Strauss - 'We need Simon'

There will be no reversing it in Pakistan for Simon Jones © Getty Images

With the tour of Pakistan around the corner, Andrew Strauss believes that England are weakened by the absence of Simon Jones, the Glamorgan fast bowler. Strauss should know: he and Jones were together at the England Cricket Board (ECB) Academy and later their paths often crossed when playing for Middlesex and Glamorgan.

Strauss remembers a young, very aggressive Jones striking him in the nets during their time at the ECB Academy, and playing alongside the tall fast bowler during the past season he feels Jones has become a force to be reckoned with. "Simon was absolutely brilliant in the Ashes series," Strauss told The Western Mail. "He played a vital role in us winning the Ashes and his ability to reverse the ball in the sub-continent is going to be greatly missed. It's sad for him to miss out on a personal level, and we're definitely a weaker side without him."

The conditions England will face in Pakistan have historically been conducive to reverse swing, as is evident in the number of wickets shared between Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis, both exponents of this art. Strauss realises this and rues the fact that Jones will not be there to exploit the pitches at venues such as Faisalabad and Lahore. "The thing is Simon's put a lot of hard work into the art of reverse swing. He's worked hard on trying to achieve that control, and it's going to be a tough ask for all of us without Simon there."

Whether Strauss, who has already compiled over 1,700 runs with seven hundreds, can maintain his prolific run-scoring in the dustbowls of Pakistan remains to be seen. He will certainly be put to the test against bowlers such as Shoaib Akhtar, Naved-ul-Hasan, and Danish Kaneria. "It's going to be a novel experience for me as I've not played in Pakistan before. Learning how to bat in that heat and humidity is going to be difficult and they've got some high-quality bowlers as well."