England stunned by spin after Duckett century

Chief Cricket Writer in Multan

Second Test, Multan (day two of five)

Pakistan 366: Ghulam 118, Ayub 77; Leach 4-114, Carse 3-50

England 239-6: Duckett 114; Sajid 4-86

England are 127 runs behind

Scorecard

Pakistan’s spinners ripped through England’s middle order to turn the second Test on its head on the second day in Multan.

England were making serene progress in response to Pakistan’s 366, thanks to Ben Duckett’s swashbuckling 114.

The tourists reached 211-2, eyeing a crucial lead, only for off-spinner Sajid Khan to inspire Pakistan’s revival.

With the used pitch suddenly alive, Sajid had Joe Root drag on, enticed Duckett into an edge, then bowled Harry Brook with a ripper.

When Ben Stokes was caught at short leg off Noman Ali, England had lost four wickets for 14 runs in the space of 24 deliveries.

The evening chaos left England 239-6, 127 behind at the end of a day they enjoyed the better of for so long.

Jack Leach ended with four wickets and Brydon Carse three as England wrapped up the Pakistan innings just after lunch.

Carse was back in the middle by the end of the day, clinging on alongside Jamie Smith.

It always felt like a matter of when, rather than if, the pitch recycled from the first Test would play a part in the second.

Before it did, Pakistan must have been suffering deja vu from the first Test. On that occasion, they posted a strong 556, only to be pulverised by England’s Bazballers. When Duckett was going strong, sharing partnerships in excess of 50 with Zak Crawley, Ollie Pope and Root, history was repeating.

Sajid was one of four changes to the Pakistan XI and, even in the face of Duckett’s assault – England were scoring at five an over – Sajid carried the biggest threat.

And, late on the seventh day of cricket played on this pitch, the surface had its say. The ball for Root’s sweep may have kept a touch low, Duckett tried to drive out of the rough and Brook was unwise in trying to force against the spin. Stokes prodded like a man who has missed four Tests with a hamstring injury.

In the blink of an eye, England were floored. Dreams of a first-innings advantage turned into a grim battle for survival. From here, even getting to parity would be a remarkable effort.

Then there is also the thought of the conditions England might face in the fourth innings. Pakistan hold all the cards in their bid to level the series.

England’s response to Pakistan’s total was a step into the unknown, an exercise in giving context to their bowlers’ toil of the previous four sessions.

Duckett, who dislocated his thumb during the first Test, immediately made runscoring look effortless. Fed a heavy diet of spin, the left-hander tucked in with his trademark sweeps and reverses.

England began at a run a ball, even though Crawley was less comfortable against the spin. He should have been run out on 20 and overturned being given leg-before on 24 before he edged Noman on 27. Pope started calmly until a drive at Sajid had him bowled through the gate for 29.

Joined by Root, a similarly accomplished player of spin, Duckett could have been caught attempting a reverse at Sajid on 72, but slip fielder Salman Agha moved in anticipation of where the ball might go. When Duckett reached 88, he passed 2,000 Test runs, his strike-rate faster than anyone else in history to reach that landmark.

Duckett notched three figures from 120 deliveries, fittingly with another sweep, this time off Salman’s off-spin. It was his fourth Test hundred and first in 18 innings.

His stand with Root had reached 86 and England were coasting. Then came Root’s sweep and the pandemonium that followed.

Durham’s Carse impressed on debut in the first Test and again on the opening day of this match, when England’s seamers played a crucial role in limiting Pakistan to 259-5 overnight.

Mohammad Rizwan and Salman were Pakistan’s best hopes of reaching a truly imposing total, only for Carse to jag the ball away from Rizwan, who was sharply taken by wicketkeeper Smith, standing close to mitigate the low bounce.

Salman favoured running the ball to third man, but when he attempted one too many to a fired-up Matthew Potts, followed by Sajid tapping Leach to short cover, there was a chance England could have dismissed Pakistan below 350.

But Aamer Jamal, a real asset to be batting as low as number eight, found an ally in number 10 Noman, who has a Test best of 97. Some England players left the field with stomach discomfort, while Stokes did not bowl on Wednesday as he makes his return from a hamstring tear.

Their partnership was worth 49 when Carse was given the ball immediately after lunch, needing only one delivery to scuttle into Jamal’s stumps.

Carse was also involved for the final wicket, backpedalling on the leg-side fence to hold Noman’s top-edged sweep at Leach.

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