As the egg-yolk sunset on a second dizzying day in Multan, it appeared like England had not only improved their chances of sealing a famous series victory on their first visit to Pakistan in 17 years but also learned a little bit more about themselves in the process.
Similar to the proverbial wet Wednesday in Stoke, many questioned how this group of instinctual dashers would perform when the ball has the advantage over the bat. Pakistan was evidently among the skeptics, as they responded to England’s destruction of Rawalpindi by ordering a slow-turning surface 300 miles south and loading up on spinners.
Ben Duckett (79) and Harry Brook (74 not out) then completed three periods of domination for the tourists, bringing us closer to an answer. In their second innings, England scored 202 for five after 49 overs, 281 runs ahead, with the knowledge that only the greatest score of the match could prevent them from taking a 2-0 lead with one to go.
Even the unfolding fairytale of Abrar Ahmed’s debut couldn’t stop their advance, with Pakistan’s new mystery man taking three more wickets for a total of 10 for the match.
Instead, the lasting picture will likely be of Brook shimmying down to leg-spinner Zahid Mahmood late in the game and somehow hammering a ball that pitched outside leg through extra cover for four.
Perhaps this is a little unjust to the bowlers who helped England rewrite the script, changing Pakistan’s overnight score of 107 for two into 202 all out and a valuable advantage of 79 runs.
Jack Leach took four wickets for 98 runs, including his 100th Test scalp, while Ollie Robinson ignited this incredible explosion by bowling Babar Azam first thing with a reverse-swinging corker.
“One hundred Test wickets is more than I thought I’d ever achieved,” stated Leach in his 31st outing. “I need to keep it in mind. I am currently enjoying playing for England more than ever before. And this is because it’s not about me, but about the team. That’s a unique sensation.”
Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum deserve credit for Leach’s success under this strategy, while the captain and head coach will be pleased that their message of enthusiasm with the bat is not being misinterpreted as recklessness.
After the initial 281-run blitz, England slowed to four runs per over, and although there were hiccups – with Zak Crawley and Ollie Pope being run out needlessly – two relative newbies, Duckett and Brook, performed great controlled knocks.
It remains to be seen whether Pakistan can reproduce this in their run chase, the hosts having completely lost their bearings as Robinson’s second delivery of the match blasted past Babar’s drive and lighted the zing bails on a foggy morning.
Robinson, tongue out and arms raised in jubilation, had once more demonstrated his mastery of the older ball, this being his sixth wicket of the series and fifth after the 30-over mark.
Robinson’s five-over period appeared to have immediately drained the ambition out of Babar’s teammates, as their relative cruise to 142 at four runs per over was abruptly halted as a collective state of fear plummeted.
Stokes gets credit for changing his strategy overnight and affording Leach additional protection against the slog-sweep at deep midwicket. The left-arm spinner capitalized on the resulting confusion.
Twice Leach hit the ball after it was lofted over the top, reaching three figures when Saud Shakeel scorched a compact fifty with a mishit that Jimmy Anderson held beautifully.
Mohammad Rizwan needed 28 balls to get off the mark when he was bowled on the backfoot by a delivery that sliced past his crooked flick to the leg. This somewhat exemplified Pakistan’s general weakness.
After that, Pakistan began giving its guests Christmas gifts early. Mohammad Nawaz smashed Leach to mid-off, then Joe Root struck again in an over, Agha Salman chipping to midwicket, and Mohammad Ali edged to Crawley at slip via his pad to elicit a similar roar from the audience as his first name.
Mark Wood then concluded by mentioning that most tails struggle with speed. After hitting Zahid’s front pad lbw, he broke up a 23-run partnership between Abrar and Faheem Ashraf when the latter was run out by an elaborate flick. Wood, who never shied away from a grin in normal circumstances, could hardly conceal his glee at Pakistan’s latest self-destruction.
Before lunch, England had amassed an astounding eight for sixty in 28.3 overs. Though Abrar quickly began flipping his assortment of leg-spinners and goolies, bowling the promoted Will Jacks on the sweep and had Root caught magnificently at short leg for 21, Duckett and then Brook revealed that there is more to this team than would initially appear.
The fact that Duckett was bowled by a long hop from Abrar that maintained low, just before the end of the game, only served to emphasize the balance of power.
