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Pakistan vs England: Tourists heading to defeat in second Test in Multan


Pakistan vs England: Tourists heading to defeat in second Test in Multan

England are not completely out of this Test but would be in a far better position had they taken their chances.

The extremely impressive Brydon Carse was the victim of three missed shots. Saud Shakeel had just two as he raced past Root at first slip. Root, trying to soften the low impact, stood so close he was wearing a helmet. It was incredibly hard, but the kind England had to endure.

Carse had a lead from Rizwan to Ben Stokes to keep the door open before the crucial over. Smith's drop from Salman was an aberration – as bad as it can be for a Test keeper. Root has the excuse of being close, although it was still a regular slip to his right.

If either had been won, Pakistan's lead would have been six wickets less than 200. England and captain Stokes were noticeably and unusually discouraged.

England were reeling when Leach and Shoaib Bashir combined to take three wickets for 11 runs after tea, including Shakeel for 31. When he ran out of partners, Salman had 25 off 57 balls and came to life.

He took 30 from the next 19 balls he faced, including a straight six from Jack Leach, to pass 50. With the support of Sajid, who pitched lbw after a full toss from Matthew Potts, the ninth wicket pair reached almost six over.

It was beginning to be doubtful whether England would beat before the end until the tireless Carse engineered a missed try against Salman. By then the damage had already been done.

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