Alastair Cook batted through the third day in Abu Dhabi on a pitch Mushtaq Ahmed, the Pakistan bowling coach, claimed is not good for Test cricket.
Cook’s 28th Test century – and his 33rd in international cricket, surpassing Kevin Pietersen’s tally – resulted in England reaching stumps on 290 for three as the captain’s unbeaten 168 edged his side to within 34 runs of avoiding the follow-on.
With only 11 wickets falling for the 813 runs scored and none to the spinners, the surface at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium has been criticised for denying a contest out in the middle – something with which Mushtaq, the former spin bowling coach of England, agreed after stumps. Asked if the pitch was good for Test cricket as a whole, the former leg-spinner replied: “Not really, no. If I am honest with you, it makes the cricket dull.
“The last time we played Australia and New Zealand here [in 2014, when Pakistan won both Tests] they were brilliant pitches. Maybe the weather is different, with more heat, and they are trying to protect the pitch with more grass.
“But that doesn’t let the cracks open sometimes. I’m not technical [on pitch preparation] but on my reading as a spinner, that pitch didn’t play like those last ones last year; it’s on the slow side and maybe that’s not good for Test matches.”
Cook, who has been on the field for all nine sessions of the Test, combined with Moeen Ali for an opening stand of 116 before the latter, in his new role as an opener, edged the right-armer Imran Khan behind on 35.
Ian Bell, who made an obdurate 63 from No3 only to fall 20 minutes before the close, provided support for the England captain, who became only the second batsman from outside the subcontinent to make eight Test centuries in Asia.
“It’s been tough physically but I’m pleased to get through,” Cook said after the close. “It’s a different style of cricket on these slow, low wickets and if you can be patient you can bat for long periods of time.
“I like to think I have developed against spin and I do think I can score aggressively when I need to. For the first 30-40 balls, they have men around the bat and you can’t run down the pitch. You have to trust your defence. Ian Bell did that and got his rewards.”
Asked if he was now looking to go past the career-best 294, scored against India in 2011, Cook said: “I’d take 295 tomorrow. I said if I ever got close to 294 again, I wouldn’t get out caught at deep point [as he did then]. Not that it still bugs me.”
Bell, whose departure was followed swiftly by the nightwatchman Mark Wood – Joe Root will resume on three with Cook on day four – put his two dropped catches on the opening day behind him to go past the 51 runs he scored in three Tests here in 2012.
He said: “It was nice to bat long but I was gutted not to go on – or certainly be there overnight with Cooky – because I know that on a pitch like that you want to get in, make the most of it and get a big one. I’m happy with what I did today but gutted not to be able to go on.”
On the pitch, which has shown little signs of deterioration but could yet spring into life, Bell said: “In this part of the world, the games do speed up towards the back end of the Test, so it will be interesting to see what will happen in the next two days.
“It’s not ideal, 11 wickets in three days, but you get used to it on the subcontinent, that as the game gets into days four and five that it will speed up. If there was a little more pace it would have been a very good Test pitch.”
