England openers Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley were dismissed cheaply as Brendon McCullum’s side stumbled early in their run chase in Multan, with Pakistan looking set to level the series 1-1. England was set a target of 297, but closed the day at 36-2. Despite the tough situation, assistant coach Paul Collingwood told Sky Sports that “there’s belief in the dressing room.
Facing a challenging task to chase down 297, England’s openers Duckett and Crawley were dismissed for a combined 36-2 by the end of play on Thursday. Last week, McCullum’s team claimed an impressive 1-0 series lead over Pakistan with an innings victory, but the second Test has proven more difficult.
Salman Ali Agha capitalized on England’s mistakes with a 63-run knock, helping Pakistan set a 297-run target. Duckett fell for a duck to Sajid Khan, while Noman Ali dismissed Crawley early on.
Collingwood acknowledged the difficulty of the task ahead due to cracks in the pitch but emphasized the team’s belief: “We’ve done special things before, but it’s going to be a tough chase.”
Earlier in the day, England added 59 runs to their overnight score, reaching 291 all-out, with Pakistan holding a 75-run lead. Sajid Khan took an impressive 7-111, leading to England’s collapse, where they lost eight wickets for just 80 runs between the second and third days.
Salman Agha’s 63 was Pakistan’s top score, while Jack Leach and Shoaib Bashir claimed seven wickets between them on a spin-friendly pitch. Pakistan’s batting struggled, with dismissals from Bashir and Leach, but England’s sloppy fielding allowed Salman to escape twice before Pakistan were bowled out for 221.
England didn’t make much headway before stumps, with Pope (21*) and Root (8*) at the crease, tasked with closing the gap on day four as the tourists face a challenging battle to seal the series at 36-2.
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