In a winter in which England added a T20 World Cup trophy and won a historic series in Pakistan, Harry Brook’s emergence may be cited most frequently in the future.
Hyperbole? Possibly. And yet, it was difficult to avoid such thoughts on the second day in Karachi as the 23-year-old crafted his third century of the tour, a beautiful 111 from 150 balls that helped his side earn a vital first-innings advantage of 50 runs in their quest for a first clean sweep on Pakistani territory.
The third Test had advanced dramatically by stumps, even though England was scheduled to bat last on a pitch with turn and variable bounce, and the contest remained in the balance.
After finally bowling England out for 354 in 81.4 overs – a total that owed much to Ben Foakes’ cool 64 on his return – Pakistan reached 21 without loss before twilight, behind by 29 runs.
Brook, however, strolling off the field with a story to tell, was beyond question England’s man of the match. There was also a lot to unpack, such as Ben Stokes opening his innings on a hat-trick ball in the morning, breaking David Gower’s record for runs by an England player in a single series in Pakistan (449), and the hilarious mix-up that led to his run out after lunch.
This was one of those situations where two hitters are standing at one end of the field while bails are being removed at the other. Brook was likely more at fault here, as he passed up a manageable third run after Azhar Ali made a good stop at the rope.
Stokes, who was dismissed for 26 after Brook touched his bat down first, was himself a little sleepy, it must be confessed. However, he was composed enough to offer his spouse a thumbs-up as he returned to the pavilion.
Two hours later, the England captain was leading the celebrations on the balcony after Brook blasted Abrar Ahmed through cover for four runs, bringing the score to 100 once again. His 117-run partnership with Foakes during an afternoon of spin transformed 145 for five into 262 for six, 42 runs shy of parity.
Once debutant Mohammad Wasim Jr reversed the ball after tea and ultimately bowled Brook lbw with an inswinger, there was some work to be done. Mark Wood (35 runs) and Ollie Robinson (29 runs) also managed to offer some tail-end swish. However, Foakes once again displayed the low-slung hands that play so beautifully on the subcontinent.
Babar Azam missed the first hour of play with a headache and oddly left cow corner unguarded while England’s lower order was on the attack, causing Pakistan to be a bit ragged. Still, the hosts made it to the end of the second day unscathed and will enter the third day with the knowledge that the surface in Karachi is unlikely to improve.
His first task was to negotiate a hat-trick ball after Brook had left the field during a boisterous morning. Ben Duckett was trapped lbw on the back foot by Nauman Ali for 26, and Joe Root was run out for the first time in three years when the left-arm spinner got the edge of a cautious poke that flew low and slipped. At 58 for three and 246 runs behind, England was in trouble.
But despite walking out to a friendly word from Nauman, a wily old bowler whose career includes two prosperous seasons in the Bradford League, this Yorkshireman had an immediate response, rocking back and punching through cover for a single to begin the latest chapter of his remarkable first Test series on the road.
Before this match, Brook spoke of his relative comfort in Pakistan, citing his experience playing Twenty20 franchise cricket earlier this year as having prepared him for the conditions and bowlers.
He also asserted that he was picking the mysterious spin of Abrar with ease, which was a bold claim to make in public, but he quickly backed it up by launching the fifth ball back over his head for six.
Choosing Abrar is an option, but there are still no guarantees. Just ask Ollie Pope, who was bowled by a beautiful delivery from Pakistan’s new weapon that dipped, spun past the outside edge, and shattered the off stump behind him, after scoring a brisk fifty off 63 balls.
Brook quickly asserted his authority by landing another clean blow to the ground off of Abrar. The statisticians observed that this was England’s 88th six of 2022, the most sixes scored by a Test side in a calendar year, and their first six of the winter.
