Third Test: Pakistan spinners send half of English team back at lunch break
Cricket
England won the toss and decide to bat against Pakistan in the third and final Test
Sajid Khan grabbed three and Noman Ali two wickets
Duckett held the innings together but fell to Noman Ali for 52
England recalled Rehan Ahmed to strengthen spin attack
RAWALPINDI (Dunya News) – Pakistan spinners made life difficult for the English batsmen in the third and series deciding final Test sending half the team back to pavilion at lunch for 110 here at the Pindi Cricket Stadium on Thursday.
Electing to bat on a spin friendly wicket after captain Ben Stokes won the toss, Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley opened the innings and put on 56 for the opening stand.
Crawley was the first wicket to fall, caught by Saim Ayub off Nouman Ali for 29 runs.
England suffered a middle order batting collapse as Ollie Pope was dismissed for three, Joe Root and Harry Brook for five apiece.
Duckett held the innings together but fell to Noman Ali for 52.
Skipper Stokes was batting at six and Jamie Smith five at the break.
Sajid Khan grabbed three and Noman Ali two wickets.
THE TOSS
Reuters adds: "We'll have to wait and see until a bit of cricket and some traffic has gone over it," Stokes said at the toss.
"But it looks a really good wicket.
"It's another challenge we're presented with and we'll wait and see."
Pakistan captain Shan Masood was reluctant to make a prediction about the pitch.
"The important thing is to see the situation, see what you're under and respond," he said.
"The preparation has been a bit different, until both teams have batted we'll keep our opinions to ourself."
THE TEAMS
On Wednesday, Pakistan announced the same team that beat England by 152 runs in the second Test for the final game. The PCB announced the squad one day after England confirmed a change in their bowling combination to match the triple-spin attack that led Pakistan to victory in Multan.
The England and Wales cricket board (ECB) announced it was recalling Rehan Ahmed to strengthen spin attack.
England won the first Test by an innings and 47 runs, before Pakistan levelled the series with a 152-run victory in Multan on a surface that offered plenty of turn – with spin duo Noman Ali and Sajid Khan taking all 20 wickets.
Pakistan are expected to create a similar pitch for the final Test match and Ahmed will feature alongside fellow spinners Shoaib Bashir and Jack Leach, while fast bowler Gus Atkinson was also brought in.
"We know it's probably not going to swing and seam and do all sorts in the first session, so we look at the pitch and work out what the best team is going to be," England batter Harry Brook told the BBC.
Ahmed, 20, played his first Test match in 2022 during England's tour of Pakistan, taking a five-wicket haul on his debut as the visitors completed a 3-0 sweep of the series.
"He's an outstanding cricketer. It's not just his bowling, but his batting and fielding. He's a young lad so he has a lot of time to come," Brook said.
"He got five-for in the last test here, so hopefully he can do that again."
England quicks Brydon Carse and Matthew Potts miss out.
The squads
Pakistan: Saim Ayub, Abdullah Shafique, Shan Masood (capt), Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Salman Agha, Aamer Jamal, Sajid Khan, Noman Ali, Zahid Mahmood
England: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (captain), Jamie Smith, Gus Atkinson, Rehan Ahmed, Jack Leach, Shoaib Bashir.
