Strauss expects different approach
February 02, 2012 15:11:35 UK
England captain Andrew Strauss is desperate for his side to salvage some pride from the lost series against Pakistan in the third and final Test match in Dubai.
Alastair Cook and Andrew Strauss will hope to give England a good start.Having been soundly beaten in the first two games of the three-match series, Strauss and co are 2.87 to win the third Test, with the draw 3.25, while Pakistan are 2.50 to complete a 3-0 sweep.
The England skipper said ahead of the game, which starts on Friday: "We didn't want to lose a series, but that's gone, finished.
"We desperately want to avoid losing the series 3-0. We desperately want to come back and show we're better than we have shown so far in the series.
"It's an opportunity to gain some momentum going into the one-day series and Sri Lanka Tests. It's important."
England are likely to keep faith in their misfiring batting unit, with Ravi Bopara set to miss out despite the problems that the likes of Ian Bell and Kevin Pietersen have suffered against spin duo Saeed Ajmal and Abdur Rehman.
Strauss is confident that he and his colleagues will fare better this time around, having adjusted their approaches to try and combat the home side's attack.
He added: "I am very optimistic you'll see people a bit clearer in what their gameplan is and how they want to play, which is a good starting point.
"It's more about adapting your game to the conditions than going right back to square one and saying 'right, I need to change everything'."
Strauss is 5.00 to be England's top first innings run-scorer, with Bell 6.50 and Pietersen 5.00.
Don't forget all of the fantastic markets we have to offer, including In-Play betting, can be accessed on your mobile phone with the new and improved Mobile at bet365.
View all Cricket betting