An already embattled Pakistan fell further into a mire with yet another batting collapse,ending the opening day of Edgbaston Test in a bind against England.
Shaken up in morale and in resource, Pakistan handed three debuts and brought in Saim Ayub, hoping to, as captain Babar Azam had said, play as if they had “nothing to lose”. But across one-and-a-half sessions, they lost ten wickets, debilitated by Ollie Robinson, Jofra Archer and Josh Tongue.
Robinson was typically difficult to score off, becoming the fastest to 100 Test wickets by a post-War England bowler. For the fifth time, Pakistan’s opening stand was extinguished in single digits. By the time Shan Masood was sent back with some extra lift from Jofra Archer, just like Azan Awais had been earlier, Pakistan had slipped to 26/4.
The parade resumed when Babar Azam’s off stump, the tip of it rather, was literally clipped out by Josh Tongue. It was the second-lowest aggregate (24) by a Pakistan top five in a Test innings since 2000.
Saud Shakeel kept one end sealed off from damage, but there was little cushion or support around. The middle order was torn open further by Tongue, sending back debutant Ghazi Ghori and Mohammad Imran. When he breached Shakeel’s defences, who had inched into the 40s, Pakistan’s final line of resistance evaporated.
Still, Mohammad Abbas and Mohammad Ali didn’t easily budge, spending 55 balls between them. Ali even shook off a nasty hit to his right leg, with Abbas crossing 20 for only the third time in his Test career. Their innings wrapped up inside 34 overs, their third shortest against England in Tests.
England’s response was measured, factoring in the higher degree of swing on offer. Ben Duckett was back in the fifth over, with Babar taking a sharp catch off Ali in the slip cordon. It became 24/2 when Jordan Cox was pinged on the back pad by Abbas in front.
Joe Root surpassed Steve Waugh to become the third-most capped Test player, but extended his bizarre run of leg-before, trapped by debutant Razaullah. It’s the eighth time in ten Test innings this summer that he has been dismissed in this manner.
Emilio Gay, though, was solid and watchful, planting out his front foot to drive whenever the opportunity presented. One of those attempts led to a painful inside-edge to his back knee and floored him, but he continued on thereafter, building on even as the odd ball jagged around.
Harry Brook was Gay’s perfect partner even as Pakistan’s seamers teased the outside edge here and there, pinned to the crease at times with the keeper up. Together, they gave England their first 100+ fourth-wicket stand at home against Pakistan in two decades.
Gay couldn’t see through the end of the day but still notched up the first fifty by an opener from either side this series. Brook, in the company of Dan Lawrence, ticked off his fifty to put England in a comfortable position.
Day 1 brief scores: England 154/4 (Emilio Gay 60, Harry Brook 52*; Razaullah 2-42, Mohammad Abbas 1-37) lead Pakistan 133 (Saud Shakeel 43, Mohammad Abbas 21; Josh Tongue 4-42, Ollie Robinson 3-15) by 23 runs.
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