• Pakistan opted to bat first in the second Test at Southampton.

  • James Anderson inches closer to reach 600 Test wickets landmark.

ENG vs PAK: Bowlers shine as England takes control on Day 1 of the second Test
England versus Pakistan, second Test, Day 1 (Image Source: @Englandcricket)

England and Pakistan kicked-off the second Test of the three-match series on Thursday (August 13) at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton. The English cricket team made two changes in the form of Zak Crawley, who replaced Ben Stokes and all-rounder Sam Curran came in for pacer Jofra Archer.

For Pakistan, middle-order batsman Fawad Alam was the only change as he replaced all-rounder Shadab Khan in playing XI. Fawad made a comeback in Test cricket after a gap of 11 years.

After opting to bat first in testing conditions at the Rose Bowl, the visitors faced an early setback when England seamer James Anderson trapped opener Shan Masood in-front off the 14th ball of the innings to leave Pakistan on 6/1.

England pacers kept on bowling at good line and lengths, which caused the tourists a lot of trouble. Though, Abid Ali and Azhar Ali managed to survive the swing and seam, helping Pakistan reach 65/1 at lunch.

Abid also got some help from England’s slip fielders who dropped him twice, while Pakistan captain was fortunate that the ball didn’t clip his bails even after hitting the stumps during the 12th over of the innings.

In the second session, Anderson got his 592nd wicket when he sent Azhar back to the pavilion. The Pakistani skipper after labouring hard for his 20 runs got out on peach of a delivery by handling a simple catch to second slip.

Meanwhile, Abid turned out to be Pakistan’s best batsman on the opening day as he reached his third Test half-century when play resumed after a lengthy rain delay.

Still, Abid couldn’t carry on the momentum and failed to convert his fifty into a three-figure score as a Sam Curran delivery drew an outside edge which went straight to Rory Burns. Abid scored 60 runs off 111 balls.

As if the trouble wasn’t enough, Pakistan lost two more wickets in quick successions before the rain forced the match officials to call off the proceedings on Day 1.

During the 43rd over of Pakistan’s first innings, Stuart Broad also joined the party as he removed Asad Shafiq for 5 runs. Broad bowled a full delivery, and Shafiq followed it for a drive. The ball nipped away and carried an outside edge straight to fourth slip.

Bowlers dismissing Asad Shafiq most number of times in Tests:

  • 9 – Rangana Herath
  • 6 – Stuart Broad
  • 5 – Mitchell Starc
  • 5 – Vernon Philander

Then came Alam, who was dismissed for a duck on his return to Test cricket after 3910 days at Hampshire’s headquarters. The left-handed batsman with an extremely open stance was adjudged lbw after a review on all-rounder Chris Woakes’ bowling.

At stumps, Pakistan reached 126/5 with Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan not out on 25 and 4, respectively.

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CATEGORY: England

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About the Author:
AKSHAT GAUR
Akshat is the Sr. Content Strategist at CricketTimes.com. With a passion for storytelling and a keen eye for detail, Akshat has honed his skills over 6 years, working with various media outlets, publications, and organizations to deliver high-quality content that informs, educates, and entertains audiences. He is just another cricket fan who’s grown up watching the likes of Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid. Cricket runs in his veins. Cover drive is his favorite sight, and a ball meeting the middle of the bat is his favorite sound. You can write to him at akshat.gaur@crickettimes.com and follow him on Twitter, Facebook & Linkedin.