Costly dropped catches and struggles against spin left England deep in the mire on day three of the second Test against Pakistan.
On an increasingly untrustworthy Multan pitch, into its eighth day of service after the controversial decision to reuse it for back-to-back games, the tourists were 36 for two chasing a dim and distant fourth-innings target of 297.
Twenty-four hours after making a fine century Ben Duckett fell for a two-ball duck, while Zak Crawley overbalanced to be stumped for three. Over the course of the the day, England lost 88 for six against the home spinners and can expect the trial to continue as the game approaches its conclusion.
The highest any England side has ever hunted down in Asian conditions is 209, a record dating back to 1961 in Lahore, but it could have been a much closer ask had they not paid a dear price for two handling errors in the three balls during the afternoon session.
Despite conceding a 75-run first-innings lead, England scrapped hard with the ball to give themselves a chance. They had five wickets and were still less than 200 behind when the bullish Brydon Carse found Salman Agha’s outside twice in an over.
Missed Chances
Wicketkeeper Jamie Smith shelled the first with Salman on four, inexplicably letting the simplest of chances pop out of his gloves, before Joe Root failed to cling to a low chance just a couple of moments later.
Carse, busting a gut on a pitch that was overwhelmingly favouring spin, dropped to his haunches and brought a hand to his mouth in disbelief. He did not know it at the time but Salman was at the beginning of a potentially match-winning knock of 63.
England’s spinners enjoyed patches of success, Shoaib Bashir taking out the top three in seven overs before lunch as he banked four for 66 and Jack Leach adding three for 67, but after watching Sajid Khan claim seven wickets in their first innings, they had good reason for concern.
English morale ebbed away as Salman and Sajid put on 65 in just 73 balls for the ninth wicket, but the umpires were forced to issue two warnings as Pakistan’s batters encroached on the protected area.
Bating Woes
The day began as it ended, with England batting under pressure. Resuming at 239 for six they were all out for 291, completing the previous evening’s collapse as they lost their last eight wickets for 80.
Sajid was the the man responsible, topping up his overnight haul of four with the scalps of Carse, Matthew Potts and Bashir. Potts, on his first overseas innings, was the most memorable as Sajid nutmegged him with a raging turner out of the rough.
Sajid wrapped up figures of seven for 111 and would be back later to make Duckett his eighth of the match.
The 75-run gap between the sides was already significant but Bashir did his best to turn the tables as he sent Abdullah Shafique, Shan Masood and Saim Ayub back to the pavilion before the first break.
Shafique was given on DRS to a debatable nick down the leg side but Bashir unpicked the pair of left-handers in authentic fashion as Ollie Pope picked up both at second slip. Ayub was out to the very last ball of the session, putting a spring in England’s step despite the still perilous position.
Carse Causing Problems
Pakistan reasserted themselves between lunch and tea, adding 91 for two, but that was a harsh reflection on Carse’s efforts.
There had not been a single over of pace until he came on but he found a way to cause problems as he ploughed away relentlessly around off stump.
Saud Shakeel fenced him past Root’s head at an advanced slip position, justifying the fielder’s decision to wear a helmet, before Mohammad Rizwan fed him a catch.
Had he also removed Salman, England’s eventual chase may well have been a lot smaller, but Smith’s clanger behind the stumps and Root’s trickier fumble proved painful.
Leach accounted for Shakeel and Aamer Jamal after tea, and Bashir made Noman his third left-handed victim in the cordon, but the hosts rallied again from 156 for eight to 221 all out. Salman and Sajid threw caution to the wind against tiring opposition, piling on a crushing partnership that made an already difficult task look out of bounds.
Carse and Potts ended the innings for England but seam was never going to be on the menu for Pakistan. Instead it was spin all the way as Duckett and Crawley fell by the wayside.
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