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October 20, 2024
Pakistan’s long-awaited victory arrived in a dramatic fashion, as Noman Ali and Sajid Khan teamed up to bowl out England quickly, marking Pakistan’s first home Test win since 2021. In less than two hours, England lost eight wickets, largely due to aggressive shots like sweeps and reverse sweeps.
Noman excelled with an impressive seven wickets, ending with career-best figures of 8 for 46 and 11 for 147 in the match. Sajid contributed significantly as well, taking 7 for 111 in the first innings and claiming the other two wickets, making them the first pair to take all 20 wickets in a Test match since Dennis Lillee and Bob Massie in 1972.
This decisive win, achieved in just over three days on a surface Pakistan had hoped would favor their spinners, levels the series at 1-1 ahead of the third Test in Rawalpindi. It also marked Shan Masood’s first victory as captain after enduring six consecutive defeats.
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Pakistan’s success was especially impressive given the major changes made after their heavy loss last week. Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi, and Naseem Shah were dropped, and Pakistan fielded a three-man spin attack that had never played together before. Ultimately, Zahid Mahmood bowled only six overs as Sajid and Noman, making his first Test appearance since July 2023, teamed up to dismantle England.
This was the fourth day of the second Test and the ninth day of action on the Multan pitch, which had been refreshed after three days of rest. By this time, the pitch was providing consistent turn. England’s not-out batsmen, Ollie Pope and Joe Root, practiced their sweeping techniques before play, making it clear that their strategy was to score the 261 runs needed for victory. As Ben Stokes put it, they were “basically getting your broom out.”
However, Pope didn’t execute this strategy well. He became the first wicket to fall, returning Sajid’s second delivery straight back to the bowler. Harry Brook attempted a sweep on his first ball, while Root followed suit, signaling their intentions. Yet, despite this clear plan, England struggled. Root and Brook had set a record fourth-wicket partnership of 454 in the first Test on this pitch, but their composure drastically changed. Root faced eight balls, attempting to sweep seven of them. He was eventually struck on the hip while trying to play a shot over the ball and was given out lbw—a decision confirmed on review as umpire’s call.
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Brook managed to send one reverse sweep to the boundary, but his frantic style of play couldn’t hold up. On his 21st delivery, Noman, bowling around the wicket, delivered a ball that kept slightly low, and Brook was trapped in front of leg stump while trying to hit across the line. With England at 78 for 5, the top order was back in the dressing room, and the match seemed all but over.
Things quickly worsened for England, who found themselves at 88 for 6 when Jamie Smith top-edged a slog sweep to mid-on just three balls after hitting Noman for four with the same shot. Ben Stokes had some success, scoring 37 at a rapid pace, but he rarely played a straight-bat shot. Eventually, Noman lured him down the pitch, and as Stokes swung across the line, his bat ended up near midwicket, allowing Mohammad Rizwan to complete the stumping—a fitting symbol of England losing their grip on the match.
After that, there was little hope left for England, aside from a brief flurry from Brydon Carse. He survived an lbw decision against Sajid thanks to DRS and launched three massive sixes off the off-spinner. However, Noman soon induced a thin edge from Carse to slip. In his next over, he dismissed Jack Leach and Shoaib Bashir with consecutive deliveries, solidifying Pakistan’s unexpected dominance in Multan.
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