Cricket: Four dismissals off no-balls

MANCHESTER - As a member of a cricket team once considered the world's worst, England skipper Alec Stewart knows all about human error.

Which is probably why he didn't blame England's dramatic, 108-run loss in the second test against Pakistan yesterday on four dismissals from no-balls.

Chasing a record 370 to win the test and seal their fifth straight series win before an Ashes tilt, England were comfortably placed at 174 for one before crashing to 261 all out. Spinner Saqlain Mushtaq claimed four for 74.

This was after openers Michael Atherton (51) and Marcus Trescothick (117 in six hours) had put on 146 for the first wicket.

But television replays showed that Nick Knight, Ian Ward, Andy Caddick and Dominic Cork were all given out off no-balls, three from the end of umpire David Shepherd when Saqlain was bowling.

However, stand-in captain Stewart was not complaining.

"I'm not going to start moaning, saying umpires' decisions cost us the game - they are there to do a job to the best of their ability. Like batsmen, bowlers and fielders, everyone makes mistakes," he said.

"He [Shepherd] can't call for a third umpire, so as players we have to take it on the chin and carry on. They are human beings - the fact is, Pakistan beat us."

The errors would not have been picked up 20 years ago, when there were only two television cameras at a test, Stewart said.

"Now there's 10, 12, 15 cameras, anything and everything can be seen."

The no-ball news was a surprise to victorious Pakistan captain Waqar Younis. "I couldn't see. It was just a human error I'd say, the umpires are bound to make mistakes."

England resumed on 85 without loss and needed 285 in a minimum of 90 overs for an unlikely victory.

What started out as an historic quest for glory promised to become the great escape when Cork and Darren Gough at one stage looked poised to steer their side home after a dramatic collapse. But it was not to be.

A draw looked likely at tea, but then they lost eight wickets in the last session.

However, Pakistan's victory could be traced to the moment England collapsed in their first innings and conceded a 46-run lead.

England had won the first test at Lord's by an innings and nine runs.

Stewart said the difference between the teams in this test was probably Inzamam ul-Haq, the Pakistan batsman who was named man of the match after innings of 114 and 85.

"We had him caught off a no-ball in the first innings, we dropped him in the second, but he played exceptionally well and took the game away from us." However, Stewart insisted that there were still plenty of positives to take from the Old Trafford test, and the series, before the Ashes.

"It's the fifth series we've been unbeaten and that's excellent," he said.

"We've got a series coming up against the best team in the world, so are we disappointed?

"Yes, but we've got to take the things we've learned from this game and the things we learned from the Lord's test into the Ashes series.

"Losing eight wickets for 75 and eight for 60 [in the first and second innings respectively] is obviously not going to help matters - with people like Wasim [Akram], Waqar and Saqlain, they are capable of knocking over sides in a session."

Waqar warned England and Australia to expect a fired-up Pakistan in the upcoming triangular one-day series.

- NZPA