England beat Pakistan by 74 runs in the first Test of the three-match series at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium and now have a 1-0 lead over the Green Shirts.
English side takes away at the hosts, themselves eyeing a record-breaking chase of 343, before taking five wickets in the final session to clinch a 74-run success. England bowled out Pakistan for 268 runs in their chase of 343 as Ollie Robinson, James Anderson, and Will Jacks dashed the home team’s hopes.
Green Shirts were 176 for 3 but 4 for 50 from Ollie Robinson and 4 for 36 from James Anderson turning the chase from a battle for survival into a dramatic victory in the final half-hour. Saud Shakeel (76) and Imam-ul-Haq (48) stood firm for the hosts but they were unable to hold off the tourists, who dazzled with the old ball.
After winning the match It leaves England 1-0 up in the series ahead of the second and third Test matches in Multan (December 9-13) and Karachi (December 17-21).
Ben Stokes, who declared boldly at tea on day four, becomes just the second England captain to win a Test in Pakistan after Ted Dexter in 1961 and Nasser Hussain in the Karachi gloom in 2000.
With a total of 1768 runs, this was the highest-scoring five-day Test match in history as only two timeless Tests in the 1930s had more runs scored.
It must be noted that England runs on a lifeless wicket in Rawalpindi in the first innings. The English team was finally all out for 657 including a record 506 from the first day Thursday with four batsmen scoring centuries off the hapless Pakistan bowling.
In reply, three Pakistan batters scored centuries as the home side posted 579 in their first innings.
In the second innings, England batted a run rate of over seven to set a 343 runs target for Pakistan and in the reply on Day 5 Pakistan’s whole team was sent back to the pavilion on just 268 runs, as a result English side won the match by 74 runs
Remember that, after winning the match England now has a lead in the three-match series next match is scheduled to be played at Multan from 9th to 13th December.
