MULTAN – Joe Roots pushed his side to a strong position while scoring century on third day of the first Test match against Pakistan in Multan on Wednesday.
England was at 372 with three wickets down after lunch break.
Harry Brook always stayed there and made a huge contribution along with Roots.
England, earlier in the day, continued its innings against Pakistan, starting the day with 96 runs for one wicket. Zak Crawley added a boundary to reach the team’s century but was dismissed shortly after, scoring 78 runs off a delivery from Shaheen Shah Afridi.
Ben Duckett became the third wicket to fall, out LBW to Aamer Jamal after scoring 84 runs.
Day Two
On day two, England began its innings aiming to chase a daunting target of 556 runs, with Ollie Pope and Zak Crawley opening the batting. However, Pope was dismissed without scoring, bowled by Naseem Shah. Later, Crawley and Joe Root helped the team to a score of 96 for one at the end of the day.
Beginning day two, middle-order batter Saud Shakeel and night watchman Naseem Shah advanced the innings from 328 runs with four wickets down. Naseem contributed 33 runs before being dismissed for a total of 388, while Mohammad Rizwan went out without scoring.
Pakistan’s seventh wicket fell at 450 runs, with Saud Shakeel scoring 82 runs off 177 balls before being caught out. Aamer Jamal followed with 7 runs, while Shaheen Shah Afridi added 26. The last wicket to fall for Pakistan was Abrar Ahmed, who scored 3 runs, while all-rounder Salman Ali Agha remained not out at 104 runs.
At the end of the first day, Pakistan had posted 328 runs for the loss of four wickets, thanks to notable centuries from Shan Masood and Abdullah Shafique.
Day One
In the first Test of the series, Pakistan won the toss and chose to bat. Abdullah Shafique and Saim Ayub opened the innings, but Ayub was dismissed early for just 4 runs with the score at 8.
Following Ayub’s dismissal, Shafique and Shan Masood formed a strong partnership, with Masood hitting two sixes and ten fours to secure his century. Shafique also reached his century, scoring 102 runs before being dismissed, resulting in a remarkable 253-run partnership.
Masood also could not last long at the crease, scoring 151 runs off 177 balls, including 13 fours and 2 sixes, before Pakistan lost its fourth wicket with Babar Azam out LBW for 30 runs.
At the toss, captain Shan Masood mentioned the team’s strategy, highlighting the inclusion of two spinners and three fast bowlers, aiming to get back on track. He expressed their determination to achieve a high score, acknowledging the team’s recent struggles.
Meanwhile, England’s captain Ollie Pope noted the moisture on the pitch and emphasized their intention to take quick wickets, adding that they would have chosen to bat first had they won the toss. He also acknowledged the heat in Multan but expressed confidence in the team’s adaptability.
Playing XIs:
Pakistan: Shan Masood (captain), Saud Shakeel (vice-captain), Saim Ayub, Abdullah Shafique, Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan (wicket-keeper), Salman Ali Agha, Aamir Jamal, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Abrar Ahmad
England: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope (captain), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith, Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Jack Leach, Shoaib Bashir
