MULTAN: Multan: Pakistan’s bowlers were not able to stop England’s advancement as Harry Brook made a double century, joining teammate Joe Root. Brook has managed to hit 19 fours and just one six on his way to his first ever 200.
Match Updates
Pakistan: 556
England: (130 ov) 658/3
Day 4 – Session 1
Ealier, England’s batting duo of Joe Root and Harry Brook delivered a masterclass, steering their team towards a match-defining moment of the first Test here at Multan Cricket Stadium on Wednesday.
With Root’s steadying influence and Brook’s aggressive strokes, England ended Day 3 at 492-3, just 64 runs shy of Pakistan’s formidable score.
Pakistan claimed the crucial wicket of Ben Duckett early in the second session, thanks to Aamir Jamal, who provided the breakthrough. Duckett had scored a brisk 84 runs off 71 balls, hitting eleven boundaries.
Root and Brook then joined forces, amassing an unbeaten 243 runs in just 51 overs for the fourth wicket before stumps were called on Day 3. At lunch, England was at 232-2, with Duckett and Root unbeaten on 80 and 72, respectively.
Pakistan started the morning well, removing England’s set batter Zak Crawley, who had made 78 runs off 85 balls. Duckett then partnered with Root, forming a formidable 119-run stand for the third wicket in 124 balls, with Duckett playing aggressively at a strike rate over 100 while Root showcased his elegant strokeplay.
England had a rocky start to their first innings, losing interim captain Ollie Pope for a duck after just two balls. However, Crawley’s brisk knock helped stabilize the innings, while Root played more cautiously.
On the second day, Aamir Jamal claimed Pakistan’s only wicket, while the team had earlier suffered a batting collapse, losing two wickets quickly after posting a mammoth total of 556 runs.
In the Pakistan innings, Salman Ali Agha stood firm with an unbeaten 104 off 119 balls, including ten boundaries and three sixes. Captain Shan Masood top-scored with a marathon 151 runs from 177 balls, featuring 13 fours and two sixes, while opener Abdullah Shafique contributed a solid 102 runs from 184 deliveries, including a dozen boundaries and two sixes.
Masood chose to bat first after winning the toss, and his decision was validated by the team’s strong total. The opening partnership faced an early setback with Saim Ayub falling for just 4 runs.
Playing XIs:
Pakistan: Saim Ayub, Abdullah Shafique, Shan Masood (c), Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel (vc), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Salman Ali Agha, Aamir Jamal, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, and Abrar Ahmed.
England: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope (c), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith (wk), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Jack Leach, and Shoaib Bashir.
