England and Pakistan Start at Headingley, the Ground That Refuses to Draw

England and Pakistan begin a three Test series at Headingley today, with the second Test at Lord's from 27 August and the third at Edgbaston from 9 September.

Pakistan arrive mid-rebuild

Babar Azam captains the side. Their batting has been the department under examination for some time, and a fortnight ago the board did something about it, appointing Michael Smith as batting coach on a two year contract covering both red and white ball cricket.

He was appointed on 4 August and this series is his first assignment, which is not a gentle way to begin. He arrives having worked inside three Pakistan Super League franchises, so he knows a good number of these players already, but a tour of England in late August examines a batting order thoroughly regardless of who is coaching it.

Why the venue is the story

Of the English grounds in our own records, they are starting at the one where matches finish.

We hold 17 Tests at Headingley, and one was drawn. England won 10 and lost 6. For comparison, Lord's over the same period held 41 Tests and produced 11 draws. Same country, same weather, an entirely different rate of results.

The reason is in the first innings. Headingley averages 289 in our data, the lowest of the major English venues we hold, against 310 at Edgbaston, 337 at Lord's and 353 at Old Trafford. Matches that start smaller finish sooner.

And the part that makes it watchable

Twelve of those 17 Headingley Tests reached a fourth innings, and those fourth innings averaged 234, with the largest 373. At Lord's the equivalent figure is 181, at Edgbaston 189.

So Leeds offers a modest first innings and a fourth innings in which a real chase remains possible. That combination is why the ground keeps producing the finishes it does, and we set the full picture out in what 17 Tests at Headingley say about it.

The head to head

Our data holds 31 Tests between these sides, from 2005 to 2024: England 14, Pakistan 12, five drawn. That is about as level as a two decade record gets.

Narrow it to Tests played in England and it separates sharply: 17 matches, of which Pakistan won 4. Pakistan touring England is a different proposition from Pakistan playing England, and the away record is the one under examination for the next three weeks.

What to watch on the first morning

The first hour. Headingley's low first innings average is partly a bowling ground and partly a place where sides get rolled before lunch, and in a three match series the tone of the first session has a habit of lasting longer than it should.

Venue and head to head figures computed by CricNerd from our own Test records, 2005 onwards.