Watch cricket video highlights of England tour of Pakistan 2024. Third test between Pakistan and England. Venue of the match will be Rawalpindi.
Copyright – Third Party Reference Inline Linking Embedded Video from Youtube
Report
The patio heaters, industrial-sized fans, and rakes have done their job. However, while Rawalpindi’s renowned batting pitch yielded 13 wickets on the first day of this third and final Test, England benefited, first scratching to 267 and then making that a reasonable total by reducing Pakistan to 73 for 3 by the end. On a field that kept everyone guessing, Ben Stokes winning England’s first toss in eight tries seemed like a miracle, especially as his opposite number Shan Masood admitted to being concerned about how things would unfold on the ground.
But it would have been a wasted miracle if Jamie Smith had not scored an incredible 89, his maiden half-century away from home, and led a crucial 107-run partnership with Gus Atkinson (39), for the seventh wicket. Sajid Khan excelled once more, ending with 6 for 128 from 29.2 overs, his third five-wicket haul of the season and second in as many first innings in this series. His early incisions and fast destruction of the tail held England in check as they aimed for 300 after Smith and Atkinson rebuilt from 118 for 6.
The early foundations laid by Ben Duckett’s accomplished 52 had crumbled on an unpredictable surface with erratic bounce rather than extreme spin. A score of 56 for 0 turned into 98 for 5 in 12.5 overs as the pitch began to play tricks, compounded once again by Sajid and left-arm spinner Noman Ali, who finished with 3 for 88. As predicted after sharing all 20 English wickets in the second Test in Multan to level the series, the spin tandem did the majority of the bowling, delivering all but 11 of the 68.2 overs, including the opening 42 unaltered.
For the second occasion in Test history, and the first since 1882, no fast bowler was deployed in the opening innings of the game. England opened quite well, scoring 50 runs in 12 overs. After a cautious start, Zak Crawley, playing in his 50th Test, fell to Noman with a scuffed drive to backward point. Ollie Pope produced another nervous effort of 3 off 14 while stuck in front and attempting a desperation sweep, before Duckett (wearing one on his toes), Joe Root (locked in front), and Harry Brook (bowled leg stump attempting to sweep) fell victim to deliveries that did not go up as expected.
Duckett was significantly responsible for England having anything to work with, as they lunched on 110 for 5. While it was slightly hazardous, it was difficult to classify it as a troublesome situation, and Smith and Atkinson ensured England had a solid foundation by bringing the score to 242 for 8 by tea. By the time Sajid was relieved of his huge first stint of 21 overs, he had removed Stokes, caught at slip 11 balls into the second session, for his fourth wicket. He ultimately reappeared and ended Noman’s initial salvo after 23 overs.
Atkinson joined Smith and embarked on an all-Surrey stand, serving as the straight man to the latter’s destruction, even if those positions only became prominent near the conclusion of their century-long stand. After a cautious start from both (Smith’s fifty took 94 deliveries), the final 39 runs to get their partnership to three figures took only 21 deliveries. Atkinson started the assault, hitting three fours in the final four deliveries of the 56th over against legspinner Zahid Mahmood, who was suddenly England’s target bowler.
Having said that, Smith responded with successive boundaries off Sajid, the second of which penetrated Saud Shakeel’s hands. If Shakeel had been stationed back on the fence rather than a few feet in front, he may have terminated the keeper-batter’s innings on 54. Unfortunately, Sajid bore the brunt of Smith’s error, as he was hit for two more boundaries in his next over, the first smeared over midwicket for six and the second lofted brilliantly down the ground for a four on one bounce. The second increased the value of the seventh wicket to 103 from only 159 deliveries.
Even though it only reached 107 when Noman returned to take a catch off his own bowling as Atkinson bunted back a ball that remained in the pitch, Smith kept going, hitting two sixes down the ground off Zahid to complete his second Test century. A third six at the end of the over was prevented courtesy to Sajid’s outstanding performance, who grabbed a boundary catch twice but had to throw the ball back into play a second time to prevent the boundary.
Smith, however, fell nine short, with Zahid benefiting from a top-edged heave that ended a magnificent effort and polished the legspinner’s numbers, which read 1 for 44 from 10 overs. It was Pakistan’s first wicket in 28 overs from a bowler other than Sajid and Noman, who combined for all 20 in the second Test at Multan. Leach and Rehan Ahmed, who had been recalled to the side for his first international appearance since February, resumed after the break but only lasted 32 deliveries before Sajid dragged both out of the crease to claim his fifth and sixth wickets of the match.
As well as his 15th in three innings since his recall in Multan. Naturally, Stokes started with Leach, but he handed Atkinson the new ball at the other end for his first taste of speed, although for only two overs. Abdullah Shafique and Saim Ayub surpassed their previous high opening stand of 15 with a leg bye in the second burst. But, having reached 35, Bashir twisted one into Shafique’s front pad, taking the first of three Pakistan wickets for 11 runs. An attempt to shut down the hatches until stumps allowed England to squeeze.
Leach nabbed Ayub, nudging Root at midwicket – the middle of three catches on the leg side – before Atkinson returned for a single over and took advantage of the low bounce to smash back Kamran Ghulan’s off stump, who had scored a century in his debut in Multan the previous week. Masood will return on day two with Shakeel, who was mistakenly given out on one after being ruled caught by Stokes after Smith diverted the ball to his skipper at first slip while attempting a take down the leg side.
It was the second of two apparent errors by umpire Sharfuddoula that DRS reversed, having already raised his finger to Ayub at the start of the seventh over for a similar incorrect judgment for a catch in the cordon.
