RAWALPINDI – Pakistan defeated England by nine wickets in the final Test of the series at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium and secured the series victory on Saturday.
Both teams had previously won one match each in Multan, making this third Test the decider.
By the end of Day 2, England had scored 24 runs with three wickets down in their second innings after putting up 267 in their first innings, while Pakistan replied with 344 runs.
Resuming at 24/3, England faced a severe batting collapse on Day 3. After early dismissals of Zak Crawley (2), Ben Duckett (12), and Ollie Pope (1) the previous day, England’s resistance faltered further as Harry Brook was dismissed for 26. Captain Ben Stokes followed, scoring only three runs, and Jimmy Smith soon joined Joe Root at the crease, only to fall for three runs.
Veteran Joe Root showed some resilience with 33 runs before Nauman Ali dismissed him, while Gus Atkinson added only 10 more runs before falling to Sajid Khan. England’s innings ended at a meager 112 as Nauman Ali took six wickets and Sajid Khan claimed four, leaving Pakistan a target of just 36 runs.
Pakistan’s dominant spin bowling performance and decisive victory in the Rawalpindi Test clinched them the series.
England resumed their second innings at 24 for 3, with Joe Root on 5 and Harry Brook on 3. However, Nauman Ali struck early, dismissing Brook for 26 and later sending back captain Ben Stokes for just 3 runs.
England’s collapse continued as their sixth wicket fell at 75 runs, with Jamie Smith bowled by Sajid Khan after scoring 3.
Nauman Ali then removed Root for 33, leaving England struggling at 85 for 7.
Gus Atkinson was next to go, falling to Sajid Khan with the team’s total at 97, and England’s ninth wicket fell at 106, with Rehan Ahmed departing for 7, also bowled by Sajid Khan.
In the first innings, England scored 267 runs, to which Pakistan responded with 344, securing a lead of 77 runs. With England’s batting lineup in trouble, Pakistan’s spinners have strengthened the home team’s hold on the match.
The three-match Test series is currently tied 1-1.
England won the first Test by an innings and 47 runs while Pakistan made a strong comeback in the second by defeating England by 156 runs.
Playing XIs:
Pakistan: Captain Shan Masood, Vice-Captain Saud Shakeel, Saim Ayub, Abdullah Shafique, Mohammad Rizwan, Kamran Ghulam, Salman Ali Agha, Aamir Jamal, Nauman Ali, Zahid Mahmood and Sajid Khan.
England: Captain Ben Stokes, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith, Rehan Ahmed, Jack Leach, Shoaib Bashir and Gus Atkinson.
