Somerset v Pakistanis
Wisden's review of the first tour match, Somerset v Pakistanis
15-Apr-2017
At Taunton, July 3-5. Drawn. Toss: Pakistanis. First-class debuts: D. M. Bess, A. J. Hose. County debuts: T. D. Rouse, P. A. van Meekeren.
Trescothick, who had first played the touring Pakistanis exactly 20 years earlier, helped save the match for Somerset with a 105-ball century - his third of the season and 61st in first-class cricket. But, apart from the result, the Pakistanis were satisfied with their tour opener. There were centuries for Younis Khan - who put on 179 with the tidy Asad Shafiq after Misbah-ul-Haq fell second ball - and, in the second innings, Azhar Ali. In between, the seamers shared eight wickets as Somerset were dismantled for 128, in which Hildreth was the lone batting success. More runs from Shafiq left Somerset 73 overs to survive. They held on, despite a Yasir Shah-inspired wobble after Trescothick was finally caught behind off Rahat Ali. Dom Bess, an 18-year-old off-spinner, made up for going wicketless on debut by resisting for almost an hour, before the ninth-wicket pair negotiated 16 balls.
Trescothick, who had first played the touring Pakistanis exactly 20 years earlier, helped save the match for Somerset with a 105-ball century - his third of the season and 61st in first-class cricket. But, apart from the result, the Pakistanis were satisfied with their tour opener. There were centuries for Younis Khan - who put on 179 with the tidy Asad Shafiq after Misbah-ul-Haq fell second ball - and, in the second innings, Azhar Ali. In between, the seamers shared eight wickets as Somerset were dismantled for 128, in which Hildreth was the lone batting success. More runs from Shafiq left Somerset 73 overs to survive. They held on, despite a Yasir Shah-inspired wobble after Trescothick was finally caught behind off Rahat Ali. Dom Bess, an 18-year-old off-spinner, made up for going wicketless on debut by resisting for almost an hour, before the ninth-wicket pair negotiated 16 balls.