Pakistan vs England Archives

Pope hails Pakistan thrashing as ‘special win’ for England

Captain Ollie Pope hailed England’s milestone-laden first Test thrashing of Pakistan in Multan on Friday as “a special win”.

England played their trademark aggressive cricket to amass the fourth-highest Test total of 823-7 declared, spurred by a Harry Brook and Joe Root’s record partnership.

Brook’s masterful 317 alongside Root’s record-breaking 262 — that made him England’s highest Test run scorer — gave the visitors a 267-run lead.

England’s bowlers, led by spinner Jack Leach then set to work demolishing Pakistan’s batting line-up on a lifeless track.

“Everyone knows what a special win that was,” said Pope after Leach bagged all three wickets on the last day to finish with 4-30 to secure an innings and 47-run victory.

The win is England’s fourth consecutive Test triumph on Pakistan soil, after a 3-0 whitewash two years ago. England had only won two away Tests against Pakistan in the previous 61 years.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

Ollie Pope, who is standing in as captain for the injured Ben Stokes, said for him it was “one of the top four wins.”

“This win would be right up there,” said Pope who also led England in a 2-1 win over Sri Lanka last month.

“I can think of Islamabad (Rawalpindi against Pakistan in 2022), Hyderabad (against India this year) and Trent Bridge (against New Zealand in 2022)… and this is right up there with the rest of them too.”

Ollie Pope lauded Brook and Root for setting up the mammoth total.

“Credit to those two Yorkshiremen yesterday,” said Pope of the pair who hail from the northern England county.

“In another situation, you’d play a few more shots once you’re past your hundred naturally, but they knew how important it was to get us up to that massive score, so credit to them.”

After 1,379 runs were scored for just 17 wickets, England’s bowlers turned the match on its head with pacer Chris Woakes dismissing Pakistan opener Abdullah Shafique with the first ball of the second innings.

Salman Agha with 63 and Aamer Jamal with 55 not out took the game to the last day before Pakistan folded for 220.

“The way the bowlers bowled in this heat was phenomenal,” said Pope of the attack with Gus Atkinson taking 2-46 and debutant Brydon Carse finishing with 2-66.

The second Test will also be in Multan from Tuesday while the third and final in Rawalpindi from October 24.

READ: Gardner takes four as Australia crush Pakistan by nine wickets

Shan Masood reveals reason behind Pakistan’s loss against England

MULTAN: Pakistan Test captain Shan Masood has opened up about the reasons behind his team’s humiliating defeat in the first Test against England here on Friday.

The home team suffered a humiliating defeat by an innings and 47 runs, becoming the first team to be defeated by an innings after scoring more than 500 runs in one of the innings.

The stunning loss extended Pakistan’s losing streak to six consecutive Test matches under Shan Masood.

During the post-match press conference, the Pakistan captain acknowledged the inability of his bowlers to take 20 wickets in the recent games.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

“It is quite evident that we are not able to take 20 wickets. We need to find a process to stay in the game and give ourselves a proper chance of winning a Test match,” said Shan.

He also shared that the pitch in the Multan Stadium did not play out as the home team expected.

“We cannot control the behaviour of a pitch. We were expecting this pitch to get better for bowling after day two,” he stated.

It’s worth noting that during the first innings, Shan Masood led from the front with a brilliant 151-run knock, steering his side to a mammoth 556, however, in the second innings he managed only 11.

READ: ‘This is only our 3rd Test’: Pakistan head coach calls for patience after England loss

‘This is only our 3rd Test’: Pakistan head coach calls for patience after England loss

Jason Gillespie, the red-ball head coach of Pakistan, has urged the fans to remain patient after the crushing loss in the first Test against England in Multan.

The home team suffered a humiliating defeat by an innings and 47 runs, becoming the first team to be defeated by an innings after scoring more than 500 runs in one of the innings.

The stunning loss extended Pakistan’s losing streak to six consecutive Test matches, however, Gillespie has been in charge for only three of them.

He was appointed as the head coach of Pakistan’s Test team in April and in his first assignment, the Green Shirts were whitewashed by Bangladesh in the home series last month.

While talking to the media after the Multan Test, Gillespie emphasized that it’s still early days for the team under his management, urging fans and critics to be patient.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

“Please understand that this management, myself included, this is our 3rd Test. It’s very early for us in this space,” said Gillespie.

“We’ve looked at past performances and we’re looking at performances right now. Sometimes players are better players when they aren’t in the team.

“Everyone is crying out for change. I understand that; people want to see results and performances.”

Jason Gillespie also defended his team, showing confidence in players’ skills. However, he acknowledged the need to adapt according to the match situations.

“We’ve got some very fine players in the dressing room. Skill levels aren’t the issue. We just need to make sure we’re in the game and adjusting and adapting in-game, finding solutions there,” he shared.

READ: Shan Masood defends Babar Azam despite bad form

‘He’s just one innings away’: Shan Masood defends Babar Azam despite bad form

Pakistan Test captain Shan Masood has defended star batter Babar Azam despite his below-par performance after the first Test against England in Multan on Friday.

The home team suffered a humiliating defeat by an innings and 47 runs, becoming the first team to be defeated by an innings after scoring more than 500 runs in one of the innings.

Shan Masood played a brilliant 151-run knock in the first innings, steering his side to a mammoth 556, however, in the second innings he managed only 11. Meanwhile, Babar returned with scores of 30 and 5 in the Multan Test.

While addressing the post-match press conference, the Pakistan captain expressed his faith in Babar, calling him the best batter in the team.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

“There is no doubt that Babar Azam is Pakistan’s best batter. We need to give him some time and think that he’s just one innings away from a comeback,” he stated.

It’s worth noting that Babar has been under tight scrutiny due to his below-par performances recently.

He crashed out of the top ten list in the ICC Test Batting Rankings last month after a forgettable home series against Bangladesh, where he managed 64 runs in four innings. His bad form continued in the first Test against England, extending his string of low scores.

He last crossed the 50-run mark in red-ball cricket back in December 2022 against New Zealand with a marathon 161-run knock. Since then, he has played 16 innings with a highest score of 39 against Sri Lanka in July 2023.

READ: PCB adds Aleem Dar to new selection committee

Pakistan set unwanted record after crushing defeat in first England Test

MULTAN: The Pakistan cricket team set an unwanted record after they were crushed by England in the recently concluded first of the three-match Test series here on Friday.

The home team lost the match in the first session of the final day by a humiliating margin of an innings and 47 runs.

Pakistan piled up 556 runs in the first innings, setting an embarrassing record in cricket history as the first time a team lost by an innings after scoring 500 runs in a Test innings.

This stunning loss extends their losing streak to six consecutive Test matches and marks their seventh defeat in the last nine home matches.

Since 2022, Pakistan’s home record has been dismal, with zero wins, six losses, and four draws in ten matches, resulting in a win percentage of 0%.

Salman Ali Agha (41*) and Aamir Jamal (27*) started the final day for the home side with the scoreboard reading 152-6.

With the hosts trailing by 115 runs, both batters added 39 runs in the morning session before Jack Leach removed Salman, who scored 63 runs from 84 balls with the help of seven boundaries.

Aamir Jamal played a patient knock of 55 runs from 104 balls before Leach removed Shaheen Afridi (10) and Naseem Shah (6) in the same over to wrap Pakistan’s innings at 220 runs. Meanwhile, Abrar Ahmed did not take the field on the fourth and fifth day.

Leach led England’s bowling attack with bowling figures of 4-30, while Gus Atkinson and debutant Brydon Carse bagged two wickets each.

Pakistan had a dismal start to their second innings as right-handed opener Abdullah Shafique fell for a duck on the second delivery of the first over.

His dismissal jolted Pakistan’s batting unit, which accumulated 556 runs in the first innings, and England made successive strikes to reduce them to 82/6, trailing a further 185.

Salman Ali Agha and Aamir Jamal offered fightback in the dying minutes of the fourth day with a gritty 70-run partnership.

England had declared their first innings after amassing a mammoth 823/7 with a lead of 267 runs.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

England batters frustrated Pakistan bowlers with a dominant batting display on the morning of the fourth day as they racked up 166 runs without any loss, pushing the team’s total to 658-3 in the first session on Day 4.

Joe Root fell early in the second session, getting lbw off Salman Ali Agha after playing a monumental knock of 262 runs from 375 balls, which featured 17 fours.

Harry Brook was joined by Jamie Smith and they switched gears, constructing a partnership of 75 runs from only 49 balls.

Brook completed his maiden triple-hundred during the partnership with a four off Saim Ayub, reaching the milestone in style. He took 310 balls to reach the milestone and became the sixth English player to do so.

Smith was removed by Naseem Shah after he played a 31-run knock from 24 balls with two fours and one six.

Saim Ayub got the prized scalp of Brook a few overs later, ending his historic knock at 317. Brook struck 32 boundaries, including three sixes during his 322-ball innings.

Gus Atkinson also fell prey to Saim in the same over before Chris Woakes and Brydon Carse added 24 runs to push the team’s total to 823-7.

For Pakistan, Saim and Naseem picked two wickets, while Shaheen Shah Afridi, Aamir Jamal and Salman Ali Agha bagged one each.

Pakistan were bowled out in their first innings after piling up a mammoth 556-run total against an inexperienced England bowling attack.

Salman Ali Agha remained unbeaten at 104 runs from 119 balls, which featured ten boundaries and three sixes.

Meanwhile, Pakistan captain Shan Masood top-scored with a marathon 151-run knock from 177 deliveries, featuring 13 fours and two sixes.

Opening batter Abdullah Shafique also played a brilliant innings of 102 off 184 deliveries, laced up with a dozen boundaries including two sixes.

READ: Novak Djokovic hails Rafael Nadal after retirement

Jack Leach stars as England crush Pakistan by an innings

MULTAN: Jack Leach took three wickets on the final day to steer England to a historic victory by an innings and 47 runs in the first Test of the three-match series against Pakistan here on Friday.

Pakistan started the final day with Salman Ali Agha (41*) and Aamir Jamal (27*) on the crease with the scoreboard reading 152-6.

With the hosts trailing by 115 runs, both batters added 39 runs in the morning session before Jack Leach removed Salman, who scored 63 runs from 84 balls with the help of seven boundaries.

Leach led England’s bowling attack with bowling figures of 4-30, while Gus Atkinson and debutant Brydon Carse bagged two wickets each.

Pakistan had a dismal start to their second innings as right-handed opener Abdullah Shafique fell for a duck on the second delivery of the first over.

His dismissal jolted Pakistan’s batting unit, which accumulated 556 runs in the first innings, and England made successive strikes to reduce them to 82/6, trailing a further 185.

Salman Ali Agha and Aamir Jamal offered fightback in the dying minutes of the fourth day with a gritty 70-run partnership.

England had declared their first innings after amassing a mammoth 823/7 with a lead of 267 runs. Chris Woakes and Brydon Carse were playing at 17 and 9 respectively when the captain called them back.

Joe Root fell early in the second session, getting lbw off Salman Ali Agha after playing a monumental knock of 262 runs from 375 balls, which featured 17 fours.

Harry Brook was joined by Jamie Smith and they switched gears, constructing a partnership of 75 runs from only 49 balls.

Smith was removed by Naseem Shah after he played a 31-run knock from 24 balls with two fours and one six.

Saim Ayub got the prized scalp of Brook a few overs later, ending his historic knock at 317. Brook struck 32 boundaries, including three sixes during his 322-ball innings.

Gus Atkinson also fell prey to Saim in the same over before Chris Woakes and Brydon Carse added 24 runs to push the team’s total to 823-7.

For Pakistan, Saim and Naseem picked two wickets, while Shaheen Shah Afridi, Aamir Jamal and Salman Ali Agha bagged one each.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

Earlier in the day, Harry Brook ended the first session with 218* while Joe Root scored a marathon 259*. Their fourth-wicket partnership extended to 409 runs against a helpless Pakistan bowling attack.

Previously, the touring side enjoyed a commanding third session of play on Day 3 as they piled up 141 runs to get to 492/3 with Root closing in on a double century.

Root, unbeaten on 176 and Brook, 141 not out, resumed England’s first innings on the fourth day.

Pakistan were bowled out in their first innings after piling up a mammoth 556-run total against an inexperienced England bowling attack.

Salman Ali Agha remained unbeaten at 104 runs from 119 balls, which featured ten boundaries and three sixes.

Meanwhile, Pakistan captain Shan Masood top-scored with a marathon 151-run knock from 177 deliveries, featuring 13 fours and two sixes.

Opening batter Abdullah Shafique also played a brilliant innings of 102 off 184 deliveries, laced up with a dozen boundaries including two sixes.

Playing XIs

Pakistan: Saim Ayub, Abdullah Shafique, Shan Masood (c), Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel (vc), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Salman Ali Agha, Aamir Jamal, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, and Abrar Ahmad.

England: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope (c), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith (wk), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Jack Leach, and Shoaib Bashir.

READ: Novak Djokovic hails Rafael Nadal after retirement

England break 66-year-old West Indies record in first Pakistan Test

England cricket team shattered the record for the highest innings total against Pakistan on the fourth day of the ongoing first Test in Multan on Thursday.

England captain Ollie Pope decided to declare the first innings after his team piled up a mammoth 823-7. With this total England became the first team to cross the 800-run mark against Pakistan.

Prior to that, West Indies held the record for the highest total in a Test innings against Pakistan, having scored 790-3 in 1958.

Meanwhile, England also became the first time to cross the 800-run mark in a Test innings in the 21st century. Sri Lanka was the last team to cross the landmark during their record 952-6 against India in 1997.

Sri Lanka’s 952-6 is the highest total ever in a Test innings, while England’s 823-7 is the fourth-highest.

The visiting side achieved a lead of 267 runs courtesy of their strokeplay. Chris Woakes and Brydon Carse were playing at 17 and 9 respectively when the captain called them back.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

Joe Root fell early in the second session, getting lbw off Salman Ali Agha after playing a monumental knock of 262 runs from 375 balls, which featured 17 fours.

Harry Brook was joined by Jamie Smith and they switched gears, constructing a partnership of 75 runs from only 49 balls.

Smith was removed by Naseem Shah after he played a 31-run knock from 24 balls with two fours and one six.

Saim Ayub got the prized scalp of Brook a few overs later, ending his historic knock at 317. Brook struck 32 boundaries, including three sixes during his 322-ball innings.

Gus Atkinson also fell prey to Saim in the same over before Chris Woakes and Brydon Carse added 24 runs to push the team’s total to 823-7.

For Pakistan, Saim and Naseem picked two wickets, while Shaheen Shah Afridi, Aamir Jamal and Salman Ali Agha bagged one each.

READ: Rafael Nadal calls time on epic tennis career

Harry Brook becomes sixth England batter to score triple hundred

MULTAN: England batter Harry Brook scored a triple century and became the sixth player from the country to reach the landmark during the ongoing first Test against Pakistan here on Thursday.

Brook hit Saim Ayub for a boundary to reach the milestone in style, joining legends like Leonard Hutton and Graham Gooch. He took 310 balls to complete his triple century, which featured 28 fours and three sixes.

It’s worth noting that before Brook, Gooch was the last English batter to score 300 in a Test match back in 1990 against India at Lord’s. He played a marathon 333-run knock with the help of 46 boundaries, including three sixes.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

Triple Hundreds For England

Andrew Sandham vs West Indies (1930)
Walter Hammond vs New Zealand (1933)
Leonard Hutton vs Australia (1938)
John Edrich vs New Zealand (1965)
Graham Gooch vs India (1990)
Harry Brook vs Pakistan (2024)

Brook’s marathon knock finished at 317 runs from 322 balls with the help of 29 boundaries and four sixes with the scoreboard reading 797-6.

Meanwhile, Pakistan had piled up 556 runs in their first innings courtesy of centuries from Shan Masood, Abdullah Shafique and Salman Ali Agha.

Playing XIs

Pakistan: Saim Ayub, Abdullah Shafique, Shan Masood (c), Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel (vc), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Salman Ali Agha, Aamir Jamal, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, and Abrar Ahmad.

England: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope (c), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith (wk), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Jack Leach, and Shoaib Bashir.

READ: Fatima Sana to return back home due to her father’s demise

Pakistan’s batting disaster puts England in touching distance

MULTAN: England bowlers inflicted a batting collapse, leaving Pakistan reeling at 152-6 at Stumps on Day 4 of the first Test after the batters piled up a mammoth 823-7 here on Thursday.

Pakistan were in a state of bother at the conclusion of the penultimate day of the three-match series opener despite an unbeaten fighting partnership between Salman Ali Agha and Aamir Jamal.

The home side had a dismal start to their second innings as right-handed opener Abdullah Shafique fell for a duck on the second delivery of the first over.

His dismissal jolted Pakistan’s batting unit, which accumulated 556 runs in the first innings, and England made successive strikes to reduce them to 82/6, trailing a further 185.

Agha, unbeaten on 41 and Jamal, 27 not out, however, offered fightback in the dying minutes of the day with a gritty 70-run partnership.

The duo will resume Pakistan’s second innings on the final day with the home side still 115 runs behind.

Gus Atkinson and debutant Brydon Carse bagged two wickets each for England, followed by Chris Woakes and Jack Leach, who shared two between them.

The visiting side achieved a lead of 267 runs courtesy of their strokeplay. Chris Woakes and Brydon Carse were playing at 17 and 9 respectively when the captain called them back.

Joe Root fell early in the second session, getting lbw off Salman Ali Agha after playing a monumental knock of 262 runs from 375 balls, which featured 17 fours.

Harry Brook was joined by Jamie Smith and they switched gears, constructing a partnership of 75 runs from only 49 balls.

Smith was removed by Naseem Shah after he played a 31-run knock from 24 balls with two fours and one six.

Saim Ayub got the prized scalp of Brook a few overs later, ending his historic knock at 317. Brook struck 32 boundaries, including three sixes during his 322-ball innings.

Gus Atkinson also fell prey to Saim in the same over before Chris Woakes and Brydon Carse added 24 runs to push the team’s total to 823-7.

For Pakistan, Saim and Naseem picked two wickets, while Shaheen Shah Afridi, Aamir Jamal and Salman Ali Agha bagged one each.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

Previously, the touring side enjoyed a commanding third session of play on Day 3 as they piled up 141 runs to get to 492/3 with Root closing in on a double century.

Root, unbeaten on 176 and Brook, 141 not out, resumed England’s first innings on the fourth day.

Pakistan were bowled out in their first innings after piling up a mammoth 556-run total against an inexperienced England bowling attack.

Salman Ali Agha remained unbeaten at 104 runs from 119 balls, which featured ten boundaries and three sixes.

Meanwhile, Pakistan captain Shan Masood top-scored with a marathon 151-run knock from 177 deliveries, featuring 13 fours and two sixes.

Opening batter Abdullah Shafique also played a brilliant innings of 102 off 184 deliveries, laced up with a dozen boundaries including two sixes.

Playing XIs

Pakistan: Saim Ayub, Abdullah Shafique, Shan Masood (c), Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel (vc), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Salman Ali Agha, Aamir Jamal, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, and Abrar Ahmad.

England: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope (c), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith (wk), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Jack Leach, and Shoaib Bashir.

READ: Here’s why Abrar Ahmed did not take the field on day four of Multan Test

Here’s why Abrar Ahmed did not take the field on day four of Multan Test

MULTAN: Pakistan cricket team suffered a major blow during the ongoing first Test against England as spin bowler Abrar Ahmed did not toke the field on day four here on Thursday.

The right-arm wrist spinner is suffering from fever and is unlikely to return to action during the ongoing Test.

Abrar Ahmed has bowled 35 overs in the first innings and remained wicketless after giving away 174 runs.

Notably, the touring side enjoyed a commanding third session of play yesterday as they piled up 141 runs to get to 492/3 with Root closing in on a double century.

Root, unbeaten on 176 and Brook, 141 not out, resumed England’s first innings on the fourth day.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

England also dominated the second session as they had reached 351-3, trailing by 205 runs, with Root (119) and Brook (64) on the crease.

Pakistan got rid of dangerous Ben Duckett early in the second session with Aamir Jamal providing the breakthrough. The left-hander played a quick-fire knock of 84 runs from 71 balls, laced with eleven boundaries.

Root was joined by Brook and together they added an unbeaten 110 runs in 133 balls for the fourth wicket until the umpires called the Tea on Day 3.

Playing XIs

Pakistan: Saim Ayub, Abdullah Shafique, Shan Masood (c), Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel (vc), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Salman Ali Agha, Aamir Jamal, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, and Abrar Ahmad.

England: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope (c), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith (wk), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Jack Leach, and Shoaib Bashir.

READ: Gillespie banks on ‘fresh’ pacers to tackle England’s fightback