World cricket needs a vibrant, successful Pakistan and so many eyes will be on Trent Bridge when the four-Test series with England gets under way on Thursday.

Salman Butt became the fifth Pakistan captain in 18 months when he assumed the role against Australia at Headingley last week. The traumas the team has suffered in that time, often intertwined with grave problems for the nation itself, are well documented. Along with coach Waqar Younis - their 14th in 15 years - Butt will hopefully oversee the start of a rehabilitation process among the playing staff at least. Many other issues remain intractable.

Such was the style and drama of their long-awaited defeat of Australia, feelings are running particularly high. The captain has hailed his bowling attack as the best in the world and if South Africa may dispute that then there are no other credible challengers. Wunderkind Mohammad Aamer, Mohammad Asif and Umar Gul cleaned up Australia for 88 in Leeds so will certainly be looking forward to Nottingham - a ground where the ball really does a bit.

Question marks remain, of course, over the batting. Butt looks the part but Imran Farhat has struggled to convince, albeit delivering fighting scores under pressure in a manner that the middle order might follow. Azhar Ali is the pick of the young middle order trio but much is required of former captain Shoaib Malik, adding ballast at six and without much of a tail to work with.

For England there are no surprises. Ian Bell was ruled out weeks ago with a broken foot so Paul Collingwood's return is not disruptive. The Durham man was rested for the 2-0 win over Bangladesh in June after a non-stop 12 months in all forms of the game. Eoin Morgan, who would have stepped aside, therefore gets an extended chance to improve on ambiguous performances against the Tigers. With a seventh Ashes batting berth up for grabs, Ravi Bopara will be watching from Essex with interest.

The Nottingham selection also confirms that England plan to rely on four bowlers this summer and then in Australia. James Anderson leads the attack but needs to shore up his authority on a ground that plays to his strengths. The Lancastrian has seemed out of sorts since watching the World Twnety20 win as an unused substitute, an unexpected shunning, and is not a banker for success in Australian conditions. Nevertheless he has to play Down Under due to his experience so England will be keen to see a revival of form in this series.

Anderson's three colleagues are in altogether better shape. Graeme Swann now has a legitimate claim to be the world's best spin bowler, while Stuart Broad and Steven Finn have the pace and bounce to unsettle batsmen in English and Australian conditions. Broad returns to Test action after missing the Bangladesh Tests in the gym; Finn topped the wicket chart in his first home series before his own 'condition training' during the ODI series. Tim Bresnan suffers the minor humiliation of performing 12th man duties just five days after being dropped. The Yorkshireman has disappointed this summer but was recalled when Ajmal Shahzad withdrew with an ankle injury.

It will be interesting to see how the schedule affects Pakistan as the series progresses. Having already played two Tests in 10 days they have another four in little more than a month. Extended absences for any one of Butt, Aamer, Asif and Gul would appear terminal to their chances.

For the first Test at least the tourists have been underestimated by the layers. This is a result ground and the bowlers are in form - if England are going to get skittled for 88 anywhere you'd expect it to be here. But over four Tests the home side will expect to take 70-plus wickets and unless a Pakistan batting hero emerges from the shadows (or indefinite suspension) the tourists will not make enough runs to win the series.

Key Men

England: James Anderson cannot really be dropped this winter despite a poor touring record. A strong series here, starting at a swinger's paradise, is the minimum if he is to travel with confidence.

Pakistan: Azhar Ali is the middle-order key without Younis Khan and Mohammad Yousuf. Impressive at Headingley, he will need to be a fast learner to carry the burden at number three in this series.

Last Five Head-To-Head Results

2006 4th Test England won when opposition refused to play at The Oval, London
2006 3rd Test England won by 167 runs at Headingley, Leeds
2006 2nd Test England won by an innings & 120 runs at Old Trafford, Manchester
2006 1st Test Match drawn at Lord's, London
2005 3rd Test Pakistan won by an innings & 100 runs at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore

Prediction

Pakistan's bowling attack is exceptional just now - and no better place next than Trent Bridge - but England will exploit their batting to win the series 2-1.

Probable Teams

England: Andrew Strauss, Alastair Cook, Jonathan Trott, Kevin Pietersen, Paul Collingwood, Eoin Morgan, Matt Prior, Stuart Broad, Graeme Swann, James Anderson, Steven Finn.

Pakistan: Imran Farhat, Salman Butt, Azhar Ali, Umar Amin, Umar Akmal, Shoaib Malik, Kamran Akmal, Mohammad Aamer, Umar Gul, Mohammad Asif, Danish Kaneria.

Dates: 29 July-2 August
Morning session: 11.00-13.00 local time(10.00-12.00 GMT)
Afternoon session: 13.40-15.40 local time(12.40-14.40 GMT)
Evening session: 16.00-18.00 local time(15.00-17.00 GMT).

Match referee: Ranjan Madugalle
Umpires: Askoka De Silva, Tony Hill

Peter May