| First Test, Rawalpindi (day three of five) |
| England 657 all out: Brook 153, Crawley 122, Pope 108, Duckett 107 |
| Pakistan 499-7: Babar 136, Imam 121, Shafique 114, Jacks 3-132 |
| Pakistan trail by 158 runs |
England’s determination and persistence were rewarded with crucial late wickets on the third day of the first Test against Pakistan.
In back-breaking conditions on a lifeless pitch in Rawalpindi, the tourists looked disappointed with home captain Babar Azam’s brilliant century.
But when Babar signaled Will Jacks to depart for 136, James Anderson followed up and dismissed Mohammad Rizwan, before debutant Jacks caught Naseem Shah at deep midwicket.
He took the off-spinner Jacks to 3-132 and took Pakistan to 499-7, still 158 behind.
It was nothing more than England deserved on the day as they tried their best to string together chances despite the minimal support on offer.
The week began with Abdullah Shafiq and Imamul Haq scoring centuries, the first Test in history where each opener from either side scored a century in the first innings.
Jacks first Test wicket and Jack Leach’s two wickets left Pakistan on 290-3 and gave England the opening.
Then came the glory of Babur and the drama of the deceased.
England rewarded for long toil
It was a brilliant display from England, just as impressive as their record-breaking feat of 657 runs with the bat.
Rawalpindi is a notoriously difficult ground on which results are compelling – only 14 wickets fell in the last Test at the venue.
Despite this, England are adamant they will not be playing for a draw – all seven have been positive results under the Ben Stokes-Brendon McCullum tenure – and their hard work gave them a perfect win. The opportunity is missed.
Hindered by the absence of Liam Livingstone, who missed the whole day with a knee injury, England’s bowlers never lost their discipline, while Stokes toyed and toyed with his fields.
They will come back fresh on Sunday, confident of wrapping up Pakistan’s tail and taking a big lead.
After that, it is likely to be thrilling to see how England go about targeting Pakistan and leave enough time to bowl the hosts out again.
Brilliant Babur made Rawalpindi happy.
Only a handful of spectators were excited enough to witness a quiet scene on Saturday morning but as Babar’s score rose, so did the crowd.
On the hottest day of the match so far, the home fans chanted Babar’s name, often competing with the trumpeter who tried to keep English spirits high.
Despite not being able to match England’s rapid scoring, Babar was the most fluent in Pakistan’s centuries. He pounced to pull anything short and used his feet eagerly against the spinners, including a six off Leach to bring up his half-century.
He slapped Stokes through the covers to reach his seventh century of the match and arguably his most famous.
So relaxed, Babar looked ready to bat on Sunday. Out of nowhere, he wrongly signals Jax to quietly leave the Pindi Stadium.
It was the first of four wickets to fall at 84, a decisive swing in England’s favour.
Early and late success for England
England’s hard work and creativity rarely faltered, it was just that their successes came either side of Babur’s masterclass.
Even when faced with a score that read 405-3, Stokes employed seven close catchers.
Pakistan resumed on 181-0. Shafiq went from 89 to his third century in just eight Tests, Imam from 90 to his third century on this ground.
Debutant Jacques took a lead from Shafiq for his maiden Test wicket before Imam brought Leach over long-on. Then, bowling with the second new ball, Leach drove one into the pads of Azhar Ali, who was lbw.
Off-spinner Jakes had just 21 first-class wickets before this match and none will be more valuable than the mistake he made against Babar.
Another sign of England’s inventiveness was Anderson’s round-the-wicket delivery to take Rizwan to midwicket and Jacks struck again with a fine catch by Leach at deep midwicket on Naseem’s unforced swipe.
‘Scoring quickly has bought us another day’ – that’s what he said
Speaking to Test Match Special, England’s Joe Root said: “It’s put us in a really strong position. The hard work we’ve put in going into this final session has really paid off.
“We had to be quite creative, try to do things differently and think outside the box and that effort puts us in a strong position tomorrow.
“Having such a big first innings score and scoring so early has bought us another day.
“It might look strange looking at the scorecard but on this wicket hopefully things will pick up towards the back end of the game – we think we have a really good chance of winning this game.”
Pakistan opener Abdullah Shafiq told Sky Sports: “It’s been a good day for Pakistan because we’ve played well. Yes, we’ve lost a few wickets but we’re in a good position.
“We have taken a positive approach. There is no question of going for a draw. England will play attacking and give us a good total. So we will fight for it.”
