Chester-le-Street and Multan are not immediate bedfellows. One sits happily in its anorak in the north-east of England, relatively chilly, relatively steady, 10 miles from the North Sea. The other nestles in the southern part of Punjab, with a semi-arid climate, fierce swings of seasonal temperatures – currently hovering in the high 30s – and surrounded by mango farms.
But for the second Test against Pakistan, Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum cocked an eyebrow at the alien conditions, and the six-day Multan pitch, and plumped for an all-Durham seam attack – for the first time in English cricket history. Stokes was joined by Matthew Potts and Brydon Carse, with the spin contingent provided by another great non-Hundred county – Somerset – in Shoaib Bashir and Jack Leach.
