Steven Davies in the bowler’s opening over - Davies deputising for Matt Prior as a precaution after the latter had bruised his ring finger in practice the previous day.

A left-hander, Porterfield had shaped to hit Broad through square leg, an ambitious shot given the line, length and newness of the ball.

Equally optimistic was Paul Stirling’s pull shot against Broad, which cannoned into the stumps off the bottom-edge. A chunky batsman with a low centre of gravity, Stirling had just stood on his tip toes and driven Broad for four on the up through mid-off, a show-stopping shot few can play. The old Broad would have retorted by letting fly with a bouncer, something Stirling obviously expected, but the ball was only just short of a length and far too full for the shot he attempted.

Broad, who finished with 4-46 and showed no ill-effects from the shoulder injury he picked up at Lord’s in September, continued his golden start when he had Scotland’s Kyle Coetzer caught by Davis driving at another ball of full length.

It is a long time ago, but I recall Peter May handing out advice to new Test bowlers when he was chairman of selectors. You need to bring good batsmen forward to get them out was the gist of it and it applies just as well to journeymen like Coetzer.

Broad’s extra height probably helped to make the batsmen more hesitant in their footwork, as James Anderson kept the ball full and didn’t have any success until Mohammad Shahzad ended a colourful innings of 51 by chipping a catch off him to mid-on.

Shahzad is the AA XI’s wicket-keeper and is part of the inspirational Afghanistan team that qualified against odds most would never consider part of a cricketer’s lot for the last World Cup. His batting reflected those uncertainties, being almost a shot-a-ball. Yet, most of them were pretty fine, especially the brace of cover driven fours he took off Anderson.

He attacked Swann, when the spinner was first introduced, and didn’t stop despite others falling to him. Pakistan’s batsmen will try a similar tactic, for if they can prevent Swann holding up an end for long periods (something he didn’t achieve after failing to bowl a single maiden in his 23 overs), pressure will be applied on the other three bowlers in England’s favoured four-man attack.

His innings was more pro-active than Viljoen’s, which began as dour survival before expanding to strokeplay as he ran out of partners. Viljoen, who plays for Namibia, has never made a first-class hundred in 24 matches and he wouldn’t have got close but for a valiant 45 from Boyd Rankin, who kept him company in a ninth-wicket partnership worth 95 runs.

Rankin departed to the third delivery of the second new ball, brilliantly caught by Finn at extra cover off Anderson. Viljoen was on 94 at the time and when he belted Broad for four off the first ball of the next over, a celebration looked likely.

Reacting to his adrenalin, Broad banged the next two balls in short. But having ducked the first, Viljoen swished a wild cut at the second and, after a heartbreaking interlude in which he watched as Anderson ran back from second slip to take a brilliant catch somewhere near third man, he knew it wasn’t going to be champagne this time, at least not at the king’s ransom demanded for it around here.

Scoreboard:

ICC Combined XI 1st innings

• Porterfield c Davies b Broad 1

• Coetzer c Davies b Broad 1

• Saqib Ali c Swann b Finn 14

• Williams c Davies b Swann 34

• Mohammad Shahzad c Broad b Anderson 51

• Viljoen c Anderson b Swann 98

• Rankin c Finn b Anderson 43

Extras: (lb3, w1, nb2) 6

Total: 281

Fall of wickets: 1-1 (Porterfield), 2-10 (Stirling), 3-11 (Coetzer), 4-52 (Saqib), 5-82 (Williams), 6-90 (Nabi), 7-122 (Shahzad), 8-181 (Haq), 9-277 (Rankin)

Bowling: Anderson 19-6-48-2 (nb1), Broad 16-6-42-3 (w1), Finn 17-3-60-2, Swann 23.3-0-99-3 (nb1), Trott 2-0-6-0, Pietersen 6-0-23-0

Overs: 83.3

----------

England 1st innings

Total: (without loss) 16

Bowling: Hamid 2-1-4-0, Viljoen 1-0-4-0, Nabi 1-0-8-0

England declare in arrears to ICC Combined XI as wickets worringly tumble in warm-up match for Pakistan series

But that prospect evaporated as Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell, Eoin Morgan, Cook, Steven Davies and finally Broad failed to cash in on what looked an obvious opportunity to prosper.

Cook fared by far the best in a 121-ball innings which contained 14 fours, but no one else could reach 20. Fast bowler Hamid Hassan suffered a nasty injury chasing to the boundary to try to cut off the four which brought up the opener's 50, and would play no further part in the match.

England agreed Ireland spinner George Dockrell could replace Hassan for the second innings, after the Afghan seamer had pitched over a picket fence on the boundary and collided with concrete and metal runners around the sightscreen. He was eventually cleared of serious injury following a trip to hospital on a stretcher.

His absence had no bearing on England's troubles, although before lunch there was barely a hint of the collapse to come.

The only alarm for Cook came when Boyd Rankin discomforted him with a well-directed short one early in his innings.

The left-hander got in a tangle and was unable to get the ball effectively to ground, but no short-leg had been posted at that stage.

Soon afterwards Andrew Strauss pulled Hassan into the hands of square leg, and Jonathan Trott had only a single when he got a faint edge down the leg-side to be caught behind.

A watchful Pietersen needed 10 balls to get off the mark, but did so with a trademark big stride for a four through midwicket - and the rationale was that England needed only patience, on a slow but benign surface, to gradually take control.

Instead Pietersen nibbled an outside edge off Rankin soon after lunch, and Bell's attempt to glide runs behind square off his Warwickshire team-mate resulted in another catch behind when the 6ft 9in Irishman found extra bounce.

Then Morgan edged a Mohammad Nabi off-break to slip, and Cook toppled over and poked the blade down leg to be caught behind off Christi Viljoen.

Scotland off-spinner Majid Haq took a wicket with his first delivery - Davies lbw pushing forward - and Broad then unluckily picked out silly mid-off when he timed a back-foot shot off Nabi. Graeme Swann and James Anderson avoided any more losses until, five minutes before the scheduled tea break, Strauss chose to declare almost 100 runs in arrears.

There was partial vindication when, as in the first innings, Broad and Anderson served up useful new-ball spells as the Combined XI were reduced to eight for three this time.

After Will Porterfield and Paul Stirling's ducks, the two Irish openers had mustered only eight runs between them in four attempts. Porterfield nicked a catch behind down the leg-side off Anderson, and Broad pinned Stirling lbw.

Saqib Ali soon edged an attempted push-drive behind off Broad, and Craig Williams chipped a catch to cover off Swann.

But a stand of 40 between Kyle Coetzer and Mohammad Shahzad ended only when the former played on to Anderson, as the equations began to narrow for an England victory in this first warm-up match for the Test series against Pakistan.

Scoreboard (after day two):

ICC Combined XI 1st innings
281 (C. Viljoen 98, Mohammad Shahzad 51, B. Rankin 43; S. Broad 3-42, G. Swann 3-99)

England 1st innings

Strauss c Haq b Hassan 17

Cook c Shahzad b Viljoen 76

Trott c Shahzad b Hassan 1

Pietersen c Shahzad b Rankin 15

Bell c Shahzad b Rankin 3

Morgan c Stirling b Nabi 1

Davies lbw b Haq 12

Broad c Porterfield b Nabi 19

Swann not out 14

Anderson not out 12

Extras: (b8, lb4, nb 2, w1) 15

Total: (for eight wkts dec) 185

Fall of wickets: 1-44 (Strauss), 2-54 (Trott), 3-107 (Pietersen), 4-121 (Bell), 5-126 (Morgan), 6-132 (Cook), 7-159 (Davies), 8-159 (Broad).

Bowling: Hassan 11-4-26-2 (w1), Viljoen 11-1-42-1 (nb2), Nabi 14-3-42-2, Rankin 16-3-49-2, Haq 3-1-14-1

Overs: 55

-------

Combined XI 2nd innings

Porterfield c Davies b Anderson 0

Stirling lbw b Broad 0

Coetzer b Anderson 31

Saqib Ali c Davies b Broad 2

Williams c Bell b Swann 11

Mohammad Shahzad not out 34

Mohammad Nabi not out 9

Extras: (lb1, nb2) 3

Total: (For five wkts) 90

Fall of wicket: 1-0 (Porterfield), 2-2 (Stirling), 3-8 (Ali), 4-31 (William), 5-71 (Coetzer).

Bowilng: Anderson 12-6-29-2, Broad 9-5-15-2 (2nb), Swann 10-1-33-1, Finn 6-3-12 0

Overs: 37

England struggle in Dubai against ICC Combined XI ahead of Pakistan Test series

But that prospect evaporated as Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell, Eoin Morgan, Cook, Steven Davies and finally Broad failed to cash in on what looked an obvious opportunity to prosper.

Cook fared by far the best in a 121-ball innings which contained 14 fours, but no one else could reach 20. Fast bowler Hamid Hassan suffered a nasty injury chasing to the boundary to try to cut off the four which brought up the opener's 50, and would play no further part in the match.

England agreed Ireland spinner George Dockrell could replace Hassan for the second innings, after the Afghan seamer had pitched over a picket fence on the boundary and collided with concrete and metal runners around the sightscreen. He was eventually cleared of serious injury following a trip to hospital on a stretcher.

His absence had no bearing on England's troubles, although before lunch there was barely a hint of the collapse to come.

The only alarm for Cook came when Boyd Rankin discomforted him with a well-directed short one early in his innings.

The left-hander got in a tangle and was unable to get the ball effectively to ground, but no short-leg had been posted at that stage.

Soon afterwards Andrew Strauss pulled Hassan into the hands of square leg, and Jonathan Trott had only a single when he got a faint edge down the leg-side to be caught behind.

A watchful Pietersen needed 10 balls to get off the mark, but did so with a trademark big stride for a four through midwicket - and the rationale was that England needed only patience, on a slow but benign surface, to gradually take control.

Instead Pietersen nibbled an outside edge off Rankin soon after lunch, and Bell's attempt to glide runs behind square off his Warwickshire team-mate resulted in another catch behind when the 6ft 9in Irishman found extra bounce.

Then Morgan edged a Mohammad Nabi off-break to slip, and Cook toppled over and poked the blade down leg to be caught behind off Christi Viljoen.

Scotland off-spinner Majid Haq took a wicket with his first delivery - Davies lbw pushing forward - and Broad then unluckily picked out silly mid-off when he timed a back-foot shot off Nabi. Graeme Swann and James Anderson avoided any more losses until, five minutes before the scheduled tea break, Strauss chose to declare almost 100 runs in arrears.

There was partial vindication when, as in the first innings, Broad and Anderson served up useful new-ball spells as the Combined XI were reduced to eight for three this time.

After Will Porterfield and Paul Stirling's ducks, the two Irish openers had mustered only eight runs between them in four attempts. Porterfield nicked a catch behind down the leg-side off Anderson, and Broad pinned Stirling lbw.

Saqib Ali soon edged an attempted push-drive behind off Broad, and Craig Williams chipped a catch to cover off Swann.

But a stand of 40 between Kyle Coetzer and Mohammad Shahzad ended only when the former played on to Anderson, as the equations began to narrow for an England victory in this first warm-up match for the Test series against Pakistan.

Scoreboard (after day two):

ICC Combined XI 1st innings
281 (C. Viljoen 98, Mohammad Shahzad 51, B. Rankin 43; S. Broad 3-42, G. Swann 3-99)

England 1st innings

Strauss c Haq b Hassan 17

Cook c Shahzad b Viljoen 76

Trott c Shahzad b Hassan 1

Pietersen c Shahzad b Rankin 15

Bell c Shahzad b Rankin 3

Morgan c Stirling b Nabi 1

Davies lbw b Haq 12

Broad c Porterfield b Nabi 19

Swann not out 14

Anderson not out 12

Extras: (b8, lb4, nb 2, w1) 15

Total: (for eight wkts dec) 185

Fall of wickets: 1-44 (Strauss), 2-54 (Trott), 3-107 (Pietersen), 4-121 (Bell), 5-126 (Morgan), 6-132 (Cook), 7-159 (Davies), 8-159 (Broad).

Bowling: Hassan 11-4-26-2 (w1), Viljoen 11-1-42-1 (nb2), Nabi 14-3-42-2, Rankin 16-3-49-2, Haq 3-1-14-1

Overs: 55

-------

Combined XI 2nd innings

Porterfield c Davies b Anderson 0

Stirling lbw b Broad 0

Coetzer b Anderson 31

Saqib Ali c Davies b Broad 2

Williams c Bell b Swann 11

Mohammad Shahzad not out 34

Mohammad Nabi not out 9

Extras: (lb1, nb2) 3

Total: (For five wkts) 90

Fall of wicket: 1-0 (Porterfield), 2-2 (Stirling), 3-8 (Ali), 4-31 (William), 5-71 (Coetzer).

Bowilng: Anderson 12-6-29-2, Broad 9-5-15-2 (2nb), Swann 10-1-33-1, Finn 6-3-12 0

Overs: 37