3rd Test, Rawalpindi, October 24, 2024, 10:30 AM
England
267/10(68.2ov)
Pakistan
73/3(23.0ov)
Day 1: Stumps - PAK trail by 194 runs
PAK 61%
Tie 0%
ENG 39%
It feels like a par score on this pitch. Pakistan bowled well early on. Sajid Khan ended with six wickets but England replied well by taking three wickets in a small passage of play. England will hope their spinners get back in action right away on Day 2. Join us for all the action at 5 am GMT and early on for the build up. Till then, goodbye and cheers!
Sajid Khan, the main man with the ball for Pakistan is down for a chat. He starts by saying that he has been playing first-class cricket for the past 8-9 years and has seen all different types of wickets and is happy to see such a wicket here in Pindi. On Joe Root's wicket, he says that when you play cricket regularly, you get to learn the positives and negatives and tried to get rid of Root early and planned for it as well.
England opted to bat first and the openers laid the foundation at the top. They negotiated the spinners well but it was a matter of time before Pakistan get their lines and lengths right. Once Noman Ali got Zak Crawley, England lost wickets in heaps and got in a spot of trouble at 118/6. However, a solid partnership between Gus Atkinson and Jamie Smith saw them get things back on track and steady the ship. Jamie Smith was the hero for them with the bat as he scored a valuable 89 on a tricky wicket.
A fantastic day of cricket comes to an end. 13 wickets fall overall and it's hard to say who is on top right now. Pakistan had to bat during a tricky period, they lost three wickets in the process but Shan Masood and Saud Shakeel did well to see out the rest of the overs. England on the other hand will be happy with how they have bowled. They used Jack Leach and Shoaib Bashir for the majority of the innings but a superb effort from Gus Atkinson saw him get a wicket as well.
In over# 23
0
1
0
0
0
0
Rehan Ahmed 1/0(1)
22.6
.
Safely negotiated by Saud Shakeel and that will be STUMPS ON DAY 1! Ahmed finishes with a googly, a tad full and targeting the stumps, Shan Masood watchfully defends it off.
22.5
1
Pushed through onto the legs, Masood stays back and steers it on the leg side for a single.
22.4
.
Stump-to-stump bowling, Masood stays watchful and just blocks it from the crease.
22.3
.
Drifting into the legs this time, clipped away well behind square on the leg side.
22.2
.
Similar line and length again, angling back in, steady bounce this time and Masood manages to push it away in front of mid-wicket.
22.1
.
Oh, that kept really low! Comes from around the stumps and bowled it flat and into the pitch, angling it in from around off. Shan Masood gets across a bit and manages to jam his bat down in time.
Rehan Ahmed to bowl the final over of the day.
In over# 22
0
0
1
0
3
0
Shoaib Bashir 29/1(8)
21.6
.
Fuller in length on the stumps and blocked off by Shakeel.
21.5
.
Oh, that nearly scraped through! Quicker and flatter, sliding onto the off pole, Saud Shakeel gets rushed as he looks to play off the back foot but manages to keep it out.
21.4
1
Just drifting into the pads once again, Masood dabs it around the corner and picks up a single.
21.3
.
Flighted up on the stumps, Masood is happy to defend it out.
21.2
3
A bit of a freebie that as Bashir bowls a full toss on off and middle, Saud Shakeel comes forward and whips it through the mid-wicket region. Harry Brook chases it down and saves a run for his side.
21.1
.
Quicker through the air, a bit full around middle and turning away, Saud Shakeel lunges and solidly blocks it off.
In over# 21
0
1
1
1
0
0
Joe Root 3/0(1)