Pakistan have staged a great comeback against England as Sajid Khan and Noman Ali sparkled not only with the ball but with the bat to put the hosts on the driving seat on day two in the third Test match at the Pindi Cricket Stadium in Rawalpindi on Friday.
After losing four quick wickets earlier on the start of day two, Saud Shakeel showed a great commitment and once again proved to the world why he is regarded as one of the best, especially in Pakistan’s red-ball setup.
His 223-ball 134 had provided Pakistan’s innings with great impetus, and he was ably supported by Noman Ali (45) and Sajid Khan (48) secondly, which helped Pakistan compile 344 before they were bowled out inside the 97th over.
For England, Rehan Ahmed (4-66) had remained a standout bowler, who grabbed four wickets.
Shoaib Bashir (3-129) took three wickets.
Gus Atkinson (2-22) had picked up two wickets.
Jack Leach (105) took a scalp.
Subsequently, starting off their second inning, trailing by 77 runs, Sajid-Noman duo once again applied brakes to the England innings as Zak Crawley (2), Ben Duckett (12), Ollie Pope (1) made their way back to the pavilion.
Joe Root, who notched up a double-century in the first Test, and the triple-centurion Harry Brook are on the wicket as England are in the doldrums on 24-3 in the 9th over before the bad light stopped the play on the second day.
The highlight of the second day was the two partnerships, which Shakeel stitched with the two main spinners.
Shakeel and Noman first compiled a 151-ball 88 partnership.
After which, Shakeel and Sajid added 78-ball 72 to put Pakistan in a solid position against the Ben Stokes-led side.
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