Azhar Ali says Pakistan can beat England in their own backyard in the upcoming series

Azhar Ali has said that Pakistan can beat England in their own backyard in the upcoming three-match Test series if the batting unit clicks to post 300-plus totals. Pakistan will be touring England for a three-match Test series that will be followed by a three-match T20I series between July 30 to September 2, 2020.

'We have the potential to beat England': Azhar Ali

"I think that if our batting can put together totals around 300 or more,  we have the potential to beat England. On recent tours we have made strong comebacks and done well there," Ali said at a media interaction a day before the team's departure on a chartered flight to the UK.

"I believe we have a pace-cum-spin attack which can give England a run for their money. Youngsters like Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah or Muhammad Hasnain have immense potential to succeed in English conditions while we have plenty of experience as well in our bowling," he added.

Meanwhile, Ali is also confident that his bowlers will not have a tough time due to ICC's new rule of saliva ban to shine the ball due to the global pandemic.

"I don't think not being able to use saliva to shine the ball is a big problem. Pace bowlers usually sweat a lot and plus the Duke ball has a lot of wax coating so the shine remains for a long time and it can be polished with sweat. Bowlers get natural movement with the Duke ball in English conditions and not being able to use saliva means our bowlers can also try to reverse swing it more," he said.

At the same time, the Pakistani Test skipper also added that they are ready to take on the star English pacers James Anderson and Stuart Broad in their own backyard.

"We have played them before and we have scored against them as well so it is not going to be a surprise for us," he added.

Pakistan team to reach England on June 28

Despite Pakistan's 10 players testing COVID-19 positive, their tour of England is set to go ahead as the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has confirmed that the Men in Green will arrive in the United Kingdom on June 28. The Pakistan team will begin their 14-day isolation period at Blackfinch New Road, Worcester soon after their arrival.

After completing their 14-day isolation period, the Men in Green will move on to Derbyshire’s The Incora County Ground on Monday, July 13 to accelerate their preparation ahead of the first Test, which will include two four-day internal warm-up matches. Only those players who test negative after arriving in England on Sunday will be allowed to proceed ahead with the squad. 

READ: Aamer Sohail Criticises PCB For Badly Handling Mohammad Hafeez's COVID-19 Test Process

(With PTI inputs)

(Image Courtesy:AP)