Catches really do win matches

The old adage that catches win matches has come to mind at a number of moments during this current series.

In the second Test at Edgbaston, Pakistan captain Salman Butt reckoned his side dropped fourteen catches. Pakistan were thumped. Has any side won a Test after missing so many chances?

Despite runs from Matt Prior and Azhar Ali, and more wickets for Graeme Swann, it could again be dropped catches that prove all-important in this third Test.

This time it was England who were culpable. With the score on 278, last man Mohammad Asif edged Steven Finn to Andrew Strauss at first slip. By Strauss’s high standards it was simple, but the ball was grassed.

Eight overs and thirty runs later, Swann finally took Asif’s wicket. By now though the lead had grown to 75 vital runs, and these could surely make all the difference in a low-scoring game.

A wicket so late in the day also left England with an awkward fifteen minutes to bat before the close of play. I wonder if that dropped catch was on Strauss’s mind, as he snicked Mohammad Amir into the hands of second slip?