On Saturday, England swept the Test series 3-0 by eight wickets at Edgbaston, with Joe Root taking charge of the chase with an unbeaten 62.
Pakistan had given England a target of 130, following the dismissal of their side in the second innings for 449. England was bowled out after a worrying beginning, losing the first wicket, Ben Duckett, with the first ball, and the second with the next, Emiliano Gay, but Root and Jordan Cox were quick at the end and England finished in the 25th over.
Mohammad Ali bowled him from a no-ball when Root was playing on 23. It was Ali’s 17th no-ball of the series. Root was again given a chance late on at 38 when an edge from Mohammad Abbas fell between two slip fielders.
His unbeaten half-century was the 110th occasion on which Root has scored at least 50 in a Test innings, including 41 hundreds. Cox was unbeaten off 59 and England won their first Test series victory in 19 months.
After bowlers had to cope with a massive 320-run deficit in the first innings, Pakistan had displayed a lot of resistance in the second innings. Debutant Razaullah scored 81 off 63 balls, Shan Masood added 95, Azan Awais hit 59 and Babar Azam added 76. Razaullah and Mohammad Abbas then put on 121 for the ninth wicket to make it a fourth day affair.
England bowlers were one of the key ingredients over the series. Ollie Robinson picked up 21 wickets and was England’s player of the series, while Jofra Archer, Josh Tongue and Gus Atkinson all contributed.
It was also a big return to the captaincy for Root, who’s been missing since Ben Stokes retired from international cricket. England started the Pakistan series on the back of an Ashes defeat and a loss to New Zealand and achieved the clean sweep.
Pakistan, meanwhile, have slipped down to a 16-match Test losing streak. Significant changes were seen in their tour following the second Test after seven players were sent home and both head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed and assistant Umar Gul have been dispensed with.
Pakistan captain Babar Azam said the loss of the match to the first innings was a hard lesson for them to learn, but they felt it would help the youngsters in the team.
England’s next Test appointment will be when they face South Africa in three games in December and January under Stephen Fleming.
Source: Reuters via CNA
