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England v Australia: third ODI – as it happened

September 8, 2015, 1:09 pm
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England cruise to victory thanks to James Taylor’s century and fine spin bowling from Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid

Right, that’s it from me. Be sure to stick around on site for all the reports and reaction. But for now, cheerio!

A comprehensive win for England in the end, thanks to James Taylor’s batting and the spin bowling of Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali.

Finn returns and the general thrash continues. Wade clubs him into the stands at cow corner to bring up the Australia 200, then carves him wide of mid-off for four more. But the next is full and straight. Wade misses. England win.

43rd over: Australia 193-9 (Wade 29, Pattinson 1) England have the chance to run either batsmen out after Pattinson is slapped on the pad, but they get themselves into a tangle and end up missing the stumps at the wrong end. They review the lbw decision but it pitched about a foot outside leg stump. Stokes bangs in a couple of yorkers but Pattinson digs them out well.

42nd over: Australia 190-9 (Wade 27, Pattinson 1) Plunkett comes in for his 10th and final over. Wade swings … and misses, swings … and connects, dragging the ball to square leg for four. He manages to squirt the next, a full toss, over backward point and away for a couple more.

41st over: Australia 181-9 (Wade 19, Pattinson 0) Ben Stokes gets a bowl for the first time in the innings. Wade picks up a single from the fourth ball, leaving Pattinson with a couple to face. He does so with little fuss.

This will be England's biggest win over Aus in an ODI (by runs).

Previous biggest win was by 101 runs in 1977: http://t.co/UDIQVT2bYJ

40th over: Australia 177-9 (Wade 16, Pattinson 0) Wade slaps four cross-batted through the covers but this is nearly over.

Stand-and-swing from Cummins and it’s not long before he picks out a fielder, Roy, as it happens, down at long on.

Great catch from Jason Roy #EngvsAuspic.twitter.com/yDtCHSJASa

39th over: Australia 168-8 (Wade 11, Cummins 1) Moeen finishes with figures of 10-1-32-3.

Smart, not to mention bold, bowling from Moeen this. He rips the ball past Starc, who understandably has come out swinging. And he repeats the trick with the next ball. The third is bravely put in the same spot, and this time he finds the edge. Bairstow takes a sharp catch and England have got this won.

38th over: Australia 165-7 (Wade 10, Starc 0) And that’s over.

The second wonder catch of this innings. Agar scoops Plunkett high into the Manchester sky. Out int he deep Roy runs in but he’s taken a step too far and has to check and dive backwards. He can’t take the catch cleanly and the ball pops out of his grasp, but as he falls backwards he somehow manages to keep his wits about him and take the catch at the second attempt. That was extraordinary.

Shot of the day: Alex Hales puts on a walrus mask at Old Trafford... #EngvAus@SkyCricketpic.twitter.com/jCefDVRHat

37th over: Australia 163-6 (Wade 9, Agar 4) Moeen into his ninth over. Four singles off the over. The required rate is up above 10 now.

36th over: Australia 159-6 (Wade 7, Agar 2)“That was a giant spell from Rashid,” writes Robert Wilson. “Test quality bowling in an ODI. He was turning it a foot as his stock ball. If Warne had bowled that spell, we’d all be reaching (tearfully) for the tissues. And whether the rejected review ball was a topspinner or not, it was the straightest of disguised straight balls, the hardest thing for a leggie to do, it deserved a couple of wickets all on its own.”

Plunkett keeps the batsmen honest with some full, straight stuff. The tension in the over comes from the midwicket boundary where the crowd are egging on Alex Hales to don a walrus mask that has been chucked near to him. At the end of the over he does so. Good stuff.

35th over: Australia 156-6 (Wade 6, Agar 1) A quick confession – had a complete blank over the word ‘palindromic’ so had to Google “word that reads the same both ways”. Eventually. First I googled “poop bob toot” in an attempt to work it out for myself. Seriously. Sheesh.

Anyway Moeen continues, as well he might with two left-handers to bowl at. A Wade single starts the over, an Agar single finishes it.

34th over: Australia 154-6 (Wade 5, Agar 0) Liam Plunkett’s returns means England are on course to complete a roughly palindromic set of bowling partnerships – Finn/Woakes, Plunkett/Spinner, Spinner/Spinner, Spinner/Plunkett, Woakes/Finn. Australia need just over nine an over from here: 147 from 96 balls.

Australia are subsiding fairly meekly – Marsh chips a simple catch to mid on.

33rd over: Australia 152-5 (Wade 4, Marsh 12) Another very tidy over from Moeen – just two singles from it.

32nd over: Australia 150-5 (Wade 3, Marsh 11) Rashid’s last over. He turns one past Wade’s pads and Australia pick up a couple of wides. The fifth delivery is a cracker that pitches on leg stump and sizzles past Marsh’s outside edge. Rashid ends with figures of 10-1-41-2.

31st over: Australia 143-5 (Wade 1, Marsh 9) Moeen begins with four dots at Wade. I make that 13 dots on the bounce (including the wicket of Bailey). Wade finally breaks the shackles from the fifth ball of the over, driving down the ground for a single. An outside edge from the last brings another.

30th over: Australia 141-5 (Wade 0, Marsh 8) Rashid, into his ninth over now, rips one past Marsh’s edge once more. When he lands it properly, he’s proving incredibly difficult to get away. Marsh can do little more than prop forward and block. A maiden.

29th over: Australia 141-5 (Wade 0, Marsh 8) This is far from over but Australia are not giving the remotest impression that they’re about to chase this down.

England do have their fifth wicket now though. Moeen bungs down a hideous full toss that Bailey whacks straight down the throat of Stokes at midwicket.

28th over: Australia 137-4 (Bailey 22, Marsh 7) Rashid almost has his third wicket but Bailey’s hopelessly miscued drive squirts high but lands safe between men on the off side. The leg-spinner again drags one down and this time Marsh is able to extract punishment, pulling hard for four. A couple of balls later, though, he’s gone – caught on the back foot to what looks like a topspinner. Marsh reviews … and he’s struck a whisker outside the line, with the ball going on to miss the stumps.

27th over: Australia 130-4 (Bailey 21, Marsh 1) Mitchell Marsh gets off the mark immediately with a single.

Reverse slog-sweep from Maxwell, who has come out in full T20 mode. Four runs from that, and from the next, another reverse slog-sweep disappearing to the point boundary. But from the next he’s gone! Another reverse-sweep, this time far more delicate, goes horribly wrong with the ball looping up for Bairstow to take a simple catch.

26th over: Australia 120-3 (Bailey 20, Maxwell 9) Rashid drags down a half-tracker – seriously, it was like something you’d send down for fun in Brian Lara 96 on the Megadrive. But, like something you’d send down for fun in Brian Lara 96 on the Megadrive, it proved difficult to hit, with Bailey having to change his pre-meditated line of attack. Rashid has got a little wild here – a couple of balls after the long hop leg-spinner, he sends down a huge full toss that Maxwell spanks to the cow corner boundary.

25th over: Australia 110-3 (Bailey 19, Maxwell 0) Two dots from Moeen to Bailey again – that’s eight on the bounce in all – until the Australia No4 finally gets a single and out of the firing line. It’s another brilliant over from Moeen, whose figures read 3-1-5-0. Australia have scored just six runs in the past four overs.

24th over: Australia 109-3 (Bailey 18, Maxwell 0) A leg bye from the first, then Rashid rips one past Bailey’s outside edge. He’s really struggling to get the ball away and ends up driving just out of Stokes’ reach at a catching mid off. Maxwell tries to plant the leggie into the stands with a slog-sweep off the last but connects with only fresh air. Two from the over. The required run-rate creeps up again.

23rd over: Australia 107-3 (Bailey 17, Maxwell 0) Three dots to start Moeen’s latest. Make that four, Bailey missing with an attempted reverse sweep. In fact, make it five. Tell you what, make it a maiden. Brilliantly bowled.

22nd over: Australia 107-3 (Bailey 17, Maxwell 0) Bailey grabs a single off the last. Three from the over. Rashid has figures of 5-0-16-2.

And with the pressure just tweaking up a little, Finch looks to break the shackles and gets caught on the long on boundary.

21st over: Australia 104-2 (Bailey 15, Finch 52) Moeen Ali enters the attack for the first time. There’s a huge appeal from the fourth delivery as the ball loops up off the pad – Bairstow leaps forward from behind the stumps to collect but there’s no inside edge. The spinners just have Australia tied down a little here.

20th over: Australia 100-2 (Bailey 13, Finch 50)“If we take my hope and affection as read, may I say that I find the Rashid run-up to be a thing of joyous comic beauty?” writes Robert Wilson. “Bishan Bedi once admitted that when he was getting desperate, he would exaggerate the knees-bent, jocose amble in his run-up. He believed a comic touch could distract a batsman.

19th over: Australia 95-2 (Bailey 10, Finch 48) Plunkett continues after the drinks break. Bailey flicks for two, Rashid sends his throw in, and, as it does, Finch inadvertently kicks the ball away with his feet at the non-strikers end. “Owzat?” comes a shout from someone in the field. Arf. A vicious drive from Finch – looking rock-solid out there now – brings him four more.

18th over: Australia 86-2 (Bailey 6, Finch 43) Busy stuff from both batsmen as Rashid continues. Three singles from the over.

17th over: Australia 83-2 (Bailey 4, Finch 42) Glorious stuff from Finch, who unfurls a wonderful cover drive to pick up four more. Another decent over from Plunkett, though. This is a good battle at the moment.

Here’s that catch:

16th over: Australia 76-2 (Bailey 1, Finch 38) Two dots to start Rashid’s second over, then a mistimed swoosh from Finch boings over the bowler and away for a single. Then Finn removes the Australia captain. No one in the field could quite believe it.

Is it a bird? Is it a plane? Is it Jonty flippin’ Rhodes? No, it’s Steven Fnn taking a stunning catch at short mid on. Smith looked to clip Rashid away and the England bowler went full length to his right to take a beauty. Taylor probably wouldn’t have reached that – Finn only just got there. What a terrific – and slightly bizarre – moment.

15th over: Australia 74-1 (Smith 25, Finch 37) Plunkett continues and Australia continue to accumulate. Smith has another slice of luck – a leading edge dropping just short of James Taylor, who has been at the centre of the action in the field. Taylor, at short-ish midwicket, was just on his heels a touch there I reckon. It’s a cracking over from Plunkett, though, with the last ball beating the outside edge of Smith’s bat.

14th over: Australia 72-1 (Smith 24, Finch 36) Adil Rashid, who bowled brilliantly in Southampton in the opening ODI, gets the chance to turn his arm over. He drags a couple short here but isn’t overly punished for them.

13th over: Australia 69-1 (Smith 21, Finch 35) Finn continues into a seventh over. And Smith gets lucky here – an inside edge flying past Bairstow at what would have been catchable height had the keeper not been utterly wrongfooted by the shot.

12th over: Australia 64-1 (Smith 17, Finch 35) Finch goes straight down the ground once more, again not quite getting all of it, but getting more than enough to send the ball whistling away to the rope. He moves on to 35 from 33 balls. That was another decent over from Plunkett, yet Australia still milked eight runs from it.

11th over: Australia 56-1 (Smith 15, Finch 30) Finn offers Smith a bit of width and is chopped away for two to third man for his trouble. There’s a very easy, relaxed feel to the way this Australia side go about these chases. Nothing feels too rushed or panicked but the runs keep coming. Smith picks up two more to backward square leg as Finn drifts a little too straight.

10th over: Australia 51-1 (Smith 10, Finch 30) Liam Plunkett enters the attack. A Finch block timed so well it can probably be found on the advertising boards at Swiss airports whistles away down the ground for four. And from the last Finch is caught napping a little at a quick single and is a little fortunate not to get run out by Taylor.

9th over: Australia 42-1 (Smith 8, Finch 23) Another tidy over from Finn – other than the fifth ball, which is inexplicably not called a wide down the leg side. A maiden, in fact.

They've won. Shut it down. They've bloody won. https://t.co/QN4yDCROy5

8th over: Australia 42-1 (Smith 8, Finch 23) Smith drives on the up (BOOOO!!!) for four more. The booing is getting very old, very quickly. Like the Manic Miner soundtrack:

7th over: Australia 37-1 (Smith 4, Finch 22) BOOOOOOOOO!!! The Australia captain strides to the crease and gets a warm welcome from the Old Trafford crowd. He gets off the mark (BOOOOO!!!) with a drive through the covers (BOOOOO!!!) for four (BOOOOO!!!).

Finn takes a little pace off the ball and finds Burns’ leading edge – the ball flies skywards and Morgan takes a sliding catch running across from cover, narrowly avoiding a collision with Roy.

6th over: Australia 33-0 (Burns 9, Finch 22) This is ominous for England. It’s of those moments in the film when the protagonist hears the creak of a door somewhere in the dark house. Soon there’s running and screaming. Burns whups Woakes down to cow corner for three. The bowler drags down the next and Finch rocks back leisurely before pulling for four. And later in the over he punches over the top of mid off for four more. Eleven from the over.

5th over: Australia 22-0 (Burns 6, Finch 14) Finn continues and has Burns, looking a little uncomfortable out there, playing and missing outside off. Finch gets that on-drive out again, though, and thunks him over the top for four.

4th over: Australia 17-0 (Burns 5, Finch 10) Finch tees off, a lofted on drive plonked high over mid on and plugging a yard or two from the rope before trundling over the rope. But he keeps his powder dry otherwise. Another decent over from Woakes.

3rd over: Australia 12-0 (Burns 5, Finch 6) Burns clips Finn to midwicket for a couple. A third misfield from England – Taylor shies a little wildly at the stumps and Moeen, backing up, can’t gather. The ball bobbles apologetically down to the boundary for four overthrows. Yuck. Burns almost adds a silver lining to a dark cloud of an over from Finn, but he’s a whisker away from chopping on.

2nd over: Australia 4-0 (Burns 2, Finch 1) Chris Woakes opens the bowling at the other end for England. A leg bye adds a solitary run to the total, and another misfield (Eoin Morgan the culprit this time) allows Burns to add a single. Still, this has been a very good start from the two bowlers (if not their team-mates in the field).

1st over: Australia 2-0 (Burns 1, Finch 1) Australia get off the mark in fairly farcical fashion with Stokes and Taylor leaving a push to point to each other and the batsmen haring through for a single, much to Steven Finn’s disgust.

Out come the players. Australia need 301 to win the match and with it the series.

Hello all. Well that was two-thirds of a very fine ODI innings from England. It all went wrong from the moment Eoin Morgan departed at the start of the 34th over. They were 205-2 at that point. To reach only 300 from that point is, in the modern cricket parlance, Pretty Average.

That’s it from me – John Ashdown will be taking you through the Australian chase. He’ll be with you shortly...

That's the third time Australia have conceded 300 or more in their past 27 ODIs. They won the other two including chasing England at Hobart.

50th over: England 300-8 (Woakes 14, Rashid 1)

Taylor goes, flat-batting one down the ground but England manage to reach 300, thanks to a fine six from Woakes, who picks up Starc over mid-wicket.

Aus 301 to win. England 119-6 off last 20 overs.

Taylor flat-bats down the ground but can’t get enough on it and fails to clear mid-off...

49th over: England 291-8 (Taylor 101, Woakes 5)

It wasn’t the prettiest way to get to a hundred: worked down the ground but onto the stumps, allowing the bowler to pick up the ball and take off the one bail still in place. However, Taylor scampered to the other end in time, securing his first ODI hundred off 112 deliveries.

Believe it or not @jamestaylor20 becomes only the third @TrentBridge batsman to score an ODI ton for England...and the first right-hander!

48th over: England 286-7 (Taylor 99, Woakes 3)

Taylor takes a single off the first ball, then tries to get the strike back as Woakes flicks around the corner for two. Inside out into the covers gets a single. Taylor thrashes the last ball into the covers but Smith stops brilliantly to his left.

47th over: England 280-7 (Taylor 98, Woakes 0)

Two wickets and a four, to Taylor. England in danger of finishing well, well short...

Taylor finds midwicket, Plunkett tries to run on the shot but is sent back. Too late though, as Cummins collects and takes the bails off.

Ali tries to go big, fails, and goes back to the changing room...

46th over: England 273-5 (Taylor 82, Ali 1)

That’s more like it... a six from Bairstow as he gets hold of a short-ball from Starc. But he’s gone now, finding cover and getting run out by a fraction because of a direct hit. Moeen Ali the new batsmen and he too finds Smith but Taylor calls early and sends Mo back to his crease. Single to cover comes from a flowing drive to get Mo off the mark.

A powerful drive finds Smith at wide mid off, who sets himself and strikes with a direct hit at the non-striker’s end.

45th over: England 265-4 (Taylor 91, Bairstow 11)

Bairstow shovels high into the leg-side for one before Taylor does the same, albeit along the carpet, for another. A lot of the chat now about whether Taylor isn’t doing this at a good enough lick. His strike rate is a touch below 90, but not reason why he can’t clobber a few big-uns now in these last five.

A man with the initials JT being criticised for top-scoring too slowly at No3. We've been here before.

44th over: England 260-4 (Taylor 89, Bairstow 8)

Taylor plinks one over cover for a couple but finally gets one away for a few more as Starc is tickled fine for four. A single into the covers takes him to 86, and brings Bairstow on strike who thumps powerfully over the top, as Starc gets a yorker wrong, for another four.

England, remember, were 200 for 2 off 32 overs. Now they're 245 for 4 off 43.

43rd over: England 245-4 (Taylor 80, Bairstow 3)

Looks like Taylor is walking in with Cummins, taking a couple of steps down the pitch before being cut in half by a delivery he tries to flick into the leg-side. It’s a pretty grim over from Bairstow and Taylor, lots of plays and mistiming.

42nd over: England 244-4 (Taylor 80, Bairstow 3)

Maxwell’s last over starts with one off the first three, as Bairstow brings out the reverse sweep to give Taylor the strike. Taylor pushes one to mid on and then gets back as Bairstow charges and hits powerfully to mid off.

41st over: England 240-4 (Taylor 78, Bairstow 1)

Quick two first up and then a dab to third man brings Bairstow on strike to Cummins. He gets off the mark with a cross-batted flick into the leg side.

40th over: England 236-4 (Taylor 75, Bairstow 0)

Stokes goes second ball and he’s replace by Bairstow. Taylor gets five off the last two balls. Well run by both as that third looked a death wish but ended up being quite comfortable.

It was coming... Stokes swings hard across the line and it’s top-edged where Finch comes in and takes the catch.

39th over: England 229-3 (Taylor 70, Stokes 12)

Stokes trying to force the issue and he’s advancing down the wicket. Marsh, looking to catch him out, bowls one across him which is given as a wide. A thrash for two to third man then makes way for some proper timing for a change – smashed through mid-wicket for four.

38th over: England 221-3 (Taylor 70, Stokes 5)

Stokes desperate to get bat on ball as Maxwell darts out the over, before Taylor advances, Maxwell goes across him and it’s smashed over mid off for four. Cracking shot – probably his best so far.

37th over: England 216-3 (Taylor 66, Stokes 4)

Slow off-cutter has Taylor swinging and missing – a thin edge, perhaps? There was certainly a noise. The ball drops well short of Wade. A single to end the over and that’s 20 runs from Marsh’s four so far. Not bad at all. This innings is stuttering a touch...

36th over: England 214-3 (Taylor 65, Stokes 3)

Maxwell’s bowled really well today. He’s flat to Taylor, who tries to work him around the corner a couple of times before he has to sweep hard to the leg-side fence, just for two. One off the final ball and Taylor keeps the strike for Marsh.

35th over: England 211-3 (Taylor 62, Stokes 3)

Stokes having a bit of trouble laying worthwhile bat on ball but does get a single into the off-side, helped out by Taylor scampering to the danger end and making his ground.

34th over: England 209-3 (Taylor 61, Stokes 2)

Maxwell’s back into the attack and gets his reward with the wicket of Morgan. Fair play from the England skipper, truth be told: no use picking off singles with the team well set. Ben Stokes is the new man in and he’s on strike after a single from James Taylor. A slip comes in and Stokes immediately tries to reverse sweep. There’s an appeal from Maxwell but Smith thinks it’s too high and it turns out it hit the cuff of his glove anyway.

Morgan looks to target Maxwell but hits him high rather than far – Starc, coming in from the rope, takes the catch at mid off.

33rd over: England 205-2 (Taylor 59, Morgan 62)

Marsh bringing back his length and varying his pace better, here, as just five come from the over.

32nd over: England 200-2 (Taylor 57, Morgan 60)

The 200 is up and that fifty has been the quickest of the lot, coming off 33 balls. Seven runs from the over.

31st over: England 193-2 (Taylor 54, Morgan 57)

Mitchell Marsh into the attack and Taylor gets the one that takes him to 50 from 59 balls. Marsh bowls a slower ball that Morgan picks up – and then some – over mid on for the innings’ first six! And now a cracking four from Taylor, who’s quickly in position to take advantage of a short length ball.

The four Taylor hit off 53rd ball means Kim Barnett remains only Eng batsman to score an ODI 50 without a boundary: 84 off 146 balls v SL

30th over: England 181-2 (Taylor 49, Morgan 50)

Mitchell Starc back on and Morgan flashes hard, nicking through to Wade, who can’t quite get to this one despite a big dive to his left. Four and then a single to bring up Morgan’s fifty off 46 balls. Taylor moves to 48 with a flick around the corner. A single to finish puts him on 49 and on strike for the next over.

29th over: England 172-2 (Taylor 46, Morgan 45)

Well, well , well – Hawkeye shows that the Taylor dismissal would have been given out on review. Never mind, Taylor cracks his first four – a well timed shot through backward point! He’d got to 42 without a boundary.

Piggy going down the funky captaincy route by not reviewing.... #engvauspic.twitter.com/DPC5qoLKOU

28th over: England 165-2 (Morgan 43, Taylor 41)

Cracking shot from Morgan, imparting pace of his own onto the ball to thump Maxwell’s flighted, full delivery past the man at cover and away for four. Wide from Maxwell next up then Morgan goes down the ground where it is cut off well by Mitchell Starc for just one. Big appeal at the end of the over as Taylor comes very far down and the ball turns into his pad. Not out and no review called for. Move on.

27th over: England 157-2 (Taylor 40, Morgan 37)

First sign of bantz today as Glenn Maxwell has a shy of the stumps and accidentally hits Eoin Morgan, who tries to jump out of the way but still ends up getting clocked. Lols aside, Morgan tickles one fine – extra pace, you know – for four.

WILFUL!

26th over: England 145-2 (Taylor 36, Morgan 29)

Accomplished over from Maxwell restricts England to an unconvincing three from it. Smith turning to pace now as Pattinson is brought back...

25th over: England 142-2 (Taylor 34, Morgan 28)

That’s more like it, as Morgan goes over the top of cover for four. Great timing and placement, before works to long-on for a single. Another from Taylor to the last ball and it’s eight from the over.

24th over: England 134-2 (Taylor 32, Morgan 23)

Five off the over as Taylor pushes through for a well-run two. He’s still yet to hit a boundary and is going along OK. But if he gets out between now and, say, 65 (plucked out of the air, really) then we could label it “disappointing”.

23rd over: England 129-2 (Taylor 28, Morgan 22)

Morgan looking to take Agar out of the attack, but he’s not quite been able to get hold of Agar. Makes room for himself but has to adjust as Agar goes flatter before he has a swipe off the last ball and is beaten by some turn.

Late admission offer available from 6:30pm for this ODI. Tickets £25 for adults. Free for accompanied u16s. From ticket office. @LancsCCC

22nd over: England 126-2 (Taylor 26, Morgan 21)

More good footwork from Taylor turns one to two as he dabs into midwicket. Morgan gets on strike and plays his patented reverse sweep, out of point’s reach, for four.

21st over: England 119-2 (Taylor 23, Morgan 17)

Big miss by Matthew Wade behind the stumps. Morgan advances and Agar puts a bit more on this one, pulling his length back so that it turns through the gate. But Wade, with Morgan well out of his ground, can’t gather and ends up palming the ball to his right, allowing Morgan to get a single when he really should have been on his way back.

20th over: England 113-2 (Taylor 20, Morgan 15)

Glenn Maxwell, who took 2-44 at Lord’s, comes into the attack and nearly beats Taylor, who charges and then has to reach for one which he toes beyond Wade for three. A couple of singles and then Morgan beats the dive of mid-on, hitting aerially down the ground for four. A push off the back-foot allows him to keep the strike for the next over.

19th over: England 103-2 (Taylor 16, Morgan 9)

Taylor uses his feet to push three to mid-wicket: the 100 is up, that second fifty coming in 58 balls (the first took 51). Taylor’s trying to find more single options and does so off the final ball of the over.

18th over: England 98-2 (Taylor 12, Morgan 8)

A couple for Morgan and then he’s beaten for pace by Cummins. A 92mph short-ball is swung and missed – next ball is in his arc and dabbed to third man for a single. Cummins the man to blow out this middle order, if he’s given an opening...

17th over: England 94-2 (Taylor 11, Morgan 5)

Morgan looking to work out the ideal game to Agar. Four dots and a single see out the last five balls but it wouldn’t be a surprise if he decides to climb into the debutant (not literally of course). Drinks.

Cummins bowling rockets here. 3rd ball of this over 96mph. #whoosh#EngvsAus

16th over: England 92-2 (Taylor 10, Morgan 4)

England captain Eoin Morgan in and gets off the mark with a fine shot through extra-cover. Smith’s not happy and gestures for Cummins to hit the pitch, which he does next ball. Morgan just manages to get his head out of the way. He’s playing at the next ball, which gets big on him past the outside edge.

15th over: England 86-2 (Taylor 9)

Bit of turn from Agar but Roy manages to control a drive and just push it into the covers for a single. Two and then a single and then Roy goes and the world is that little bit darker again.

Oh Roy... goes to hit Agar inside out and checks his drive and Maxwell at cover palms in the air and takes the catch.

14th over: England 82-1 (Roy 62, Taylor 6)

Roy walks across his stumps and nearly beats the man at mid-on, who does brilliantly to save two. Four more from Roy as he goes high and wide of the man at point.

13th over: England 75-1 (Roy 55, Taylor 6)

Singles off every ball for that Agar over. Since his first ball went for four, he’s bowled fuller but good on these two for not letting him settle by bowling as close to a full set at either of them.

Alex Hales' strike rate of 29.03 is the among the lowest this year in an ODI innings (min 30 balls faced) http://t.co/iPuf6GGRWO#ENGVAUS

12th over: England 70-1 (Roy 52, Taylor 4)

An edge, but a deliberate one, as Roy beats a diving Wade to more to 49 with a boundary. A dropped dab to third man sees him scamper two to take him to 51 off 34 balls. Very good batting, this. Taylor punches one into the leg-side for a single.

11th over: England 61-1 (Roy 45, Taylor 2)

Turn for Agar, as he turns one away from Roy, who is pushing forward defending. Ball beats his outside edge, Wade has the bails off and everyone oooos a bit.

10th over: England 57-1 (Roy 42, Taylor 1)

Hales, bogged down, goes, as Pat Cummins is brought in and makes an impact. Taylor is the new man in, getting off the strike before Roy finishes the Power Play with another four, this one through cover.

A frustrating knock comes to an end – Hales chips to mid-wicket, as Cummins is introduced in the 10th over...

9th over: England 52-0 (Roy 38, Hales 9)

Ashton Agar for his first bowl in ODI cricket and he serves up a long-hop which is guided in front of point for four by Roy. He has a man back at mid-off, meaning Hales can wait on the back foot and hit straight to get Roy back on strike. There is also a man at deep mid-wicket, who cuts off a flick into the region, ensuring it’s only another single.

8th over: England 44-0 (Roy 32, Hales 7)

Hales plays out a maiden. Strange one, though: he’s found fielders will some well struck drives. I suppose that’s the point, though: seems unable to find the gaps in the field, which is a credit to Smith’s placings and those in them. We’ve had 32 dots in the eight overs so far, mind. Not great.

7th over: England 44-0 (Roy 32, Hales 7)

Three fours in a row for Roy: first, he picks up a short-ball from outside off and thumps it through mid-wicket. First slip then comes out reinforces that area, so Roy opens the face late and gets another boundary through that vacated region. The third is threaded through the reinforced area. And a fourth! Opens the face again, this time guiding just behind point and well away from that man on the third-man fence.

6th over: England 27-0 (Roy 16, Hales 7)

More awkwardness from Hales, snatching at a pull which he ends up playing over the top of a shorter ball that looks like a cutter. Expecting a boom or bust over next up...

5th over: England 24-0 (Roy 14, Hales 6)

Hales struggling for a bit of rhythm: he tries to work the ball inside out but duffs it along the floor to point. Then, he’s struck on the pads by one that comes into him – seemed to pitch outside the line and was sliding down anyway – and gets through for a leg-bye. Back on strike next ball as three is scrambled to midwicket.

4th over: England 20-0 (Roy 11, Hales 6)

Sumptuous from Roy, timing Pattinson nicely through mid-wicket for his first boundary. Mid-on drops back Roy reacts well by pushing the ball to him and taking a single.

3rd over: England 12-0 (Roy 4, Hales 5)

Roy picks one up over mid-on to get off the mark with a three. Hales then toes one to third man before properly gets one out of the screws but away to the man patrolling the leg-side boundary.

2nd over: England 7-0 (Roy 0, Hales 4)

James Pattinson, not Pat Cummins, to take the new ball at the other end. Good deal of outswing but it’s early and, second ball, very wide. And again. First ball out of the middle of the bat finds Joe Burns at cover. And there we are – runs off the bat as Hales picks one off his legs, through mid-wicket, for four. Good pace from Pattinson, finishing the over with one at 92mph.

1st over: England 1-0 (Roy 0, Hales 0)

England off the mark with a wide down the off-side. And that’s it. Might have been because Starc is just warming up, but doesn’t seem to be the quickest of Old Trafford pitches...

Roy to face, Starc to open – play...

Nifty little video from the ECB – Paul Farbrace talks about England’s openers, Jason Roy and Alex Hales...

.@jasonroy20 and @alexhales1 will soon open for England. Find out what they're like from coach Paul Farbrace. https://t.co/xD2TeidmCL

“Can’t you see this Stokes decision is tearing us apart?” kicks-off Nicholas Toovey in our first email of the day.

“PS – it was a Baby Ox.”

Just the one change for England, as Johnny Bairstow comes in for the “rested” Jos Buttler. For Australia, three changes brought about through injuries: Aaron Finch, Ashton Agar (ODI debut) and James Pattinson come in for David Warner, Shane Watson and Nathan Coulter-Nile.

Congrats Ashton Agar. Just presented cap by @TomMoodyCricket for Aus ODI debut today. #engvauspic.twitter.com/6DOq7PUJtv

Afternoon, troops – Vithushan here. We’re not going to mention *that* incident from the last ODI, the one where Australia won by 64 runs to go 2-0 up in the series. Regardless of which camp you’re in, if you’ve tried discussing it with any degree of consideration – ha, you fool! – then you’d have been told you are wrong and labelled a ‘ninny’ and that the air you breathe into your lungs to extract the requisite amount of oxygen to exist as a human is wasted and should have been put to better use, such as the blowing up of a balloon that would go on to be fashioned into the shape of an animal which, lets face it, is the lowest form of clown banter. I’m struggling to remember another incident that has come close to this level of tedium. Anyway, here’s hoping Old Trafford gives us something worthwhile to get our chompers into. Team news soon.

NB: It was definitely out.

Vithushan will be here shortly. In the meantime, here’s what Jason Gillespie had to say about Saturday’s much-discussed Ben Stokes run-out incident:

We are going to need something more specific than the mystical Spirit of Cricket if incidents like the dismissal of Ben Stokes on Saturday are not going to erupt into a war of words in future.

First, the wicket. Stokes, for me, was out by the letter of the law. It’s a case of interpretation, of course, and in this instance the two on-field umpires said not out but the third umpire, Joel Wilson, overruled them. Like me, he believed Stokes’s arm had no right to be where it was and therefore he was obstructing the field.

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England v Australia: fourth ODI – as it happened

September 11, 2015, 10:21 am
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England won by three wickets to draw level in the series at 2-2 with one to play, a match most memorable for two sensational catches from Australia’s Glenn Maxwell

And with that, I’m off. It’s been a blast. Bye!

Morgan speaks!

Before a ball had been bowled we certainly would have taken 300 as a chase. It’s always comforting having guys down the order that can play well and have a lot of experience. Willey opened the floodgates. We had Australia 30-3, which was pretty unexpected. He took advantage of the conditions, of his chance as well. Him coming in and producing a performance like that I thought was outstanding.

Death bowling is something we’re trying to improve on. We’ll continue to do that over the next year or so.

And the man of the match is … Eoin Morgan!

I hope that magnum of Champagne is corked.

Steve Smith says:

We didn’t get our bowling in the right places enough. The first and last ball of a lot of overs went for four, and that really cost us. I regretted batting first a little bit this morning. I guess it just didn’t work out well for us at the start. We’ve got to be more watchful at the beginning and make sure we’ve got wickets in the shed at the end. It’s a final now, and we’re certainly going to be up for the challenge.

So England canter to 304 runs, with nearly two overs to spare. It is the third highest run chase in their history (though really it’s the fourth – they needed to score 301 to beat West Indies at Bridgetown in 2007 and did, which is probably a smidgeon better than needing to score 300 and getting 304, but I’m being picky here) and was achieved with the very minimum of fuss and panic.

Maxwell batted excellently, bowled excellently and took two of the finest catches you’ll ever see. His team may have lost, but if he’s not Man of the Match there’s something wrong with the world.

That’s a fine run chase from England, who always looked in control of their destiny, bowled well and batted excellently, with everyone but Hales, out for a two-ball duck, contributing. Hales excepted every batsman but Plunkett, who was sent out with a give-it-some-welly brief and fell to an astonishing catch from Maxwell, failing to reach 30.

48.2 overs: England 304-7 (Moeen 21, Willey 12)

And Willey finishes it in style, smashing down the ground for six!

48.1 overs: England 298-7 (Moeen 21, Willey 6)

Hastings bowls, and Moeen pulls to deep square leg for an easy single. Two needed.

48th over: England 297-7 (Moeen 20, Willey 6)

It starts with Willey driving to cover for one, but then they steal a second when Wade lets the ball clip the stumps and deflect away. A single leaves Moeen on strike, four runs needed, one decent hit from victory and four balls to find it. Instead he takes three to get a single. Anyway, England need three runs from 12 deliveries.

47th over: England 293-7 (Moeen 19, Willey 3)

A dot, a single, a dot, and then an inch-perfect sweep from Moeen that just evades the fielder and goes for four! Another couple of singles, and England need seven runs from three overs at 2.3 each.

46th over: England 286-7 (Moeen 14, Willey 1)

To be frank, the match should have stopped right there with Maxwell awarded the win, named man of the match, knighted, immediately immortalised in bronze and given the Nobel Prize for Defying Physics. Instead Moeen plays out a couple of dots and then gets three big runs. England need 14 from four overs at 3.5 each, and Maxwell will bowl the next.

Glenn Maxwell, flipping Physics the bird... #EngvAuspic.twitter.com/TeE93wcaD8

Another big hit from Plunkett. Maxwell takes the catch on the wicket, knows his momentum is carrying him backwards and over the rope, throws the ball back into the air, does indeed go over the rope, stops himself, leaps back onto the field, catching the ball in mid-air, and lands safe! That’s just awesome!

45th over: England 282-6 (Moeen 11, Plunkett 17)

Pattinson’s back, and Plunkett welcomes him with a hammer blow through the covers for four. There follows a single and a post-review leg bye, before Plunkett pulls the trigger again, hoisting the ball down the ground for six! England need 18 runs and have five overs to get them, at 3.6 runs an over. England are edging towards victory here, unless wickets fall and fast.

Mainly because the ball pitched about a foot outside leg stump.

No, he isn’t. But Australia might as well chance their arm, eh?

44th over: England 269-6 (Moeen 11, Plunkett 5)

Cummins’ penultimate over starts with a couple of dots, and then Plunkett mishits to deep square leg for a single. Then another dot, before Moeen steers to deep backward point for a couple. No hurry here for England, it’s wickets they need to worry about. Talking of which, Moeen feathers the final ball through to the keeper, who drops it! That’s an absolute clanger! England need 31 from six overs at 5.17 each.

43rd over: England 266-6 (Moeen 8, Plunkett 4)

Maxwell bowls, and Moeen pulls his first ball high in the air towards Burns on the boundary at deep midwicket, who catches it, lands with his heel on the rope, trips over it and falls over backwards. Six runs! The next ball goes – along the ground this time – to the same fielder, allowing the fans to do much cheerful “whooooaaaaaa…”ing as it heads in his direction, before he fields it cleanly. Then, the wicket. Plunkett comes in, and creams his first ball through midwicket for four. England need 34 runs from seven overs at 4.86 each.

Very many replays are shown. There is a great deal of rocking and rolling. But hotspot shows that, Bairstow having attempted a reverse sweep and missed the ball with the bat, there’s a tiny flicker of heat on the glove, and he’s gone! That’s a big moment in this match (potentially).

I thought Australia had reviewed an earlier catch, but in fact though they signalled for a review, it wasn’t required – the umpires sent the decision upstairs all by themselves. Anyway, they think Bairstow has been caught behind here …

42nd over: England 254-5 (Bairstow 31, Moeen 2)

Cummins bowls, and Bairstow cuts past backward point – no stopping that one, Mr Maxwell – for four. And then he totally messes one up, the ball slipping out of his hand early and flying to Bairstow at belly-button height. Somehow he scoops it over his left shoulder for six – a pretty brilliant shot, and it’s obviously called a no-ball. The follow-up is ludicrously wide, but Bairstow flings himself and his bat at it, and Australia get away with conceding one run when it would otherwise have been a wide, and another free hit. England require 46 runs from eight overs at 5.75 each.

41st over: England 241-5 (Bairstow 20, Moeen 1)

Maxwell, surely still buzzing after that catch, gets another chance to show off, this time with the ball. And he does pretty well again, conceding three singles. England require 59 runs from nine overs at 6.56 an over.

40th over: England 238-5 (Bairstow 18, Moeen 0)

Australia, needing wickets, bring back Cummins and Smith sticks himself at slip. The over starts with a dot, and it would have continued with a dot as well but for a Maxwell misfield. Then Bairstow inside-edges past the stumps – England have got away with a few of those today – and Morgan, back on strike, gives Maxwell a chance to atone for that misfield in the most eye-catching style! Slow-motion replays of that catch make it look even more wildly impressive. Just two off the over, and England need 62 at – yes – 6.2 each. I didn’t even use a calculator for that one.

Cummins bowls wide to Maxwell, who cuts wide of Maxwell at backward point – but the fielder dives to his right, and holds it! That’s some smart catching!

39th over: England 236-4 (Morgan 91, Bairstow 17)

Marsh bowls, after a change of ends, and Morgan sends the ball looping limply towards extra cover. It’s really quite a lot like the stroke that accounted for Roy, first ball after a Cummins change of ends. Fortunately for the England skipper, this time there’s nobody there to catch it. Nine runs off the over, the highlight being a Bairstow boundary, pummelled past mid off. England require 64 runs from the final 11 overs, at 5.82 each.

38th over: England 226-4 (Morgan 87, Bairstow 12)

Pattinson’s first delivery is smacked through the covers for four, and when his next goes for three England have the requisite seven runs and have four balls left to just have a little fun. They get a single, then a dot, then another single, and it seems like an unusually sedate form of fun, but then Bairstow sends the last past extra cover for four! England require 74 runs from 12 overs at 6.17 each.

37th over: England 213-4 (Morgan 79, Bairstow 7)

Hastings bowls and that’s a lovely shot from Morgan! A perfect, delicate late nibble to send the ball very fine for four. Then, a dot later, he attacks and sends the ball to very nearly the same spot – a lot less deliberately this time – off the edge. 10 off the over, and England need 87 from 13 overs, at 6.69 each.

36th over: England 203-4 (Morgan 70, Bairstow 6)

Morgan is starting to sing here, and he thumps down the ground again – not nearly as violently as in the last innings, mind – for four. Seven runs, in all, from Marsh’s eighth over, which – it so happens – is precisely what England need from every remaining over if they are to win – they need 97 from 14 overs, at precisely 6.93 per each one.

35th over: England 196-4 (Morgan 64, Bairstow 5)

Hastings is back, and … blammo! … Morgan thunders one down the ground, onto the roof of the stand, very nearly over it and down the other side! It gets stuck in a gutter somewhere, and a new ball is called for. Eleven, in all, from the over, in the shape of three singles, a two and that six.

34th over: England 185-4 (Morgan 57, Bairstow 1)

A lovely wicket-taking delivery, a bit slower than normal and perfectly pitched. An important wicket, and the teams remain very evenly matched (Australia were 179-4 after 34 overs). Morgan ensures England’s slender superiority with four off the last.

Stokes is profoundly yorked by Marsh, the ball dipping under his bat and into off stump!

33rd over: England 180-3 (Morgan 53, Stokes 41)

Maxwell keeps constructing single city. Four singles off his seventh over. Indeed in only one of those seven has anyone scored any number of runs but one (and in that one they really went wild, with a two, a four and a six).

32nd over: England 176-3 (Morgan 51, Stokes 39)

Mitch Marsh returns, and concedes three runs from his first couple of deliveries and then four from the last, whipped away by Stokes. The three in the middle, though, they were impeccable.

31st over: England 169-3 (Morgan 48, Stokes 35)

Maxwell has now bowled three full overs since either batsman last scored any number of runs off any of his deliveries that wasn’t one. Three more ones here.

30th over: England 166-3 (Morgan 46, Stokes 34)

Stoinis looks incredibly nonchalant, for a man making his ODI debut. Chewing gum, strolling to the start of his run-up, doin’ a bit of bowling. Like you do. Stokes clubs one through cover for four, which might add at least the hint of a crease to his brow.

29th over: England 161-3 (Morgan 45, Stokes 30)

Another Maxwell over, another small cluster of singles. Four of them. Slow and steady, no reason to panic. Yet.

28th over: England 157-3 (Morgan 43, Stokes 28)

After a Stokes single, Stoinis bowls one short and Morgan bludgeons it from shoulder height. I think he wanted to hit through midwicket, but the ball swerves in midair and ends up going straight down the ground for four.

27th over: England 150-3 (Morgan 38, Stokes 26)

Pattinson’s last over having cost 14 runs, he’s hooked and Maxwell’s back again. Four singles later, England are precisely halfway to their target.

26th over: England 146-3 (Morgan 36, Stokes 24)

Stoinis certainly isn’t very expensive (or hasn’t been yet, anyhow). Three singles from his second over, and five from his first two combined.

25th over: England 143-3 (Morgan 34, Stokes 23)

Pattinson returns, and Stokes gets another edge – and this one does carry! There are no slips, though, so that’s four. Then the same batsman pulls fine, getting his angles just right to frustrate the covering fielder, and that’s four more! And then he attacks, takes a couple of little steps forward, and hits down the ground for four even more! At this point, statistic fans, Australia were also 143-3.

24th over: England 129-3 (Morgan 33, Stokes 11)

A first look, then, at Marcus Stoinis, and it’s fairly ho-hum medium-to-medium-plus-paced stuff. England get a couple of singles, but then the last, short, wide and edged by Stokes, would have brought a wickeet had the ball just carried six inches further.

Australia seemed keeen, or at least everyone except for Wade, tellingly. And replays very clearly show the ball bouncing just before the gloves.

Marcus Stoinis thinks he’s got a wicket to end his first over. There was a sound, but was there a nick? And if there was a nick, was there a bounce on the way to the keeper’s gloves?

23rd over: England 127-3 (Morgan 32, Stokes 10)

Six runs! Off one ball! Morgan goes down on one knee in order to fetch Maxwell’s delivery and heave it over midwicket. England’s first maximum! And then he gets four more through the covers!

22nd over: England 115-3 (Morgan 21, Stokes 10)

Marsh is trying to tempt Morgan into chasing wide balls again. To such an extent that his first delivery is called a wide, and the second should have been. He then reins things in a bit, and three singles follow.

21th over: England 110-3 (Morgan 18, Stokes 9)

Stokes hits a fine shot into his own ankle, and isn’t far off getting out to it as the ball runs behind him. One run from Maxwell’s second over.

20th over: England 109-3 (Morgan 17, Stokes 9)

Marsh bowls, and Morgan smacks one pretty hard, but straight to mid off, and then cuts nicely, but again to a fielder. It’s just not really happening for England at the moment on the run-accumulation front. At the end of the 14th over they were 20 runs ahead of where Australia had been at that stage, and a wicket to the good. Now they lead by nine, having lost the same number of wickets.

19th over: England 107-3 (Morgan 16, Stokes 8)

Some spin, then, from Maxwell, and some singles for England. Three of them. And a wide.

18th over: England 103-3 (Morgan 15, Stokes 6)

Ooof! Morgan chops the ball into the ground, just wide of the stumps. And then Marsh bowls really wide, Morgan stretches to fetch it and he pokes the ball between cover and backward point, and above both of them, for four, tickling England’s score into treble figures. “I’m getting big waves of tearful nostalgia here,” writes Robert Wilson. “In an era obsessed by height, weight and BMI, Taylor is showing the distinct advantage of being a titch. As soon as it’s wide, he’s in the ascendancy. We’ve all seen this in cricket we’ve actually played, the inexplicable cutting and pulling brilliance of some unlikely Munchkin but Taylor is old-school. It reminds me of hazy childhood memories of Gavaskar and Vishwanath cutting sataniclly fast West Indian quicks from a foot and a half above their heads and then going down to tap the pitch like it was just nothing. Oh bumcakes, he’s out.”

17th over: England 96-3 (Morgan 11, Stokes 3)

England showing a huge variety of different ways to slightly mistime strokes currently. As a result, the runs are coming in drips rather than waves (and one of the five off this Cummins over was a wide). One boundary in the last seven overs now.

16th over: England 91-3 (Morgan 8, Stokes 2)

That was quite the catch there from Matthew Wade. One for the highlights reel. Stokes comes in, and immediately hits through midwicket for a couple.

WICKET! Wade takes a stunner to remove Taylor for 41! http://t.co/5O1EPDeOIo#ENGvAUSpic.twitter.com/3Lz0h9lq1V

Taylor tries to work a ball aimed at leg stump round the corner for runs, but Wade dives full length to his left and gets there!

15th over: England 88-2 (Taylor 41, Morgan 7)

Cummins gets one to come back into Taylor off the seam; the batsman’s efforts to improvise a scoring stroke are laudable, but he gets nowhere near it and it did make him look a little silly. The next is much wider, but also missed. Indeed, a Morgan single is all that England have to show for themselves at the end of the over. England are precisely 20 ahead of where Australia were at this stage of their innings, and have lost a wicket fewer.

14th over: England 87-2 (Taylor 41, Morgan 6)

Now Mitch Marsh has a bowl, and England – after 23 four-free deliveries – get themselves a boundary, Taylor driving an eminently drivable ball down the ground.

13th over: England 80-2 (Taylor 35, Morgan 5)

Just one run from Cummins’ fourth over, in which he gets his line and length pretty consistently right. There hasn’t been a maiden yet today, but that wasn’t far off (obviously)

12th over: England 79-2 (Taylor 35, Morgan 4)

An altogether better time to be bowling, as England build a new partnership. Hastins bowls, four runs scored, two ones and a two.

11th over: England 75-2 (Taylor 34, Morgan 1)

So Cummins gets immediate reward for a change of ends. His previous over went for 14, this one brings a wicket with the first ball, and thereafter leaks but a brace of singles.

After the ecstasy, the agony for Roy, as he mistimes his stroke and sends the ball looping straight to extra cover!

10th over: England 73-1 (Roy 36, Taylor 33)

Hastings’ first ball goes back down the ground for four, and so does the last! In between the Australians briefly think they might have Taylor, but it turns out that the ball only hit his trousers, and that the umpire knows it.

9th over: England 64-1 (Roy 31, Taylor 29)

Australian head in hands as Roy inside-edges Pattinson’s first delivery into his pads and it deflects to safety. And they’re back there again moments later, as Roy thumps the next over the batsman’s head – it lands, in the end, a couple of feet short of the rope. A couple of singles later Roy smashes through the covers for four more!

8th over: England 53-1 (Roy 21, Taylor 28)

Hasting’s opening delivery is driven down the ground by Roy to take England, and indeed the partnership, past 50 – and it only took them 37 balls. The next five, though, only bring a single. Australia had 29 at this point, and reached 50 in over 11.

7th over: England 48-1 (Roy 16, Taylor 28)

A more sedate over from Pattinson, bringing four runs, all singles. “The best place to watch cricket in Bilbao,” writes Eil Wyn Lim, “is in a cafe next to the Plazuela de Santiago, where you can also get great jamon and cheese. Please let Henry Lane know.” On the plus side, cricket, ham and cheese! On the down side, there may be more than one cafe near the Plazuela de Santiago.

6th over: England 44-1 (Roy 14, Taylor 26)

John Hastings, who with Matthew Wade wrought such havoc in the final overs of Australia’s innings, is passed the ball – and England score 10 more! Only with a bit of luck, though, as Roy inside-edges the final delivery wide of the stumps and away to the rope. He’d also scored four off the previous delivery, more deliberately that time, sending the ball screaming through the covers.

5th over: England 34-1 (Roy 5, Taylor 25)

Taylor’s a fine-looking batsman. Busy, short, like a freshly-waxed ewok. He starts Pattinson’s third over with another four, but then gets nothing from the free hit following a no-ball, for which much credit must go to the bowler for sending it in full and straight. He can’t repeat it, though, and when one goes shortish and widish, Taylor fair pummels it past point for four, and then he cuts the last straight to point, who inexplicably misses the ball completely, and that’s four more. That’s 27 runs from the last two overs.

4th over: England 21-1 (Roy 5, Taylor 13)

Runs! And quite a lot of them! Taylor crunches the first delivery wide of mid-off for four, a very handsome stroke, and then the next through cover. He didn’t even start running for either, nor did he need to. A wide and a single later, Roy does a very passable impersonation of the second stroke, and gets an identical reward. There’s still time, 14 runs already scored off the over, for a couple of dot balls.

3rd over: England 7-1 (Roy 1, Taylor 4)

Roy gets off the mark with a single from the first, and there’s also a leg bye, but that’s another hostile over from Pattinson. “Forget Bilbao,” writes Robert Wilson – and, to be fair, it seems everyone has. “Would anyone like to pretend to be me and write an article about Jeremy Corbyn and the return of the True Left to British politics for a French newspaper? I have a hangover and there are limits to what the soul can endure (aka, I would quite like to catch a bit of Roy-biffing). In French if possible, jokes appreciated, you can absolutely make up the politics. I’ll send tickets to the cheapest (free) gig I can find or a copy of a book I don’t want to read to the first lucky applicant. In a hat, on a Friday – if that’s what it takes.”

That’s a killer delivery, full and fast, and it raps Hales on the ankle, the Australians go up – and so does the umpire’s finger! Looks like it was on its way down leg, but there’s no review!

1st over: England 1-0 (Roy 0, Hales 0)

So Pattinson gets the ball rolling, or rather flying, at just a smidgeon above 90mph. Jason Roy is in no kind of hurry, not until the fifth legal delivery (one ball having gone down leg side), that is, which nearly cut him in half on its way through to the keeper, though the batsman did somehow get out of its way.

Right. Everyone’s out. Action imminent. James Pattinson has the ball in hand.

The players are slowly emerging from the dressing rooms. And, before play restarts, a plea: “Hullo there!” writes Henry Lane. Well hello. “Can any OBO readers tell me if there’s anywhere in Bilbao showing the match? As incentive, England have never lost whilst I’ve been watching them live from abroad. In a hat. On a Friday.” Anyone?

Hello world!

Well, those 54 runs from the last four overs certainly put a different complexion on things. Talking of things that start a little slowly but end in a blur of frenetic action, here’s some twixt-innings listening for you.

Yer boy Simon Burnton will take you through England’s reply, so send your thoughts, questions and answers to simon.burnton@theguardian.com or tweet @Simon_Burnton. Cheers!

Incidentally, David Cameron was in the crowd earlier, sitting with Dickie Bird. Wonder how well he’ll be received over the innings break canapes...

Related: Cameron caught making 'people in Yorkshire hate each other' jibe

So, a nice round figure for England to get in order to stay in the series, and that was a rather curious innings from Australia. David Willey made a mess of their top order, before that brilliant partnership between Maxwell and Bailey set them up. Another clatter ensued, before Wade and Hastings hammered the thing all over the place to set a very competitive target indeed.

A mix of excellent bowling up front (and a fine spell by Moeen), mixed with some ropey lengths towards the end there. Very gettable though for England - six an over shouldn’t in theory be a massive problem for a team that has scored 400 this summer.

50th over: Australia 299-7 (Wade 50, Hastings 34)
Wood with the last over. Hastings smacks a one-bouncer down to long-on, before Wade goes for another scoop that catches a top-edge and sails over the boundary for six, landing on the covers. Another two with a belt to long-on, then he smashes a length ball into the middle of the Western Terrace, before bringing up his 50 with a single, that he’s desperately disappointed with, for some reason. Hastings flays a single, to end a brilliant partnership that has saved Australia’s bacon in this one.

49th over: Australia 282-7 (Wade 35, Hastings 32)
Lovely, if risky shot from Wade, going down to lap a sweep from Willey fine and for four. Would’ve been dead lbw if he’d missed, mind. A few more singles, before Wade hoys a sloggy sweep that bounces once before crossing the square ropes. Another 12 from the over and Australia are going to be close to the 300 that looked absolutely nailed on earlier.

48th over: Australia 270-7 (Wade 25, Hastings 30)
Wade takes two, then goes for a scoop that actually goes a bit wrong (in that he had no idea where it was going), but it still loops over the keeper’s head and bounces away for four. He then waits for a slower ball and absolutely creams a hugh six over long-on - quite the shot for a wee fellow. Good stuff from these two.

47th over: Australia 257-7 (Wade 12, Hastings 30)
Willey is back, and Hasting carts him for a single, before Wade digs out a yorker and they dash through for one. Then Hastings plants his foot and mullers a terrific six that nearly brains a steward in the new pavilion. Wade clips a couple off his toes, and there’s a couple more singles.

46th over: Australia 245-7 (Wade 8, Hastings 22)
Yee-ha. Hastings cowboys up and wallops a six over long-off, which inspires a field change and the man out there saves a four next ball. Wood then gets away massively with a full-toss around Wade’s belly button - quite how that wasn’t a no ball is something of a mystery.

45th over: Australia 234-7 (Wade 5, Hastings 14)
Hastings jumps all over a long-hop by Plunkett and batters it in front of mid-wicket and to the boundary. A couple of singles, before Plunkett gives him a thigh-high full one that he whacks to the fence again, then another goes straight to a fielder so it’s just one.

44th over: Australia 222-7 (Wade 3, Hastings 4)
Mo’s done, so Wood starts. Wade drives well but long-off is there to keep it to a single. Hastings departs briefly from his defensive approach to cut it behind point for four, bringing the score to chew-chwenty-chew, but there’s nothing from the rest of the over as Wade desperately tries to wrestle the strike from the big lad.

43rd over: Australia 217-7 (Wade 2, Hastings 0)
Wade drives and a misfield at mid-off gives him a single, then Plunkett drifts down leg and that’s a wide. Hastings offers some stout defence, which is lovely, but perhaps not what Australia are looking for as they need, well, y’know, runs.

42nd over: Australia 215-7 (Wade 1, Hastings 0)
Big John Hastings, who always looks like he should be playing fourth cowboy in a John Wayne film, pats away the last couple of the over.

England on the attack now, with a slip in the 42nd over. Stoinis sweeps behind deep backward square, gets three for it, then Wade gets a single before Stoinis goes for a reverse and guides the most perfect catching practice for Rashid at point.

41st over: Australia 211-6 (Wade 0, Stoinis 1)
Day-boo-tant Stoinis, who will almost certainly have that middle I in his name missed at some point, flicks the last ball of an excellent over for England for a single.

Two in three for Plunkett! Bailey’s innings ends in rather limp fashion as he chips the ball straight back down the pitch and back to the bowler, who does his own work.

Marsh tries to go big, big, big, but the attempted spank over mid-on gets a leading edge and Willey barely has to move before pouching at long-off.

40th over: Australia 210-4 (Bailey 75, Marsh 17)
Bailey slightly fortunate as he comes down the pitch, Mo seems him coming and darts one down leg, which he’s lucky not to get a leading edge to. A couple of singles, then Bailey heads down again, kicks the thing with the bat hidden behind the pad into the covers, but umpire Michael Gough cancels the single on the ‘not playing the ball you cheeky little scamp’ rule. Or ‘dead ball’, as others call it.

39th over: Australia 208-4 (Bailey 75, Marsh 16)
Plunkett replaces Rashid, which is vaguely curious since he’s been the weakest of the four seamers and the others have plenty of overs left. And there’s the first boundary in a little while, Bailey coming down the track a little and clipping the ball off his toes, in front of mid-wicket and to the ropes.

38th over: Australia 200-4 (Bailey 69, Marsh 14)
Australia are simply refusing to score multiple runs. Four ones from that over, but they could be setting themselves up for a hoy-fest from the last ten overs. 300 most certainly on for them.

37th over: Australia 196-4 (Bailey 67, Marsh 12)
Singles, singles, singles. More singles than the Kraft packing plant. Well, six of them from that over. That’s Rashid done, and despite some tap from Maxwell he’s bowled OK - 10-0-63-0.

36th over: Australia 190-4 (Bailey 64, Marsh 9)
Some nice dip from Moeen nearly utterly flummoxes Bailey as he comes down the pitch, eyes lighting at what looked like a loopy one, and he was pretty lucky his pads stopped that or else it was stumping o’clock. Another good over from Mo, who hasn’t conceded more than a single since the 26th over.

35th over: Australia 187-4 (Bailey 63, Marsh 7)
A couple of singles, then Bailey opts for the ‘sod this for a game of soldiers’ approach, ambles down the track and launches an arrow-straight six. More like it from the Aussies.

34th over: Australia 179-4 (Bailey 56, Marsh 6)
Bailey goes for a reverse-sweep, misses, Bairstow hears a noise and gleefully claims a catch, but the sound was bat hitting ground rather than ball. Just one from the over, and the Australians are in danger of getting a little bit bogged down. No boundaries in eight overs now.

33rd over: Australia 178-4 (Bailey 55, Marsh 6)
Bailey goes way over to off and tries a big sweep to a ball that pitched on about a fifth/sixth stump line, and was turning away. He was probably lucky he didn’t get any of that actually, given the potential for a top-edge etc. Bailey tries desperately to get him away to the boundary, but only finds fielders with some well-struck shots. Two runs from an over tidier than an OCD-sufferer’s desk.

32nd over: Australia 176-4 (Bailey 54, Marsh 5)
More Mo (mo’ Mo, you might say), and again it’s pretty solid stuff, just the three runs coming from the over.

31st over: Australia 173-4 (Bailey 53, Marsh 3)
Rashid’s back, and it’s pretty tidy stuff from the wee man, aside from the last ball of the over that was shortish and wide (it may actually have been a wide if Marsh had left it), and only hit out to the cover sweeper for a single. Four of them from the over.

And here’s Robert Wilson on the boy Dilly: “If improvement or progress is what you always look for in players coming into a side, then Rashid has it in snow-shovels. He seems to go up a notch every two or three overs of every game I’ve seen. Getting a bit of tap from a notorious dasher in an ODI means little. His stock leggie is beautiful. He’s a little variation-happy but that will ease off. Warne, in speaking of his famed variations recently, said “Aw look, mate. I basically had two balls - the legspinner and the straight one.”. Once Rashid gets that, and with such a strong stock ball, I think he could be exceptional. In the last game he bowled a straight one I wanted to marry.”

30th over: Australia 169-4 (Bailey 51, Marsh 1)
Two more singles, one a leg-bye, from the over.


Slightly smarter bowling from Mo, a bit slower and with more flight. And then Maxwell gets out in the most Maxwell possible way, going for a reverse-sweep to a quicker one on leg-stump that he misses, and it takes out said leg-stump. Peak Maxwell. 100% Maxwell. Pure Maxwell. He’s an entertainer. Oh Glenn.

29th over: Australia 165-3 (Bailey 50, Maxwell 84)
Bowling change, and Plunkett is back, like the Backstreet Boys. Bailey celebrates by getting frosted tips and wearing leather pan...sorry, but cutting a single through the covers to bring up his 50. That reverse-sweep from the previous over - some suggestion that Bairstow appealed for hitting it twice. Oh the larks if that had been unpheld and Morgan hadn’t withdrawn the appeal. The larks!

28th over: Australia 163-3 (Bailey 49, Maxwell 83)
Maxwell goes for a reverse-sweep that hits his pad, possibly his glove, then perhaps the back of the bat on the follow-through and he takes a single. He really is scoring runs in unorthodox ways. Four more singles from a quiet over.

27th over: Australia 158-3 (Bailey 46, Maxwell 81)
Rashid beats Maxwell with a nice leggie, but then he flicks one fine off his pads that trickles away like a pleasant country stream for three. A single each for the batsmen, then Bailey is down the track to drive one more straight. All going very well for Australia at present, but...

Can't wait to see how Maxwell gets out in the 90s this time. Such an innovator

26th over: Australia 152-3 (Bailey 44, Maxwell 77)
Maxwell takes a hhhhhhhhhhhheave at a full ball from Moeen, like a man attempting to extricate a golf ball from some fearful rough, but inside edges for a single. A few more ones, before the reverse-sweep comes out, this time from Bailey, picking the gap between the two points and to the third man fence.

25th over: Australia 143-3 (Bailey 37, Maxwell 75)
Rashid bowls a ball that most people would try to drive through the covers, but Maxwell takes a diagonal path down the track and heading for mid-off, turns it into a full-toss and slaps it over mid-on and to the boundary. Lovely batting.

24th over: Australia 136-3 (Bailey 36, Maxwell 69)
Moeen Ali is into the attack, and Maxwell greets him in cartoon Maxwell fashion by reverse-sweeping him through the covers for four. Then a quieter few balls, which really isn’t on, and three further runs from the over. Come on lads, step it up a bit...

23rd over: Australia 129-3 (Bailey 34, Maxwell 64)
Just as you get some shorties from Stokes, you get full-tosses from Rashid, and Maxwell jumps all over one to muller the ball over cow corner for the first six of the innings, and bringing up his 50. Rashid then over-compensates next up, giving Maxwell a long-hop that he sticks in more or less the same place for another sixer, before slapping a fullish delivery over straight mid-off for a one-bounce four. Brilliant batting, that, 17 from the over.

22nd over: Australia 112-3 (Bailey 34, Maxwell 47)
Stokes has a habit of dropping short in his first balls of an over, which he does here and Maxwell swats it in front of mid-wicket and to the boundary. A single, then Bailey rocks back to cut the final ball just behind point for another four. These two playing very well now.

21st over: Australia 103-3 (Bailey 30, Maxwell 42)
Bailey drills one over Rashid’s head that the Yorkshireman might have just got his fingertips to, but you couldn’t describe that as a drop. So we won’t. Rashid nearly gets the last ball through, a quicker, flatter, skiddier number. Sort of a hugely inferior version of this one, from Shane Warne to Alec Stewart. The genius of Warne was that the previous ball pitched in exactly the same spot, but was a leggie that Stewart slapped to the fence. Warne then stitched him up with the flipper.

20th over: Australia 100-3 (Bailey 28, Maxwell 41)
Ton up for Tony Abbott’s brave boys with a couple o’ singles, but it’s otherwise a drum-tight over from Stokes, beating Bailey with a wee away-shaper from the last ball.

19th over: Australia 98-3 (Bailey 27, Maxwell 40)
Lovely late cut by Bailey to guide three runs down to where third man usually patrols, then Maxwell takes the maverick approach of seeing a widish full one outside off, and trying to drag the sloggiest of sweeps into the Western Terrace. It dribbles back down the pitch to the bowler. A pair of twos from the rest of the over, the first through the covers and the next a sweep from a full-toss to deep backward square.

18th over: Australia 91-3 (Bailey 24, Maxwell 36)
Just a change of ends for Stokes, who starts from the Football Stand End with a short one down the leg side, and the umpire does his Christ the Redeemer impression. A single, then Maxwell top-edges a pull down to fine leg, but Rashid drops a low, but very takeable catch in the deep. Then, of course, Bailey drives the next ball past mid-off for four.

17th over: Australia 83-3 (Bailey 18, Maxwell 35)
Wicket machine Adil Rashid is into the attack, and disappointingly doesn’t take a wicket with his first ball. A couple are a bit full, Australia take a couple of singles then he bowls one of those perfect leg spinners, drifting in, dipping at the end, pitching about middle-off and ripping away, but alas for him it ripped a hair too far to take Bailey’s edge.

16th over: Australia 80-3 (Bailey 16, Maxwell 34)
England review an lbw shout turned down by the umpire, but it wasn’t the best ask, as it was going over and possibly leg side of the stumps, too. Plunkett then drops rather short and wide which is treated as it should be by Bailey, then after a single Maxwell plays another delightful straight drive, straight to the fence.

15th over: Australia 71-3 (Bailey 11, Maxwell 30)
Two full ones from Stokes, three runs from the Aussie batsmen as they drive into the offside. Stokes beats the edge with one that didn’t appear to do much beyond hold its line, then another driven single to end the over.

14th over: Australia 67-3 (Bailey 8, Maxwell 29)
Maxwell gets a couple of relatively fortunate runs from a thick outside edge, but then takes four from an unspeakably beautiful - we’re talking Eva Mendes, David Beckham levels - straight drive, that Plunkett is annoyed with, and perhaps understandably, but just admire that one, Liam. One more single from the over.

Yes indeed, Rick...

@NickMiller79 A plum could be plumb, no?

13th over: Australia 60-3 (Bailey 8, Maxwell 22)
Ben Stokes gets a bowl, as Willey has a rest. A couple of singles, then Stokes grabs a sharp one on the return (bump ball), and everyone has a nice little laugh as Stokes threatens to throw down the stumps. Bailey chuckles, keeping both hands firmly at his sides.

12th over: Australia 58-3 (Bailey 7, Maxwell 21)
Wood takes a blow and Plunkett is bowling, cheerfully greeted by a Maxwell drive through the covers for four. He then serves him an absolute jaffa though, squaring him up with just enough away movement, one of those a batsman basically closes his eyes and hopes not to nick. Two more singles from the over.

Robert Wilson’s been at the thesaurus, on the old boy Trevor Bailey: “I hate to carp but to dismiss the once-in-a-generation Eeyore that was Trevor Bailey as a mere miserabilist is disrespectful to the titanic brilliance of his anhedonia. There were decades of dudgeon, an incapacity for pleasure that was a Grail quest. He wasn’t merely unpleasable, he wanted to persuade every young boy watching that life was a filthy bitter thing, that talent was mere vulgarity and that his own unbearable cross was to be right ebout everything. All delivered in a voice that could make you long for the dentist’s drill. He had total consistency and a touch of real genius. I dream of listening to what he would have made of Flintoff.
“I’m getting the impression that Willey is really quite good at cricket. Trevor would have delighted in proving me wrong.”

11th over: Australia 52-3 (Bailey 6, Maxwell 16)
Maxwell, in a shocking development, seems to think the best way of attacking this challenge is, well, to attack. He flays a pair of drives through the covers, the first in the air a bit and behind extra, the second along the ground and in front, but the same result from both shots - four runs. A single, then Willey comes around the wicket to Bailey, who drives wide of mid-off, Taylor runs around the boundary and gets a hand to the ball on the dive, but can’t prevent another four runs.

Meanwhile, Ant Pease has my back: “Sensibleb precautionsb meanb thatb youb willb spellb plumbb correctlyb. Ollocks.”

10th over: Australia 39-3 (Bailey 2, Maxwell 7)
A couple of singles, then Wood oversteps so Maxwell has a go at a free hit...which he throws absolutely everything at, not timing massively well, but it beats mid-off and goes for four anyway. Another single, then, a drop! And by the standards of England’s catching this series, a reasonable simple one, as Bailey nicks to Jason Roy at second slip, who grasses the thing at about knee-height.

9th over: Australia 31-3 (Bailey 1, Maxwell 1)
A bit of swing and these Australians seem to fall apart this summer. Maxwell finally connects with the last ball of the over but a diving Taylor uses ever inch of his height to save what would’ve been a certain boundary in the covers, and they just get one.

Always nice to be told off in a patronising (if correct) manner. Cheers John Starbuck: “It’s plumb as in plumb line, not plum as in plum crumble (or straining). Most OBO writers get this wrong at some stage so we are used to it, but there’s no excuse for doing it repeatedly.”

Brilliant stuff this from the impending Yorkshireman, getting Finch to nick behind and he’s on his way. Willey falls over in his delivery stride and appeals while flat on his face. Lovely stuff.

Yorkshire c Yorkshire b Yorkshire #Yorkshire

8th over: Australia 29-2 (Bailey 0, Finch 15)
England all over Australia like a flannel here. Finch throws everything at a big drive, which if he’d made contact would’ve sent the ball halfway to Bradford, but misses by a distance. Wood then beats the edge with a legitimate jaffa, but Finch finds his range a little next up, pushing a slightly more careful drive through the covers and to the fence.

Anyone do a "batsman Burns the bowler's Willey" gag earlier? #EngvAus

7th over: Australia 25-2 (Bailey 0, Finch 11)
Bailey - who I always instinctively think is former England all-rounder and TMS miserablist Trevor, in much the same way that I always think Sky bant-fest panel show ‘A League Of Their Own’ is the baseball film starring Madonna, Rosie O’Donnell and Geena Davis - is in, and is troubled straight away. He shoulders arms to the last ball of the innings and it thunks his pads. A review is mulled for a bit, but in the end they (wisely) decide it wasn’t swinging back enough.

Willey starts with a wide, misses Smith’s inside-edge as the Aussie captain drives expansively, but the next one is an Akramian inswinging yorker that gets Smith’s back leg and pins him as plum as plum can be.

6th over: Australia 24-1 (Smith 5, Finch 11)
Decent stuff from Wood, who gets Smith to edge one that goes wide of the slips, and he gets a single. The slips then go big on an lbw appeal, denied by the relatively minor detail of Finch hitting the thing. Finch takes a quick single, then Smith goes for a big ol’ boomer of a drive, only getting an inside-edge to square-leg for one. Good stuff this from England.

5th over: Australia 21-1 (Smith 3, Finch 10)
Singles! Good old fashioned, ticking over, keep things moving, find the gaps ODI cricket. Before all those exciting sixes and stuff came in and ruined things.

Update from Bob Log: “I hold a degree in law but I’ll leave the blogging to Bob Loblaw.”

4th over: Australia 17-1 (Smith 1, Finch 9)
Glorious, Pontingian straight drive by Smith, but he’s denied four runs and a deserved spell of admiration of the shot by Moeen Ali’s diving save at mid-on. Three singles come from the over.

Quite a distance, I’d imagine. Stokes won’t be going anywhere for a while.

How far away is David Willey from nicking Stokes' Test spot, do we think? @NickMiller79

3rd over: Australia 14-1 (Smith 0, Finch 7)
Some proper shape from Willey, tucking Burns up so much that he holds the pose in a sort of ‘What? Didn’t bother me that one, definitely not’ sort of way, like refusing to rub one’s thigh after being struck. He takes a single, then Finch drives through the covers, the ball skips towards the boundary but wee little tiny small James Taylor dives desperately and saves a run with a brilliant dive at the ropes. Then the wicket, and now skipper Steve Smith is in.

Well that wasn’t an awfully good shot. Willey bowls one just back of a length to Burns, who tries a sort of indeterminate prod/cut thing through the covers, but only succeeds in inside-edging it into his stumps.

2nd over: Australia 10-0 (Burns 2, Finch 4)
Mark Wood has the ball from t’other end, and Burns turns what should be a couple in front of point, but he slips over at the non-striker’s and just takes the one. That’s it from the over - there’s an appeal for lbw that was never going to be given (too high, to leggy) and a couple of nice drives from Finch that go straight to fielders.

I desperately hope so, Gareth...

@NickMiller79 please confirm that Bob Logs has a law blog?

1st over: Australia 9-0 (Burns 1, Finch 4)
Burns gets us going with a nudged single to mid-wicket, then Willey gets one to shape down leg and appeals with adorable optimism for lbw, but that was probably to just distract the umpire. From what, I’m not sure, because it whistles to the boundary for leg-byes. The next ball is more or less exactly the same, but Finch gets a flick on it for the same result. The final two balls have the Australian opener in a bit of bother, and there’s enough swing there to get the bowlers rubbing their thighs, Vic Reeves style.

Actually, I haven’t given you much time to read that. Bookmark it for later. The players are out, and David Willey is about to open the bowling for England.

Bit of pre-game reading: this celebration of the Waca by our boy Russell Jackson is absolutely wonderful. The pictures are quite sensational too.

Related: Remembering the Waca Ground: a Test track that was a highway to hell | Russell Jackson

Scouting report from the splendidly-named Bob Logs: “Stoinis is more of an opening bat who bowls a bit - I see he’s listed at number 8 but then England played an opener who bowls a bit at number 8 throughout the test series...”

An email! “Today is the day for Alex Hales to step up and silence the doubters!” roars Dean Kinsella. “Come out swinging Alex!”

He has been rather disappointing in this series. Scores of 3, 22, 18 and 9 (including the T20) ain’t what you need when you’re potentially auditioning for a place on the winter tour(s). Perhaps this won’t actually matter too much given his scores in the County Championship, but it isn’t ideal. A good thwack today would be lovely.

Last time Australia won the toss and batted at Headingley they were 88 all out https://t.co/D8NfWig4lp

Roy, Hales, Taylor, Morgan (capt), Stokes, Bairstow (wk), Ali, Willey, Rashid, Plunkett, Wood

...they will have a bat.

Morning. This series has a familiar ring to it. Much like the Test series that preceded it, these two teams haven’t exactly done things by halves. Australia have won a couple of games convincingly, and England have likewise prevailed in relatively straightforward fashion in one. No real close encounters, little nip and virtually no tuck.

I mean, is that good? One of the main reasons the Tests weren’t especially diverting was because there was so little tension in most games. Surely limited overs games theoretically have more potential for dramatic, late finishes than the longer form, but we’re not getting any because of the one-sided nature of things.

Nick will be here shortly. Meanwhile, read Ali Martin’s preview of the fourth ODI:

David Willey is set to be recalled by England for Friday’s fourth one-day international against Australia on his future home ground of Headingley, with fellow seamer Chris Woakes ruled out for the rest of the series because of a thigh strain.

The 25-year-old Northamptonshire left-armer Willey, who has signed a three-year deal to play for Yorkshire from next season, made his England one-day debut at the start of the summer but has not featured since victory in the one-off Twenty20 in Cardiff on 31 August.

Continue reading...
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England v Australia: fifth ODI – live!

September 13, 2015, 8:09 am
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  • Australia seal eight-wicket win in fifth and final ODI
  • Victory sees visitors secure series 3-2
  • Eoin Morgan retires hurt after being struck by Mitchell Starc bouncer
  • Read the full match report

That’s that for the English international season. Here’s the report from the 11th and final England-Australia bout of the summer.

Australia win the battle – England, the war? Until next time...

Winners! #ENGvAUSpic.twitter.com/IArgo0u6g6

Mitchell Marsh is man of the match. He’s said some stuff in Australian which I couldn’t quite decipher. Turns out he’s also the man of the series, too. Well deserved. Decides against another chat with Nasser and gets a pat on the arse.

James Taylor, England’s stand-in captain, comes up for a few words. Morgan’s OK, apparently, which is good news. He reckons this wicket was better than the one in the third ODI, which England performed so well on.

Finally, after three months, a lost Ashes and a few retirements, Australia get to go home...

Thanks @englandcricket for hosting a massive summer of #ENGvAUS cricket! By our count it's 11-11 across the men, women and U19s #TieBreaker?

A toe end to fine leg for four and Australia complete a professional win. A fantastic partnership from Aaron Finch and George Bailey saw them home – 109 off 15.1 overs. Finch finishes unbeaten on 70 with that last four taking Bailey to 41.

Feed the snake and it will grow. #maxim#ENGvAUSpic.twitter.com/IUj3Mf1knJ

24th over: Australia 135-2 (Finch 69, Bailey 37)

Finch has now got the reverse sweep out as he scuffs one behind square for a single. Bailey advances and gets a full toss which he hits down the ground, but good fielding from David Willey prevents the boundary and saves two.

23rd over: Australia 131-2 (Finch 68, Bailey 34)

Naff cricket, this: Topley bounces Bailey, who was advancing. The ball is judged as a wide for height before Bailey scampers a single as Bairstow underarms to the stumps. A leg-bye around the corner goes for four. Bailey takes a single off the last ball – 10 runs from the over – and that’s the 100 partnership from 85 balls.

Ok they may have had a shocker today, but overall think England have had a great summer and been very entertaining to watch.

22nd over: Australia 121-2 (Finch 66, Bailey 33)

Both batsmen happy to sweep from outside off stump, ensuring their front pads are well outside the line to Moeen Ali to take LBW out of the equation. Even the ones they don’t quite get hold of get them singles. And when they do connect, such as Finch’s effort to the fourth ball, they’re beating the leg side fielders to the boundary. Finch then comes down the ground and skews high into the air, but the ball drops in no man’s land in the off side.

21st over: Australia 111-2 (Finch 57, Bailey 32)

Topley back into the attack and he’s working with his variations. Finch struggles to read a couple of short balls before meeting a full-ball with the full face of his bat and timing it superbly down the ground for four.

20th over: Australia 105-2 (Finch 52, Bailey 32)

Under-edged sweep from Finch, but he puts enough beef behind it to see it run away to the fine leg boundary for four. Much more convincing two balls later, beating the fielder at square leg for another boundary, and Finch moves to an excellent fifty from 47 balls. Another sweep, this time straight to Alex Hales, gives Finch a single off the last ball.

19th over: Australia 96-2 (Finch 43, Bailey 32)

Rashid not looking as flustered, but I suppose the damage has been done, with Australia taking a sizeable chunk (24) from his first two overs. Bailey uses his feet to give Finch back the strike, who returns it to him immediately. A powerful drive is then stopped superbly by cover.

18th over: Australia 91-2 (Finch 41, Bailey 29)

Moeen Ali into the attack and he’s varying his pace nicely. Bailey’s dancing up, down and across the crease, but Mo’s matching him, step to step. An email from Robert Wilson reads as follows:

17th over: Australia 89-2 (Finch 40, Bailey 28)

A good over from Rashid is ruined by a solid sweep from Finch. Four to him, behind square on the leg side.

16th over: Australia 84-2 (Finch 36, Bailey 27)

Nice looking shot from Finch goes for four through extra-cover. I say “nice looking” because it wasn’t particularly well timed but still beat the fielder, Reece Topley, to the boundary. Finds his timing with the last ball, picking Wood off his toes for a lovely boundary through midwicket.

15th over: Australia 74-2 (Finch 26, Bailey 27)

Bailey looking good here, as he gives himself room, watches a googly off the pitch and punches through cover for a couple. Then, a long-hop comes his way and tumps the leggie to mid-wicket for four. Better shot soon after as Rashid pushes one through and Bailey reads the length early to rock back and clear mid-on for another boundary. And another four – this one going between the previous two.

14th over: Australia 60-2 (Finch 26, Bailey 13)

Very good from Bailey – gets beaten on the outside edge by a beaut from Wood and responds two balls later with a punch through the covers for four. Punch into the off side for a single sees him keep the strike...

13th over: Australia 54-2 (Finch 25, Bailey 8)

Change of pace as Adil Rashid replaces David Willey (6-3-13-1 so far) but it’s given Finch licence to ditch the softly-softly approach: the first ball is carved through point and the second, tossed up, is hammered for six over mid off!

12th over: Australia 41-2 (Finch 15, Bailey 8)

Wood picks up where he left off, but Finch does well to defend into the off side and take a smart single to bring Bailey back on strike. There’s a short-leg in place and, when the short ball does come, Gorgeous George is onto it in a flash and thumping it through midwicket for four.

11th over: Australia 36-2 (Finch 14, Bailey 4)

David Willey getting the second phase underway. Most of the deliveries are moving away from Bailey, meaning he can leave most. A couple tail in – probably holding their line, to be fair – and have Bailey defending solidly. A maiden.

Right, back with you on the OBO.

Let’s kick things off with an email from Simon McMahon: “The Sky boys discussing their ‘moment of the summer’ during the interval. Pretty much as expected, ranging from Finn, Broad, Stokes, England’s catching, though credit to Knight and Gower for going with mood setting performances from Root and Buttler during the NZ series. Beefy also couldn’t resist a dig at Nass for the dolly he dropped during practise, claiming it inspired the England fielders. One more thing - England finally seemed to have moved on from the KP debate. Which can only be a good thing.”

The players head off for what was actually meant to be the break between innings. England with a couple of breakthroughs there, meaning Australia need 103 more runs from 40 overs, with eight wickets in hand. But the Aussies are still in the box seat to take the series 3-2.

We’ll take a quick break while I tuck into an absurd bacon, chicken ceasar sandwich. It’s got parmesan in it. What a time to be alive.

10th over: Australia 36-2 (Finch 14, Bailey 5)

Smith goes first ball but Gorgeous George Bailey fights back immediately with a drive through the covers to get him off the mark. Wood brings back his length and has Bailey hopping while defending. The ball squirts past the dive of Jason Roy at second slip, for a leg bye.

Quality from Wood – the ball pitches on off stump and leaves the right hander, who is too committed to a drive to readjust...

9th over: Australia 31-1 (Finch 14, Smith 12)

Willey to continue and he seems to have the better of Finch here though, even in defending, Finch is finding the middle of his bat. Another maiden though, good pressure.

8th over: Australia 31-1 (Finch 14, Smith 12)

Mark Wood replaces Reece Topley (3-1-17-0) and he’s on the money, as per. Good pace, good areas, good goodness and a maiden to kick things off.

7th over: Australia 31-1 (Finch 14, Smith 12)

“Not now!” shouts Steve Smith, as he defends one back to Willey. Willey picks up the ball and gives the Australia captain a glare before seemingly uttering a few words. I say “seemingly” as it’s hard to tell with Willey because he’s a natural frowner who, at times, does dish out a good Phil Jones-esque gurn. Just three off the over.

6th over: Australia 28-1 (Finch 14, Smith 9)

A first boundary off Topley, who’s a touch too short and allows Finch to hang back and throw a bit more into a shot through cover point for four. A second, now, as he’s pulled behind square leg. Oh dear, and now a no ball – Finch to face the free hit, which is thumped down the ground for another four! Decent finish though as Topley beats Finch on the outside edge.

5th over: Australia 13-1 (Finch 1, Smith 8)

Willey, on the other hand, skids on and Smith makes full use of this by opening the face and driving him through cover for four. Bit of extra bounce, too, which surprises Smith and keeps him wary on the back foot for the rest of the over.

4th over: Australia 7-1 (Smith 4, Finch 1)

One of the keys to Topley’s success as a one-day bowler is that he doesn’t come onto the bat very well. Smith is learning that here, hitting shots straight into the ground in front of him. He does manage to get the last ball off the square, pushing just wide of mid off, who tumbles to his left to ensure only a single is taken.

3rd over: Australia 5-1 (Finch 1, Smith 3)

Burns goes first ball: a ball very wide that is just wafted at, really. No conviction in the shot at all, as Bairstow skips to his right to grab. Smith is the next man in and he’s greeted by two mid-wickets. He’s off the mark with his second ball which somehow perfectly bisects them. Three to Smith.

Willey temps Burns with a wide one, which is chased half-heartedly for a thin edge through to the keeper.

2nd over: Australia 1-0 (Burns 0, Finch 0)

A first international over for Topley and it’s a maiden. There’s a lot of fingers down the side of balls, fingers right behind of balls and a couple under the balls. Stop sniggering. A leg-bye and Australia are off like a TRAIN.

1st over: Australia 0-0 (Burns 0, Finch 0)

Nice shape from David Willey is met by some odd ones from Joe Burns. He’s trying to open up the off-side but in doing so is basically trying to square-drive anything on off stump. And that’s a maiden. ADVANTAGE SOMEONE.

Reece Topley's List A innings. 19 from 20 2 from 13 4* from 10 0 from 1 0 from 1 0* from 0 9* from 10 0 from 3 6 from 27

Hello everyone – now, wasn’t that incompetent?

Please back out for 45-minute dash about. James Taylor, who began the international summer captaining England against Ireland in an ODI, ends it leading things in the field. Eoin Morgan, hit by Mitchell Starc, is playing no further part in the game.

Right, now it’s over to Vish, who will guide you through the Australia reply with his most delicate of hands. Incidentally, the lunch break is scheduled for 2pm, so in one of those ‘cricket doesn’t help itself’ moments that so often pop up, we’ll have 40 minutes of play before everyone heads inside for their vol-au-vents. . Can’t have the caterers being inconvenienced, can we?

Anyway, send your emails to Vithushan.Ehantharajah.casual@theGuardian.com or tweet @Vitu_E

Well, that wasn’t all that good from England. And when I say it wasn’t all that good, I do of course mean it was terrible. Still, there are just - just - about enough runs to make it slightly ticklish. Possibly. Or possibly not.

WICKET! Topley lbw b Agar 6 (27)
Splendid sweep from Rashid off Agar, splitting the fielders on the fence perfectly, then he takes as big a stride as his little legs can give and hoiks Agar back over his head for a two-bounce four. Another big shot only gets a single, then Topley goes right, right, right back and is caught dead in front. Out as out can be. And as Morgan won’t be batting again, that’s yer lot.

32nd over: England 129-8 (Topley 6, Rashid 26)
Shot! Topley plays a delicate dab over the slips and to third man for a single, which everyone enjoys. Including the bowler, Hastings. Well, probably not Hastings. Rashid late cuts one of his own, before the camera finds Bryan Robson and Peter Reid, beers in hand, in a box. Lads on tour.

31st over: England 127-8 (Topley 5, Rashid 25)
Agar’s having a bowl, which is lovely for him. Rashid turns down a single first up, then skips down a bit to flick a couple just behind square leg, then cuts a single out to deep extra. Topley runs through for a leg-bye off the final ball, which is a bit odd considering they declined the one at the start of the over. The batsmen have a chat to work out what’s what.

30th over: England 123-8 (Topley 5, Rashid 22)
Rashid punches a drive that Finch half-saves at extra cover, but does enough to keep them to a single when, unchecked, that one was four for sure. Topley then keeps the rest out - Tavarian defence, here. Although Chris Tavare was actually a decent one-day player, against all the odds.

29th over: England 122-8 (Topley 5, Rashid 21)
Five! Five runs to Topley! He jabs to point and takes a single that, with a direct throw, would have resulted in a run-out by about three yards, but the man at the stumps let it through, and it skips away to the boundary. Rashid then plays a nice drive through the covers, but some iffy running and decent fielding means they only get a single from it. A wide, then Topley keeps the rest of the over out.
Christopher O’Hearn writes: “Perhaps with all the attention rightly being paid to concussion and head injuries it’s time there was an allowance for a substitution in cricket. Even as an Australian I don’t think it’s fair that England lose a man for the whole match because he’s been hit in the head. Obviously it would have to be used only in very limited circumstances and not for tactical advantage.”

28th over: England 114-8 (Topley 0, Rashid 20)
Morgan’s non-participation means James Taylor will skipper England in the field, as he did for that ‘B’ ODI against Ireland earlier in the summer. That game was rather shorter than expected too, but due to rain, rather than batting incompetence. Rashid plays out a maiden, with only one shot with any sort of attacking intent in there.

27th over: England 114-8 (Topley 0, Rashid 20)
Starc comes round the wicket, and Rashid again takes a single, adopting the ol’ Steve Waugh approach to the bunny. Topley keeps out a yorker through the maverick method of jabbing both bat and his buttocks out, but it works. Just.

26th over: England 113-8 (Topley 0, Rashid 19)
Rashid takes a single from the second ball, leaving Topley to brave the rest of the over from Hastings. He nearly takes a single from a misfield at point, but is waved back by Rashid, then backs away while waving his bat in the vague direction of the ball. He misses, and the ball only just goes over the stumps, as Topley curses himself even while the ball is travelling.

25th over: England 112-8 (Topley 0, Rashid 18)
Blinder of a shot from Rashid, whipping it like Indiana Jones wide of mid-on and to the fence. A single, and now here’s Starc to Topley, who jabs away a low full-toss, then rather solidly keeps out a pseudo-yorker.

He’s being treated for concussion apparently, so that’s both not a surprise and the sensible thing to do.

24th over: England 107-8 (Topley 0, Rashid 13)
Rashid gets a single, then Bunny Topley is on strike. Still not sure whether Morgan will be coming back in, but again, I doubt it very much. Topley leaves one nicely, by which I mean a couple more coats of paint on the bails and he would’ve been gone.
Meanwhile - bloody hell...

Related: Bangladesh bowler Shahadat Hossain suspended after child torture allegation

Hastings is back, and gets joy straight away, as Wood goes for a lofted effort over the covers, but only succeeds in lofting it straight down Ashton Agar’s throat.

23rd over: England 106-7 (Wood 13, Rashid 12)
These two jab a couple of singles into the leg side, then Rashid gets another that he tries to style out as a wristy flick, but given his bat ended completely the wrong way around in his hands, he might not have had a massive amount of control over that shot.

22nd over: England 102-7 (Wood 11, Rashid 10)
Wood cuts rather airily but it goes relatively safely over the top of point and for two, then he does more or less the same thing but on the leg side, just - just - clearing mid-wicket and hopping to the fence. Hundred up for England!

21st over: England 95-7 (Wood 5, Rashid 10)
The replays suggest Stokes was definitely out, by the way. Pitched leg, hitting the top of middle. Starc, who apparently deserves no sympathy if you go by the emails I’ve been getting, is back with the ball, and Rashid greets his return by whipping him just in front of square and to the boundary. A single, then Wood prods with about as much conviction as England have of winning this game, but edges through where about third slip would’ve been and just wide of third man for four.

For those working out how many runs England could thieve from here, remember to factor in that Reece Topley is basically a no.12. #EngvAus

20th over: England 85-7 (Wood 0, Rashid 5)
Well, at least everyone will get home nice and early.


There’s some debate in the Sky commentary box as to whether Stokes will play cautiously or play as he usually does, which he quite possibly hears by stepping down the track and putting a Marsh delivery into the sight screen. Bish and indeed bosh. However, Marsh gets one to straighten a bit and traps Stokes, in an almost identical manner to Willey’s dismissal. You get the feeling he would have gone upstairs, had Willey not already burned England’s review.

19th over: England 77-6 (Stokes 34, Rashid 5)
If you’re English and want to clutch at straws, you can with the news that Adil Rashid has ten first-class centuries. No List A ones, though. His highest ODI score is 69. Although he gets four with a splendidly guided push off the back foot between cover and point, which hops away to the fence.

18th over: England 73-6 (Stokes 34, Rashid 1)
Rashid gets off the mark straight away with a single. Remember that it’s basically 73-7, as I’d be amazed if Morgan came back in.

But he was wrong to do so! That was pitching on leg, and hitting the top of same. The speed at which he reviewed it suggested an edge, but he was miles away from the ball.

David Willey is the new man, and Marsh straight away gets the umpire to raise his finger for lbw, but Willey reviews without hesitation...

And there’s the other side of Moeen’s flowing drive, as he doesn’t quite get to a full one just outside off and nicks through to Wade.

17th over: England 72-4 (Moeen 5, Stokes 34)
Again Stokes gets in a good position to a Cummins short ball, but Smith has moved the mid-wicket fielder a bit wider, so this time they only get two from the pull as the man on the fence cuts it off. Stokes is then struck...well, the ball hits a bit of his anatomy, he falls over and everyone winces then laughs, so you know exactly where it hit him.

“I wonder why you hesitated before posting Wilson’s comment,” writes Tony Whitley. “Fast bowlers do choose to send down balls that may hit peoples heads, and we do like it. I am reading BBC and Guardian OBO’s and one commentator, this very match, chose “that ball” by Johnson to Bairstow as his highlight of the series. I does seem phoney to commiserate.”

16th over: England 70-4 (Moeen 5, Stokes 32)
Moeen gets a thick edge for a single, then Stokes struggles to get the rest of the over away, before taking a few steps down the pitch, pushing straight to mid-off and setting off for what looked like a risky quick single, but one that he made in plenty of time in the end.

15th over: England 68-4 (Moeen 4, Stokes 31)
Stokes gets a four via a shot that is very much the uglier brother of Mo’s, jabbing at one outside off that zips off the edge and fine of third man. A more emphatic effort comes later, as he thumps a Cummins long-hop - if you can have a 90ish mph long-hop - in front of mid-wicket for another four. Stokes tries to ramp another Cummins short ball, misses, then looks incredulous when the umpire doesn’t call it a wide.

14th over: England 60-4 (Moeen 4, Stokes 23)
Oh yah, as Mark Nicholas would say, as Moeen casually swats his first ball through the covers in that deliciously dreamy style of his. Nonetheless, another good over for Australia.

And that was hitting middle and leg.

Marsh traps Bairstow, looked out, but the umpire says no. Steve Smith goes upstairs straight away...

13th over: England 54-3 (Bairstow 8, Stokes 23)
A couple of singles, then Cummins drops one short that Stokes jumps all over like Mike Gatting on a spotted dick and custard, pulling with some gusto out to the fence, just in front of mid-wicket.

12th over: England 48-3 (Bairstow 7, Stokes 18)
Double change as Mitchell Marsh comes on, and first up Stokes comes down the pitch and shovels a single into the covers. A couple more singles from the over, and we’ve had an email that I ummed and ahhed before publishing, but here it is anyway, from Robert Wilson:

“I’m terribly glad that Starc feels comforted and supported after the terrible trauma he has endured. Cricket-type people, players and fans alike, should really give it a rest with the faintly sociopathic euphemism. If you are going to bowl the ball at a batsman’s head on a regular basis, it will sometimes hit the batsman’s head. It’s deeply disfunctional to express shocked dismay. What else is going to happen? At least Thommo was unblushing up-front about his desire to harm (just nobody considered letting him babysit their children).

11th over: England 45-3 (Bairstow 6, Stokes 16)
As Vithushan, who’ll be taking you through the second innings, points out, Starc was playing in the game when Philip Hughes was hit, so it’s hardly surprising he was so shaken after that. Cummins replaces him and bowls a high wide, before Stokes drives through the covers without really timing it properly, and Bailey saves a run just before the boundary.

10th over: England 40-3 (Bairstow 5, Stokes 13)
Bairstow cuts straight to point but Maxwell misfields uncharacteristically and they nab a single. Stokes then drives another fuller one down the ground marvellously for four.

9th over: England 35-3 (Bairstow 4, Stokes 9)
Cummins looked like he was loosening in the last over, but Starc continues, and that’s probably the right call. Keep going, bowl a bumper, get past it. Although, actually, he goes over on his ankle slightly while fielding a return ball from the second ball of his over.

Starc sticking with a full approach now, and while Stokes has to keep out a couple of spicy yorkers, he bowls one with a bit too much width and Stokes drives him through the covers and to the fence. And then one that is straighter but not quite up there, and Stokes drives beautifully straight down the ground for another four.

8th over: England 27-3 (Bairstow 4, Stokes 1)
Hastings continues, as Stokes gets off the mark with a pushed single into the covers. And then Bairstow gets going with a fine glance to the fence, which a diving Cummins can’t save.

Starc receives quite a heartening round of applause as he returns to his fielding position on the boundary. Darren Lehman comes down to have a word.

Morgan was able to walk off unaided, but it was absolutely the right decision for him to go off, obviously. No chances with that sort of thing.

7th over: England 22-3 (Bairstow 0, Stokes 0)
Jonny Bairstow is the new batsman, and he squirts the last ball of the over to point.

And Morgan is heading off. Starc looks quite shaken, down on his haunches. It must be absolutely terrifying to be a fast bowler in these situations.

6.5 overs: England 22-3 (Morgan 1, Stokes 0)
Starc causing some problems here. A consequence of the pace and swing is that Morgan doesn’t seem to be getting in line properly, which could lead to dangled bat-related tears.
Then there’s some concern as Morgan is hit on the head by a short one and he doesn’t look happy at all. The Australians are understandably very worried. Would be a huge surprise if he stays on.

6th over: England 22-3 (Morgan 1, Stokes 0)
Stokes is the new man, and he blocks the final ball of the over. Not good from England, to say the least.

Well, just as I was typing that Taylor could have played himself into a spot on the Test tour in the winter, he nibbles pointlessly at something of a nothing ball from Hastings, and Wade takes a routine catch.

5th over: England 20-2 (Taylor 10, Morgan 1)
As poor as Hales has been in this series, Taylor has been as good. The batsmen exchange singles before the Notts wee man spanks another drive through the covers. This one doesn’t get there quite as quickly as the last one did, but it was still pretty lickety split.

4th over: England 13-2 (Taylor 4, Morgan 0)
Here comes the skipper with a bit of a rescue job on his hands. Although, from England’s perspective, you wouldn’t want any other pair at the crease to do so.

Hales doesn’t look very Hales in the initial exchanges, not playing many shots. He gets four with an inside-edge from a shot that would’ve been described as ‘indeterminate’ and ‘dangling’ had it clattered into stumps rather than boundary. And then he’s gone, wafting a loose drive straight to point where Maxwell pouches at the second attempt. And there ends a 12-ball innings that felt like it lasted a lot longer.

3rd over: England 9-1 (Taylor 4, Hales 0)
Taylor gropes at one outside off that just holds its line and beats him. Starc goes wider, one that is called a wide then another that Taylor absolutely nails through the covers and it’s at the boundary by the time he finishes his follow-through.

Meanwhile - sweet fancy Moses...

The path in yellow is the ball off which Jason Roy was given lbw to Mitchell Starc. He didn't review it #ENGvAUSpic.twitter.com/3fp9Vki3V0

2nd over: England 4-1 (Taylor 0, Hales 0)
The second over, bowled by cattle-rustler John Hastings, has some swing but is much less eventful than the first. A maiden.

Pete’s often right, and here’s bob on again here. No relation, by the way.

Guys, we shouldn't be asking why that wasn't reviewed, we should be asking how the hell it was given out. DRS gives umps a let off

1st over: England 4-1 (Taylor 0, Hales 0)
James Taylor plays out the rest of the over. Two incorrect lbw decisions given by umpire Joel Wilson in three balls, which takes some doing.

Blimey. Plenty of swing for Starc and he traps Roy again, caught on the ankle, on the full, but that was going waaaaaaay down leg. It even hit him outside the line of leg, and it was hooping down. They don’t review, and presumably the only possible reason they didn’t was the review earlier in the over. Poor from Alex Hales not to spot that, really.

There’s a big inside edge on that, but you forgive the umpire because it took thirders quite a while to establish whether it was bat or pad first.

Well, the first ball is clipped very fine for four, then Roy is caught in front, the finger goes up but he’s going upstairs...

We’re on. Mitch Starc will open the bowling, Jason Roy faces first up.

A mild confession: I still get a bit of a tingle when they play Jerusalem before these games. There’s some corner of a foreign field that is forever 2005.

An email: “As an adopted Mancunian, I’m not complaining at this,” very much not complains James Hamilton, “but what was the reasoning behind Manchester getting two ODI games in this series? It’s just seems a little odd, surely plenty of other grounds were available?”

I don’t know, James. Perhaps a sop because they didn’t have a Test this summer and Headingley did? A nod to the north? Durham was technically available, although there is a Championship match starting there tomorrow, so perhaps they couldn’t use it because of that.

So Topley replaces Liam Plunkett, and according to Eoin Morgan it was just because they ‘want to have a look at him’. A couple of changes for Australia, who drop Marcus Stoinis in favour of Ashton Agar’s spin, which they probably should have done at Headingley, while James Pattinson is dropped in favour of the returning Mitchell Starc, presumably on the basis that he was rubbish on Friday. But then again so was big John Hastings...so unlucky and all that.

Hales, Roy, Taylor, Morgan (c), Stokes, Bairstow (wk), Moeen Ali, Willey, Rashid, Wood, Topley

...and will have a bat.

Word from the ground is that Reece Topley is being handed his cap, so will make his ODI debut. Be interesting to see who he replaces.

So. The decider. The big one. Winner takes all. The series on a knife edge. Tension mounts. Stirring moments, as Richie might say. Good lord I miss Richie. We all miss, Richie, don’t we? In a divisive world, where basically nobody can agree about anything, it’s nice that we can have these things that we can all join hands and concur. Richie was our cricketing sensei, and it’s awful that he’s gone.

Anyway, if you’ll excuse that moment of sentimental reverie, to the cricket. It’s pleasing that a one day series that, a little like the Tests, hasn’t actually produced too many close encounters, will turn out to be quite tight in the end. ‎Australia have won a couple quite convincingly, England have won a couple quite convincingly. And now we have a final encounter to tell us who’s the best.

Nick will be here shortly. Meanwhile, read Vic Marks on the deciding ODI of the series:

Back in May the chances of England going through the summer without being beaten in any of their series were about the same as the leader of the opposition sporting a beard. Yet as the two teams return to Manchester on Sunday for the final international match of the season an England victory against Australia will mean that no series has been lost against two of the better sides on the international circuit.

Paul Farbrace, forever happy to chat, bubbling with enthusiasm and a vital midwife in England’s resurgence, admitted as much after the three-wicket victory at Headingley on Friday. “If at the start of the summer somebody said we would draw the New Zealand Tests, beat them in the one-dayers, win the Ashes and go into the last one-day game at Old Trafford locked at 2-2 we would have snapped their hands off and probably walked away saying: ‘Whatever they are drinking, I’ll have a pint of that.’”

Continue reading...
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Ashes 2015: England v Australia: fifth Test, day four – as it happened

August 23, 2015, 8:57 am
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  • Australia win by an innings and 46 runs
  • Siddle 4-35 in second innings in consolation win
  • England regain the Ashes 3-2
  • Joe Root wins player of the series

The report from the last day of the 2015 Ashes can be found here.

More reaction to follow on the site but from me, it’s good bye.

Trevor Bayliss chatting to Ian Ward:

“In the UAE, at some stage, we’ll play two spinners. so how we fit that other spinner in we’ve yet to decide. There’s a selection meeting in a couple of weeks for that. We’ve got to make sure we do our homework and make a decision.

These two magnificent bastards >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> pic.twitter.com/wpIvpzRvJL

CHAMPIONES CHAMPIONES ETC

The moment England lifted the urn #ashes#getintherehttps://t.co/DwG68eEXcT

Cook poses for a video as he holds the Investec trophy. Bit odd.

“To have beaten Australia three times is a huge credit to the guys here. It’s been a great series to be a part of. The support of the general public has been absolutely fantastic.

Good ovation for Michael Clarke as he comes to the stage to collect his medal.

“Probably because I haven’t scored many runs - I’m used to them booing me,” says Clarke on his reception across the country.

Little pause before Michael Clarke says 'have success' in his post career speech - learning until the last minute

Some quick sort-of news before the captains say their piece...

England batsman @Ian_Bell tells @bbctms he is going to "take stock" before deciding about his international future pic.twitter.com/rq8yc6TfNy

England Man Of The Series AND winner of the Compton-Miller medal: Joe Root (460 @ 57.50 – two hundreds, two fifties)

Well, it had to be, didn’t it? Lehmann picked him for England’s best, selectors James Whittaker and Rod Marsh picked him as the best of both sides.

Australia Man Of The Series: Chris Rogers (480 runs @ 60.8)

“I’ve never been up here [the podium] so it’s nice.”

Player of the Match: Steven Smith (143 in the first innings)

He wins two and a half grand, a magnum of champagne and the Australian captaincy.

pic.twitter.com/2Vcah8QBTV

Presentations about to get underway – the players had to wait around on the outfield until the Sky montage, shown on the big screen at the ground, finished. Odd.

Will bring you the chat from the skippers and news of how many beers Ben Stokes has seen off.

A stat to support the feeling that this was the T20 Ashes: a wicket fell every 49 balls, the lowest strike rate in an Ashes since 1902.

“I might wear it around my house” - Michael Clarke on his Baggy Green.

A great? In moments, yes. One big moment, 2012, saw him break the record for number of runs scored in a calendar year by an Australian. 1595 runs, five hundreds, three doubles, one triple.

Michael Clarke says goodbye to cricket. pic.twitter.com/s0WT0j0vTf

Some early reactions from Twitter...

Reminder that Australia scored more runs and took more wickets than England in this series. #MoralVictory#CheatingPoms

I mean this in the nicest way, but thank goodness it's two years before we do this again #ashes2015

Steven Finn stranded 48 runs off a new Test best score. #Ashes

Clarke is given a guard of honour by his team at The Oval: http://t.co/J9nFmQiU4G#MyAshesSummerpic.twitter.com/4hqm4wd8TY

England win the 2015 Ashes series 3-2!

101st over: England 284-9 (Ali 34, Finn 8)

Couple to Ali as Marsh is outside off-stump and he guides him behind point. Bit of an overcorrection and it’s fine down the leg-side for four more to Ali. Bit of width and a decent scythe in front of point for another boundary.

100th over: England 273-9 (Ali 23, Finn 8)

A dot ball then Finn works a ball off his hip, behind square on the leg-side for one. A thick low edge gets Finn a four through gully, after the strike is returned to him by Ai. A good leave and then a good block and England are back to being favourites.

99th over: England 267-9 (Ali 22, Finn 3)

Mitchell Marsh misses a drive outside off and then mis-times a pull that lands safe for one. Rogers takes the helmet for short-leg to Finn. A duck, a fish and then a nice time off middle-and-off for a single to midwicket.

98th over: England 265-9 (Ali 21, Finn 2)

Starc and Johnson spent that last over warming up, Siddle instead and a wicket second ball. Broad drives onto his own stumps and the Watford Wall comes out. Chris Rogers, his Middlesex teammate for so many years, has a few words from short-midwicket. Finn responds with a comprehensive thick edge through gully for 2!!!

Siddle gets Broad forward and driving onto his stumps off a thick inside edge.

97th over: England 263-8 (Ali 21, Broad 11)

Mitchell Marsh to bowl and Stuart Broad leaves outside off-stump. Smart single into the leg-side takes him to 11 as Moeen takes guard again. Marsh around the wicket to him and that’s another leave. Strange passage of play before the rains came when Ali, wary of the clouds, started sweeping across the line and being a bit silly. Much better, now, as he defends Marsh with a straight bat into the leg-side. Then he goes over the top of cover for four.

A quick run through what we’re all waiting about for:

Australia need two wickets, England need 74 runs to make them bat again. Moeen Ali’s still there on 17, having spent his innings playing some peculiar shots. Stuart Broad, 10*, has been giving it a bit of tonk.

Nice of Nathan Lyon to get Alastair Cook a present... #Ashespic.twitter.com/m7ZXzVVaC0

NEWS FROM THE KIA OVAL - PLAY DUE TO RESTART AT 3PM

That is of course provided there is no further rain. Sterling work to get the covers off and the outfield mopped.

For those enquiring about UAE tickets earlier, some info courtesy of Faisal Ali, who has e-mailed in:

“You can tell your reader, he can just rock up and pay at the gate for the Sharjah test. For some odd reason, the entire test has been scheduled for the working week in the UAE (Sun-Thurs) so will barely be a soul at the test. Daft scheduling as weekend Tests in Sharjah do attract around 10,000 on a Friday and 5,000 on a Saturday.
“Tickets will cost around £10-15 per day. Could be even better - is always free entry for Tests in Abu Dhabi and usually free in Dubai.”

“Oh”

Nick can’t quite believe that Azpilicueta has scored. No doubt this will be reflected in his live-blog update. That’s the thing about Nick Miller, he gives little away. Apart from when he live-blogs, where he puts it all on the line. He’s seen four goals so far and he’s live-blogged every single one of them, has the lad.

Paul Ward has e-mailed in with a request, if any of you lovely OBOers could help...

“Many years ago, I read two cricket books whose titles and author now escape me. I seem to recall that the author was Indian (books were in English” and that titles were something like ‘Cricket, the lovely game.’
“If anyone can identify books and author, I’ll happily run over a nominated granny.”

Away from Nick (briefly), some movement in south London...

I actually DO have something to report: covers coming off! #london#ashespic.twitter.com/a9SEn51dMx

Hahahahaha I know, tell me about it, Nick!

Sorry about that, was just sharing a joke with Nick Miller, who’s currently live-blogging West Brom v Chelsea on this site. I said a joke first, he responded with a riff on my joke which was really funny. Technically, I’ve set him up for that and, given there was no break in dialogue, it probably still counts as *my* joke. Nick’s not laughing though. He’s still live-blogging.

Afternoon all. Vish here – I’ll be your rain supervisor for the next couple of hours.

It is still raining at the Kia Oval.

I’m off to get some lunch. Vish will be on rain duty for a while. Bye!

Something for the rain delay: outtakes from Canterbury as @melindafarrell attempts my full name for the first time https://t.co/UKDgbBx9yD

Weather update See the last weather update. It’s raining, pretty heavily. The Sky chaps are confident we will get some play, maybe after tea. Whenever there is news about a potential restart, you’ll read it here 12th.

Tickets. Please.

“Dear Rob,” writers Hugh Saunders. “I too would rescue your granny, but not for charitable causes. Rather, it’s because I am going to be in the UAE in November for the last test and I quite fancy going to watch. However, the ECB website is silent about the series as a whole - especially about how to get tickets. It’s almost as if they have designs on your granny too. Do any of your readers know how one goes about getting tickets for Sharjah?”

“Why is all the talk of Moeen either as a number 8 or a makeshift opener for subcontinent conditions?” says Alfred Moore. “He seems a perfect middle-order batsman, capable of taking the game to the spinner, playing all the shots, grinding out a score if necessary, as at Edgbaston in this series or his rearguard hundred against Sri Lanka. I wouldn’t want him facing the new ball against South Africa, but at four or five he’d be ideal. He (like Stokes) is a potentially excellent batting all rounder, and he’s going to be screwed if he’s treated as a not quite good enough spinner or a not good enough opener.”

Yeah, at the moment he is a utility player and that isn’t entirely fair. They need to make a decision about his role soon, and matters will come to a head if his bowling is picked off in the UAE. I’m not sure he’s quite good enough to bat in the top six long term – I suspect he’ll average nearer 35 than 45 – but I suppose there is only one way to find out. England’s problem is that Stokes, Buttler and Moeen are all not quite Test No6s, yet, but between them they give England enough of a cushion to justify playing five bowlers. Take away that cushion and have, say, Broad at No8 and you have a bit of an issue with the batting. In fact there’s an issue with the batting even now.

Granny Smyth update

“I would rescue your granny from the 4x4 and expect nothing in return, except for a hefty cut from the personal injury insurance claim to be donated to a cricket-worthy cause. Actually, there’s an opportunity there for cricket charities: we could organise some specific granny-bundling incidents to increase funds. It’ll be pretty crowded around the Oval in a few hours and in the wet any number of accidents could happen.”

It’s still raining.

An early lunch has been taken. Okay, it was taken 13 minutes ago. Start the breaking news ticker! The afternoon session is thus scheduled to begin at 1.10pm, though that isn’t going to happen.

Here’s Ian Copestake.“I would bundle your granny under a 4x4 for UAE tours to be struck off the calendar and this series be extended to best of 21.”

Over in Colombo, Kumar Sangakkara has played his final Test innings. Retires with 12,400 runs at 57.40. Crazy numbers.

“Time now for a Great Rain Commentary,” says John Starbuck. “Will this one be mainly punctuated by OBO readers’ emphatic obsessions, or can we come up with a totally unrelated riff? TMS has got one going on bowlers’ workloads and discovering that they were a lot more intensive Back in the Day, but it is Geoffrey driving it so no surprises there. We crave novelty.”

Ach, I would love to, but I have to write the England player ratings for the series, and those Adam Lyth-related expletives won’t write themselves. But I’ll update this sporadically, so send your emails in, and don’t forget to press F5!!!!

I guess that will be it until lunch at least, and maybe until late afternoon. The forecast gets a bit better later in the day.

“The crowd would do well to remember that they also asked for a Conservative government,” writes Alastair Cam Ian Copestake. “Be careful what you pray for.”

95th over: England 258-8 (Moeen Ali 17, Broad 10; trail by 74) This is a masterclass in batting for a draw by Moeen, who misses an almighty slog-sweep at Lyon. EVEN SHANE WARNE IS ADVOCATING THE DEFENSIVE OPTION FOR THE FIRST TIME IN HIS LIFE FOR HEAVEN’S SAKE! The crowd are chanting “off, off, off” – and, for once, the public gets what the public wants, because they players are going off. With the permission of the umpires, I should stress; they haven’t just decided to do one.

94th over: England 258-8 (Moeen Ali 17, Broad 10) Mitchell Johnson is back, perhaps for one last bit of thuggery in Ashes cricket. Moeen Ali knows what’s coming. He shapes to hook, tries to pull out when it gets really big, and top edges the ball over Nevill for four. Johnson looks angrier than at any time in the series, even more so when he is wided for a very short delivery to Moeen. Moeen continues to bat diligently for a draw with a wild swing that meets with only fresh air. It’s seriously gloomy now, and the groundstaff are ready for business.

@100ashesquotes#theashes why are @englandcricket considering Moeen as an opener when he doesn't play the short ball well?

94th over: England 252-8 (Moeen Ali 12, Broad 10) No daft slog-sweeps against Lyon yet, and his second over passes without incident.

“Five series wins in a decade!” says Phil Withall. “People need to realise just how remarkable that achievement is. I still struggle to comprehend the magnitude of it. People just need to look at that stat and remember where English cricket was and where it’s core is now. Be happy!”

93rd over: England 252-8 (Moeen Ali 12, Broad 10) Broad flicks Starc in the air and just wide of mid-on. Imagine if the score was 2-1 now rather than 3-1; there wouldn’t be a squeakless derriere in the house. There would be an homage to the fat physio, with England trying to waste time until the rain comes. Instead, nobody really seems to care.

Predict Eng will be parading Ashes in pissing rain. Suitable end to a damp squib of a match for them.

@AndyinBrum@100ashesquotes what happened to the Johnny Come Latelies?

92nd over: England 248-8 (Moeen Ali 11, Broad 7) This is a good move from Clarke: he has introduced Nathan Lyon, who will surely tempt Moeen and probably Broad into slog-sweeping against the spin. His last ball, to Moeen, dips onto middle and turns viciously past the outside edge. Good luck playing that. Right, that’s drinks.

@100ashesquotes to carry on the 2005 ashes riffs. Is it cowardly to pray for rain?

I guess Jos Buttler felt that it was cowardly to play for rain. @100ashesquotes

91st over: England 246-8 (Moeen Ali 11, Broad 6) Mitchell Starc replaces Mitchell Marsh and beats Moeen with a gorgeous outswinger. As Mike Atherton observes on Sky, Moeen plays and misses a helluva lot for such a good player, and then when you think you’ve got him in trouble he unfurls the most emphatic, elegant cover drive – or a deliberate squirt to the third-man boundary, as he has just played off an exasperated Starc. Who is then even more exasperated when the next ball goes past the outside edge. England trail by 86. It’s extremely gloomy at the Oval now, and a few umbrellas are up. A storm is coming, Frank says.

@100ashesquotes For what it's worth, it's raining hard in Sevenoaks. Watching for rain approaching the Oval makes me feel 10 years younger!

90th over: England 242-8 (Moeen Ali 7, Broad 6) Nevill iron-gloves an awkward, dipping delivery from Siddle for four byes, and then for two more as he dives to try to reach a delivery that swung a mile after passing the bat.

“Am finding myself irritated by the emerging consensus (btl on Guardian blogs at least!) that England have been lucky here and somehow don’t deserve to win this series,” says Philip Harrison. “You don’t fluke wins in five-game series. And people forget how little chance most observers gave England at the start. I hope people don’t start trying to rewrite history now.” Yep, completely agree with that. Maybe we have become a bit spoiled by five Ashes wins in a decade and are now looking for perfection rather than just winning the thing. Between 1989 and 2005 most of us would have bundled our granny under a 4x4 for an Ashes win, however it was achieved.

89th over: England 235-8 (Moeen Ali 6, Broad 6) Moeen eases a lovely drive through the covers for four off Mitchell Marsh. He’s England’s third-highest scorer in this series, behind Root and Cook. Indeed only four lower-order batsmen (batting from 8 to 11) have scored more runs in a Test series. The man just before Moeen on the list is quite good. Wasim Akram scored 257 runs in the 1996-97 series against Zimbabwe. In one innings.

88th over: England 230-8 (Moeen Ali 1, Broad 6) Siddle is bowling some absurd jaffas with this new ball, such as the surprise lifter that bursts past Broad’s outside edge. Broad responds with an excellent cover drive for four, only the third boundary off Siddle in 21 overs.

87th over: England 226-8 (Moeen Ali 1, Broad 2) Both batsmen get off the mark with quick singles. England trail by 106.

England's next opening batsman strides in at number nine.

WICKET! England 223-8 (Buttler c Starc b Marsh 42) This isn’t going to take long. Buttler plays a loose, uppish drive that is taken nicely by Starc, swooping forward at mid-off. He knows it’s a poor stroke, and looks pretty hacked off with himself as he walks off. It’s hard to be too annoyed. Buttler ends a poor personal series, with the bat at least, with 122 runs at 15.25.

86th over: England 223-7 (Buttler 42, Moeen Ali 0) There have been some very good No9s throughout Test history: Clem Hill, Asif Iqbal, Ray Lindwall, Shaun Pollock, Daniel Vettori – and Moeen Ali, who is batting in this position for the second time in the series. He misjudges an attempted leave off Siddle, deflecting the ball fractionally short of second slip and then survives consecutive shouts for caught behind. The first missed the outside edge; the second jagged back and hit Moeen’s thigh on its way through to Nevill. A superb maiden from Siddle. In other, mildly terrifying news, Bumble is talking about playing Spin The Bottle at primary school. “Whoever it pointed at, y’ad to give ‘em a kiss.”

85th over: England 223-7 (Buttler 42, Moeen Ali 0) Clarke rotates his Mitchells, with Marsh replacing Johnson after a two-over spell that was straight outta 2009. It might be Johnson’s last spell in an Ashes Test. There are plenty of folk playing their last Ashes Test, and a few playing their last Test.

84th over: England 221-7 (Buttler 40, Moeen Ali 0) Siddle’s figures are now 19-11-20-2. I’m not sure what that second noise was with the Wood dismissal, but it doesn’t really matter because justice was eventually done and the world is ultimately a better place for that.

Wood, driving on the up in the contemporary style, edges Siddle over the slips for four. Then there’s a huge LBW shout, turned down by Kumar Dharmasena but reviewed by Michael Clarke. There seemed to be two noises, and David Lloyd on Sky thought there was an inside edge. So did I, but the first replay suggests otherwise. This looks plumb. Yes, he’s out. It snaked back and hit him in front of middle, an excellent delivery from Siddle.

83rd over: England 217-6 (Buttler 40, Wood 2) Johnson bowls to the right, delivering a big leg-side wide to Wood that would have gone to the boundary but for Peter Nevill’s spectacular diving stop. The floodlights are on already, such is the enveloping gloom in south London. Buttler leans into an inswinger from Johnson and drives it whence it came for four. Johnson is not happy, and a radge-induced short ball hits Buttler on the back before looping over Nevill for four byes.

“Can I suggest a quote for these Ashes that is not actually from these Ashes?” says Robin Hazlehurst. “This series has been defined by its hell for leather, damn the torpedoes, play like there’s no tomorrow (which there often hasn’t been) approach to batting that typifies the New Brand of Cricket (TM). But that characteristic only shows up in stark relief against the stodge that preceded it, so the best quote for these Ashes is ‘we have to look at the data’, as that is precisely what this series has emphatically not done. If you see what I mean.” Always.

82nd over: England 207-6 (Buttler 36, Wood 1) It’s Siddle rather than Starc at the other end, a shiny red cherry as reward for his good work yesterday. Buttler, whose unbeaten 34 is his highest score of a difficult series, is waiting for a bad ball. He can keep waiting. Wood invents a potential leg-bye in his head and gets more than halfway down before Buttler sends him back. Wood sprawls into his crease but would have been out had the throw from Rogers hit the stumps. Wood really is daft as a brush, bless him. Buttler then gets a leading edge through the covers, all along the ground, for two.

“I reckon that any quote from Michael Clarke raging at the Aussie selectors would do,” says John Starbuck. “It’s clear that the pattern of the series was heavily influenced by sectorial foul-ups and calls into question the Aussie method. For England, there were some mistakes (choice of opener, in hindsight) but otherwise they happened to get lucky in that injuries dictated many of the choices, all of whom came good at some point.” That’s a good point. “I’m not a selector” - Michael Clarke, passim.

81st over: England 205-6 (Buttler 34, Wood 1) Mitchell Johnson takes the new ball, with destruction in mind. Wood pushes his first ball in the air but past short leg for a single. There is inswing for Johnson, which might make Clarke give the new ball to Starc rather than Siddle at the other end.

“What do you make of the series Rob?” says Paul Ewart. “I think we may have witnessed the first postmodern ashes: all crazed action with plot and detail as added extras. Great result for England but I do wonder at some of the coverage. Such a young team will be inconsistent, let’s celebrate the good times and accept the bad ones. The likes of Root, Stokes and Buttler could and should be fixtures for years to come. As for Australia, what to say? It’s perhaps the least Australian touring side I’ve ever seen. But the bowlers are good and England have done well to score when they can.”

80th over: England 203-6 (Buttler 33, Wood 0) Michael Clarke leads Australia out, perhaps for the last time, and gets a lovely ovation. I can’t even begin to imagine the whirligig of emotions he is experiencing right now. Peter Siddle will bowl the first over. He gave a supreme demonstration of Glenn McGrath-style fast-medium torture yesterday, with figures of 16-10-14-1. Those figures are now 17-11-14-1, after six dot balls to Jos Buttler. England trail by 129 and Gary Naylor has something in his eye.

A frankly spine-tingling standing ovation for Michael Clarke and his team from all parts of the ground. Cricket fans eh? @100ashesquotes

“Evening Rob,” says Phil Withall. “Having picked up a copy of Gentlemen and Sledgers this afternoon (Only $15 in a well known Australian chain store!) I started to ponder on the quotes from this series that will grace future editions. However, any such endeavour has been nullified by my inability to shake off images from Shane’s mural.”

I’ve been thinking about this in case we do a paperback. What I found with the book is that often the quote that comes to define an Ashes series, like Allan Border’s tea party, isn’t a big thing at the time. So maybe we need the dust to settle first. But I suspect it will be remembered as the groundsman’s Ashes, and in that sense David Warner’s quote at Trent Bridge – “every ball felt like my first ball” – was a good one.

Sky are paying tribute to Michael Clarke, whose wonderful career will probably end today. It’s kind of fitting that 10 of the 16 England wickets in this match have fallen in the first over a new spell, for few captains have read games with the same level of insightful instinct. At his best, and particularly when he had disciplined bowlers like Ryan Harris and Peter Siddle to accompany Mitchell Johnson, Pup controlled games like a master puppeteer.

His captaincy has been so good that it’s easy to forget what a gorgeous batsman he was for so long. There are so many memories: swapping his helmet for the Baggy Green just before he reached a sublime debut century against Bangalore in 2004, his record-breaking 2012 – in which he made three Test double hundreds and an unbeaten 329 –and his unbelievable courage in Cape Town in 2014. His final average – 49.10 – is a fair reflection of a glorious talent who ultimately fell just short of greatness.

“What the hell is a Graduation Ball?” says David Singer. Duh, it’s Nathan Lyon’s new delivery.

The ever impressive Paul Farbrace is chatting to Ian Ward on Sky. He admits there has been an “end-of-term” feel to the match, and that England have lacked “edge”. He said their preparation was fine and their intentions were good, but that the emotion of Trent Bridge took more out of them than they realised. It’s hard to find too much fault with that.

Hello. The Graduation Ball (or Prom Night, if you prefer) is one of the most memorable nights of a person’s life, even if the actual details are usually lost in a fug of booze, mawkishness and injudicious comments to people you’ll mercifully never see again. It’s also one of the most keenly anticipated, which makes New Year’s Eve seem like an ordinary week night by comparison.

Today, Jos Buttler, Mark Wood and Moeen Ali are in the unusual position of wanting to delay their own graduation party. If they can bat until lunch – when the forecast is for everything from light showers to the apocalypse – this game may drag on until it is declared a draw tomorrow afternoon. But if England’s last four wickets go down in a hurry, they will be lifting the urn and swigging bottles of the ECB’s official liver compromiser before midday.

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Pakistan v England: first Test, day one – as it happened

October 13, 2015, 6:39 am
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England’s Ian Bell was guilty of two glaring drops in the slips as Pakistan had the better of day one in the first Test
• Day one match report: England left to count cost of Ian Bell’s double drop
• The Spin: no more dole or gravedigging in best era for county players

Have a read of Mike Selvey’s report from day one in Abu Dhabi:

Related: England left to count the cost of Ian Bell’s double drop in first Test

That’s all from me for today. A long old day in the heat, and one Pakistan will be happier with. Primarily because of those two dropped catches, both by Bell off Anderson, and one no-balled non-wicket. On this wicket, against this team, having lost the toss, that’s very hard to recover from. Thankfully the TV umpire gave England the benefit of considerable doubt to give Misbah out, so it hasn’t been all bad. Tomorrow’s a new day, England still have a new ball. All to play for. Bye!

87th over: Pakistan 286-4 (Malik 124, Shafiq 11)

Broad bowls, Pakistan score a couple of singles, and that’s yer lot. England leave the field, spirits freshly crushed by another Bell clanger, Pakistan newly buoyed by the day’s third inexcusable let-off. How different it might have been...

86th over: Pakistan 284-4 (Malik 123, Shafiq 10)

Anderson gets a go with the new cherry, and Shafiq reaches double figures by pushing it wide of cover for four, all timing, no power. And then, another drop! And it’s Bell again! The final delivery of the over is edged to second slip, and this one is worse than this morning’s! Last time he at least had to move his hands. This time it went straight to them - and straight back out again!

85th over: Pakistan 279-4 (Malik 122, Shafiq 6)

Broad takes it, and Malik drives down past mid off for not-quite-a-four. They run three. “I was working at Gloucester Guildhall around 20 years back at a time when they had an impressive line-up of bands coming through,” writes Kerry Davies, on the subject of poorly-attended events. “One gig was selling badly so they handed out freebies to staff and a junior went onto the streets to give away 40 plus tickets. Apart from staff and family only one person turned up and actually paid, none of the freebies did. The punchline being that the sole punter was already tipsy and proceeded to get roaring drunk and before the band took the stage for their set he had been thrown out by the three “bouncers” for repeatedly trying to climb the foldaway seating unit. There have been more poignant disasters like the Alabama 3 ‘tour from hell’ but that is the one gig that I ever heard of with zero paying punters.”

84th over: Pakistan 276-4 (Malik 119, Shafiq 6)

Three more runs on Malik’s mounting total from Rashid’s 17th over of the day, at the end of which England call for the new ball.

83rd over: Pakistan 273-4 (Malik 116, Shafiq 6)

The last three overs have featured three runs and two leg byes, and this one from Wood is a maiden. It’s almost as if the players are starting to think of their hotel rooms, of having a shower and a lie-down.

82nd over: Pakistan 273-4 (Malik 116, Shafiq 6)

The shadows are lengthening and the lights are on - a move those present insist is entirely unnecessary - as we move into the final 20-odd minutes of the day. This session has been England’s best by a margin, but they need a late wicket if they’re to return to their hotel in truly buoyant spirits. And here’s something that instead might depress them further, as their captain fields the ball at extra cover and immediately leaves the field nursing his hand.

Cook leaves the field looking at his right hand after stopping a fierce crack at extra cover as Shafiq got hold of a Rashid long hop

81st over: Pakistan 272-4 (Malik 116, Shafiq 5)

Wood continues, this time from around the wicket, and he bowls one slingy delivery across the batsman that just doesn’t bounce at all as it skids through to Buttler. Malik didn’t have to play it and he didn’t try to, which is probably just as well.

80th over: Pakistan 268-4 (Malik 114, Shafiq 5)

Rashid’s bowling quite nicely at the moment, big on variety, giving the ball plenty of air. The new ball is now available, but England don’t want it quite yet. On the subject of Richie Benaud’s links with France, here’s Richie Benaud talking about his links with France. Filmed not in Benaud, but while standing in a field of elephants, like you do.

79th over: Pakistan 265-4 (Malik 112, Shafiq 4)

Wood comes on from the quiet end, replacing Anderson. His first ball is worked away by Malik for one, and the next five are all dots.

78th over: Pakistan 264-4 (Malik 111, Shafiq 4)

Ouch! Really, totally ouch. Rashid produces another googly, and Shafiq attempts to pull it away. But instead he thumps it hard, straight into Jonny Bairstow at short leg, who’s hit just below the left shoulder. Incredibly the fielder barely winces. He stands up tall and gives the batsman a look that says, “Yeah, and?” Respect, sir.

77th over: Pakistan 260-4 (Malik 108, Shafiq 4)

Anderson bowls a weak, short and wide ball at Shoaib Malik, who gives it the treatment it deserves. New ball due in three overs, so perhaps Anderson will have a short break now, assuming they intend to take it.

76th over: Pakistan 256-4 (Malik 104, Shafiq 4)

A quick single from Malik allows Shafiq to get off the mark in style, pummelling the ball through the covers, where Broad reaches it just before the rope, which both ball and man proceed to scream through. Robert Wilson meanwhile reveals that the cricketer he accosted on the streets of Paris was Richie Benaud, who announced that he was on his way to Benaud, which isn’t in Paris but somewhere near Clermont-Ferrand: “Real place. He went. There’s film. I’m looking.”

75th over: Pakistan 251-4 (Malik 103, Shafiq 0)

You can’t possibly say that the TV Umpire, S Ravi, took that decision lightly. Replays were watched, re-watched, freeze-framed, re-re-watched, paused, rewound, zoomed in and watched yet again. My feeling is that it was probably the correct decision, but that it probably wasn’t the right one, because what we saw wasn’t conclusive and inarguable evidence that the on-field umpire had been wrong. Oh well. Wicket maiden.

There’s no snicko and no hotspot, and though the replays show the ball passing extraordinarily close to the bat, and there seems to be a sound as it does so, I didn’t really see how the on-field decision could be overturned based on that alone. But it is! To the evident astonishment of Sky’s commentators, and the Pakistan batsmen, it’s given!

The umpire doesn’t think so, but England do. Let’s see!

74th over: Pakistan 251-3 (Malik 103, Misbah 3)

Decent over from Rashid, featuring as it does a nice googly that Misbah doesn’t spot, but does score from. Again the most dangerous delivery of the over yields the only run.

73rd over: Pakistan 250-3 (Malik 103, Misbah 2)

Anderson and Broad keep alternating. This time it’s Anderson’s turn, and the over ends with English heads in hands as the ball thumps Misbah in the pads. He was saved, it seems, by a tiny inside edge, which was all that stood between him and an easy lbw decision. Instead, he gets a single.

72nd over: Pakistan 249-3 (Malik 103, Misbah 1)

England swap spinners, Rashid returning. Two singles result.

71st over: Pakistan 247-3 (Malik 102, Misbah 0)

Buoyed by their wicket, England boost that leg-side close-ish cordon to four when Misbah ul-Haq turns up, but none is immediately brought into play.

Just when England’s immediate future was starting to look extremely bleak and sweat-stained, Younis Khan diverts Broad’s delivery to Cook, that silly mid on I mentioned, and England have a third wicket!

70th over: Pakistan 247-2 (Younis 38, Malik 102)

Moeen bowls, and just one run is scored. “A sparsely attended Radiohead gig is pretty good. But if you want a reliable feeling of unexpected underwhelmdom, Paris is the place,” notes Robert Wilson. “Regular Eddie Izzard gigs when you can hear the tumbleweeds blowing across the plain and he ends up addressing you by name. Donald Trump being helped across zebra crossings by youthful pedestrians of more goodwill than taste. But strangely, best of all is watching Peter Carey biting off his own teeth in thwarted rage while French literati hand him their half-eaten canapés, all the time talking excitedly about Salman Rushdie. It’s also the only place where you can guarantee that famous cricketers will be pleased if you come up to them in excited awe (same goes or went for Robin Cook).” Which begs the question, which famous cricketers have you accosted in Paris, Robert?

69th over: Pakistan 246-2 (Younis 37, Malik 102)

Broad’s turn. Malik, two runs from his ton, on strike. And he’s got it! He edges along the ground, to the left of gully, and away to the boundary. Job done, he makes little attempt at further scoring. England have been messing about with their fielding positions of late - the occasional leg slip when Moeen’s been bowling, and a silly mid on, part of a three-man close-ish cordon on the on side, for Broad - but no dice. “Is this the most dispiriting fixture in world sport let alone world cricket?” wonders Ian Copestake. “No atmosphere, unrelenting heat, neither side connected in any way to the country it is played in, a guilt factor built in to it being staged in said country ... I have hardly recovered from following the last one.”

68th over: Pakistan 242-2 (Younis 37, Malik 98)

Another three for Younis, struck to cover but not quite all the way. Malik then takes a confident stride towards his ton with an untroubled thud through extra cover for four. That brings him onto 97, and he decides not to hang around any longer, flinging his bat at the next delivery and sending it spiralling in the air towards, but frustratingly not close enough to, the fielder at extra cover. He gets a single.

67th over: Pakistan 234-2 (Younis 34, Malik 93)

Anderson and Broad keep alternating from what I can only describe as the empty end and Malik continues taking pigeon-steps towards his century, scoring a couple through midwicket but getting nothing off the other five balls.

66th over: Pakistan 232-2 (Younis 34, Malik 91)

Younis, who’s really showing off now, reverse sweeps Moeen’s first delivery for four. Buttler sees it coming and tries to get in position to effect a ludicrously amazing catch, but it goes well over his right shoulder. That’s the extent of the scoring from the over, though.

65th over: Pakistan 228-2 (Younis 30, Malik 91)

Broad’s back again, and Younis continues to roll out the shots, a lovely cover drive yielding four runs.

64th over: Pakistan 223-2 (Younis 25, Malik 91)

Well Moeen hasn’t gone anywhere, and neither has the flow of runs from his end. Younis reverse-paddles for a couple, and then Moeen gets one to kick off the surface and it flies past batsman and wicketkeeper, rolling away for four byes. A relatively demure eight runs from the over. Can England foil Malik, as they did Mohammed Hafeez, in the 90s? We’ll find out soon enough ...

63rd over: Pakistan 215-2 (Younis 22, Malik 90)

Anderson comes straight back, replacing Broad after a single over, and he puts the brakes on the scoring. A maiden, but it all looks likke tough toil for England, this.

62nd over: Pakistan 215-2 (Younis 22, Malik 90)

This may be Moeen’s last over for a while. Younis Khan overtakes Javed Miandad to become Pakistan’s all-time leading Test run scorer by fair pummelling the ball over cow corner for six! That, four singles and a two makes this the most expensive over of the day so far, just beating Moeen’s last.

61st over: Pakistan 203-2 (Younis 14, Malik 86)

Broad’s back too, and he gets a bit of movement from the seam that carries the ball just past the edge of Younis’s bat as he looks to work it into the on side. Maiden.

60th over: Pakistan 203-2 (Younis 14, Malik 86)

Moeen returns and generously starts with a full toss at Younis, though the batsman misses it completely and Buttler, understandably surprised, does too, though it hits his arm and doesn’t go very far. Still, it doesn’t take Younis long to get into the swing of the spin, and he flicks the next away for two and then takes a big stride before thudding the one after that through the covers. A single later, Malik boshes the ball over midwicket for another four. Eleven runs makes this the most expensive over of the day so far, Younis Khan doubling his score and Pakistan passing 200 in the process.

59th over: Pakistan 192-2 (Younis 7, Malik 82)

Younis drives Stokes’ final ball just under the diving Anderson at mid on, but the ball stops a few yards from the rope. Three more. If Younis hit the ball just a tiny percentage harder, he’d have had a couple of boundaries in the last two overs.

58th over: Pakistan 189-2 (Younis 4, Malik 82)

Wood attempts a yorker, and Younis awkwardly gets his bat down and pushes the ball through the on side, the ball rumbling away towards but not quite all the way to the rope for three. As for this question, I’m going with the majority.

So is it Younis or Younus Khan? Team sheet says the former, so does Cricinfo. TV says the latter.

57th over: Pakistan 186-2 (Younis 1, Malik 82)

Stokes bowls, and Younis fair leaps to his right before the ball thwacks into his pads. He takes a leg bye while the bowler’s appeal fades without reward. Perhaps he was outside the line when the ball struck, though HawkEye suggests that it was very much and almost precisely a straight-down-the-middle 50/50 call and the umpire could just as easily have raised his finger there. That brings Malik on strike, and he promptly drives between point and cover for four, and then thick-edges for four more. An expensive over, that had the umpire been minded to give the fielding side a bit of a break would have been very different indeed.

.@englandcricket with an excitable appeal for LBW but decide against the review. More here: http://t.co/o0YGzH29bFpic.twitter.com/rqkDW8tYjY

56th over: Pakistan 177-2 (Younis 1, Malik 74)

Mark Wood, who has looked sporadically potentially dangerous so far without wicket-taking reward, picks up where he left off before tea. There’s still no reward, but some promise, with the final ball moving into Malik, but the btsman leaves it to pass wide of off stump.

55th over: Pakistan 173-2 (Younis 0, Malik 72)

The over is completed without great drama. Perhaps as many as 35 overs remain in the day, so settle in for the long haul. “I think the small-crowd derision is very much laughter in the dark,” writes Robert Wilson. “An uncomfortable expression of real dismay. No one wants to hazard a depressing guess as to when there’ll be international cricket in Pakistan again and recently we’ve had the Australians hesitating about even going to Bangladesh. Some of it is our modern bent for euphemistic evasion but it’s also because we feel absurd lamenting the depradations of geopolitical mayhem on something as epehemeral as cricket. None of which is much comfort to a cricket-loopy 12 year old Pakistani kid or a ‘guest’ worker in the UAE who would dream of the heady luxuries of a zero-hours contract. If we don’t laugh, we’d cry.”

Hello again!

The players are back out. Stokes has two-thirds of his eighth over remaining. Let’s play cricket! Or, at least, let’s watch other people playing cricket! Or, in some cases, read stuff produced by someone watching other people playing cricket. Anyway, hello!

So Stokes strikes to end the partnership and the session – deserved for perseverance even if that was Pakistan’s session, much as the first was. There’s a long way to go of course but the wicket of the impressive Hafeez should do England’s morale a world of good. Simon Burnton will be back after tea. Here’s some lunch/tea reading with Vic Marks’ Spin. Thanks for your company, emails and tweets. Bye.

Related: The Spin | County cricket’s 12-month deals mean no dole or gravedigging in best era for players | Vic Marks

A confident appeal from Stokes after rapping Hafeez on the pad, just above the knee roll. He’s moved across his stumps, which will have helped prompt the review, but Hawk-eye only confirms his departure – it’s hitting. A fine innings from Hafeez has ended two short of a hundred, but he’s performed excellently to put his side in control here. And that will be tea, two balls into the over.

54th over: Pakistan 173-1 (Hafeez 98, Malik 72)

There’s been a certain absence of surprise in what’s unfolded so far – it’s almost been a gloomy pre-series predictions full house: spinners struggling for control – tick; pitch doing nothing for the seamers – tick; measured impregnable batting partnerships – tick; no one* in the crowd - tick. Malik milks Wood for two but is then deceived by an inswinger that he leaves even though it nips back perilously close to the stumps. The follow-up delivery is decent enough too, a feisty short one in the corridor of uncertainty that Malik decides late on to leave alone.

53rd over: Pakistan 171-1 (Hafeez 98, Malik 70)

Stokes continues, and England’s offside-heavy infield has stemmed the flow of runs a tad from these two seamers. Stokes even manages an old-school back-of-a-length away-seamer that forces Malik onto the back foot to dab away. Malik steals a single after beating the man at short mid-off, which puts Hafeez on strike for the final two balls of the over, which are played defensively for dot balls.

52nd over: Pakistan 170-1 (Hafeez 98, Malik 69)

Hafeez is itching to get forward and push for the runs that will take him to his hundred, but Wood is accurate enough to keep him waiting, but not quite finding the pace and venom enough to discomfort him. It’s a maiden.

51st over: Pakistan 170-1 (Hafeez 98, Malik 69)

Ian Botham in the commentary box had been suggesting a half-hour burst of proper pace might do the trick, and for the first time since the first hour England have pace at both ends at present. He drops short at Hafeez who pulls him to deep square leg for a single before Malik takes a smartly-run two.

50th over: Pakistan 167-1 (Hafeez 97, Malik 67)

Rashid is withdrawn from the attack, which is probably for the best at the moment, as Cook carries on his search for the combination that can break this impregnable looking partnership. Mark Wood replaces Rashid, and concedes a single first up, but finds some reverse-swing into Malik, who handles it well. Wood then produces an absolute peach of an in-swinger, which seams sharply back in at Malik from just back of a length, cutting him in half and prompting an appeal, though it was too high for an lbw and didn’t brush bat at all. Good bowling though.

49th over: Pakistan 166-1 (Hafeez 96, Malik 67)

England keep a tightish offside field up for Stokes, but he strays towards legside a couple of times too many, from one of which Hafeez pulls to deep square leg for one more – he’s a boundary away from his hundred now.

48th over: Pakistan 165-1 (Hafeez 95, Malik 67)

There seems to have been a bit of sledging/banter/nonsense between Malik and Stokes at the end of the previous over, which necessitated an interjection from umpire Reiffel. Meanwhile Rashid sees this over’s token full toss treated much as the other ones have been – Hafeez leaning into it and clumping it over wide long-on for four. Cook posts a man out there, but the following ball is cleverly lofted high on the other side, towards long-off, for four more. An edged single completes another frustrating over for England.

47th over: Pakistan 155-1 (Hafeez 86, Malik 66)

Ben Stokes gets his first bowl of the afternoon session, replacing Moeen who has had a long old stint at that end. But his first ball is a loosener and Hafeez square drives effortlessly for four – he’ll be looking to reach his century by tea now. The rest of the over is better, but the last ball of it is still dabbed down past the slips for four more.

46th over: Pakistan 147-1 (Hafeez 78, Malik 66)

Rashid is seeing every bad ball punished at the moment – Malik swipes a full toss in front of square on the onside for four – but he finds some turn too, a low edge eluding first slip and running away for a single. Another single completes an expensive over, but one that carried at least a suggestion of threat. “At point does one start worrying about the sanity of the players?” wonders Krishnan Patel. “In the middle of an isolated desert, bowling on and on with no swing, seam or spin. The worst part apart from the dropped chances is they knew this was what was coming from a mile off.”

45th over: Pakistan 141-1 (Hafeez 77, Malik 61)

Moeen finds Hafeez’s inside-edge but it zips wide to Buttler’s left and brings a single to Pakistan and more frustration to England. The bowler responds by going around the wicket at Malik but there’s no point doing that if you’re going to serve up a tasty full toss, which the batsman works effortlessly round the corner for two. Another thick edge square on the offside trundles through the lush outfield and brings three more.

44th over: Pakistan 135-1 (Hafeez 76, Malik 56)

Rashid continues, and Pakistan continue to find runs easy to find, with Hafeez working a single. Malik takes advantage of the low slow bounce to rock back and hammer the ball through extra cover for four. Emboldened, he then essays an almighty slog that is mistimed and flies high but not far but lands safely just over Cook at mid-off. It’s proving that sort of day.

43rd over: Pakistan 128-1 (Hafeez 75, Malik 50)

Hello again everyone – it’s proving a tough old day for England isn’t it, with perhaps the only two balls all day that have taken a regulation edge off a seamer’s bowling seeing wicket-chances spurned, first by Ian Bell’s butterfingers and then Stuart Broad’s overstepping. But on they must persist. Moeen continues, and Hafeez drives him for three on the offside, which brings to the strike Malik, who brings up a sensible 50 with a confident on-drive for one. Moeen’s been England’s busiest bowler by far but then it’s going to be a while before he gets his pads on…

42nd over: Pakistan 123-1 (Hafeez 71, Malik 49)

Rashid returns, and both batsmen celebrate with an instant single. And then some more singles. And a two. “I’m increasingly worried about Neil Waterfield’s innocent confidence,” writes Robert Wilson. “He makes a fine point about the unlikelihood of a lost drunk wandering around in the UAE but it depends on the degree of ‘lost’, does it not?”

41st over: Pakistan 117-1 (Hafeez 67, Malik 47)

Malik gets three runs from Moeen’s final delivery, hitting through a gap towards the cover boundary, where the ball runs out of puff and gets chased down. Meanwhile assorted criket writers have had enough of all this nobodys-watching stuff.

Why not show a photo of the opposite stand, where there are a few hundred fans? Not many, I know, but still... https://t.co/UM2xJx2Kki

The source of the Telegraph's "54" figure... https://t.co/fJD6ToJZn3

Crowd in Abu Dhabi is approx 1,500 - naturally all sitting in the shade.

40th over: Pakistan 114-1 (Hafeez 67, Malik 44)

Broad bowls a full toss into Hafeez’s pads, and the batsman neatly flicks it past the square leg umpire and away through an entirely deserted expanse of field for four. The bowler looks pretty angry with himself after that, and I imagine quite a lot of other people are looking pretty angry with him too.

39th over: Pakistan 109-1 (Hafeez 63, Malik 43)

Another Moeen over, two more singles. A couple more photos for you, and these should allow you to count today’s audience pretty accurately.

38th over: Pakistan 107-1 (Hafeez 62, Malik 42)

Runs for Malik! Two of the little blighters! Broad bowls, and Malik prods through midwicket for a couple. Quite rightly, after all that insanely rapid run-accumulation, he takes the remainder of the over off.

37th over: Pakistan 105-1 (Hafeez 62, Malik 40)

Moeen’s first couple of deliveries each go for a couple, both off the Hafeez bat. Malik, meanwhile, has still only scored those four singles since lunch. “Now, in common with the very vast majority of the world’s cricket watching population it would seem, I’m no doyenne of the cricket venues of the UAE,” writes Ben Powell, “but I am somewhat surprised that you have not seen fit to mention that the Starship Enterprise appears to be looming over the Sheikh Zayed cricket stadium today (32nd over).” Similarly, “Surely with the action on-field and off otherwise creating little excitement, the arrival of the starship Enterprise (photo of Cook leading his men out above over 31) might liven things up a tad?” writes Richard Neal. I must admit that, in common it seems with the vast majority of the UAE’s 12 cricket fans, I wouldn’t recognise the Starship Enterprise if it landed on my cricket ground. Which it apparently has.

36th over: Pakistan 101-1 (Hafeez 58, Malik 40)

As in the first session, Anderson bowls four overs at the start and is then subbed off for Broad, whose second ball brings new morale-crushing disaster for England! Malik flashes at a wide delivery and diverts it straight into the stomach of the man at gully! England celebrate, but then we see a replay of the bowler’s delivery stride, and there’s no foot behind the line there! He lands, just, on the front edge of the line, so there’s not a lot in it - another inch back would have done the trick - but it’s definitely a no-ball. That’s a punch in the figurative gut for the fielding side.

35th over: Pakistan 100-1 (Hafeez 58, Malik 40)

Hafeez scores a couple off the last to tick Pakistan’s total into treble figures. He’d have had a single sooner except, the ball having been prodded towards cover, Shoaib Malik simply refused to run for it. Malik has scored four runs since lunch, all singles.

34th over: Pakistan 98-1 (Hafeez 56, Malik 40)

A boundary! The first for exactly and precisely to the very ball 10 overs! Anderson’s first delivery is cut past point by Hafeez, and verily flies to the rope. Exciting times.

33rd over: Pakistan 93-1 (Hafeez 51, Malik 40)

Another over - from Moeen - another single for Hafeez. This initial post-lunch period has not been entirely action-packed. “Whilst I am grateful for Robert Wilson’s Tiny Crowd Survival tips (Over 23), which I shall be putting into practice at the Test from tomorrow onwards, his advice on how to avoid the clearly lost drunk person does lead me to believe that Robert hasn’t watched a great deal of cricket in the UAE!” notes Neil Waterfield.

32nd over: Pakistan 92-1 (Hafeez 50, Malik 40)

Ian Bell droppee Mohammad Hafeez completes his 50 with a nudge to midwicket, the only run from the over, accompanied by much regretful muttering from watching Englishmen. And here, apropos nothing much, is a picture of the most crowded section of the ground as the players came out for the start of play. It may have filled up a bit by now.

31st over: Pakistan 91-1 (Hafeez 49, Malik 40)

Moeen’s first two deliveries yield singles, the second a premeditated and totally safe sweep along the ground from Hafeez, and then the next four yield nothing at all.

30th over: Pakistan 89-1 (Hafeez 48, Malik 39)

Anderson is given very little encouragement from pitch or ball, so with no great bounce and no great movement he just sticks with a disciplined line and length, and Pakistan get a single. Though, having written that, the final delivery jags back into Mohammad Hafeez, who just about jams his bat onto it, and perhaps there will be some reverse swinging to be done here.

29th over: Pakistan 88-1 (Hafeez 48, Malik 38)

Moeen concedes as many runs in his first three deliveries after lunch as in his four overs before it (three, all singles) and then the same again in the next two balls. Still, the last is a dot.

28th over: Pakistan 82-1 (Hafeez 44, Malik 36)

Anderson’s fifth over of the day is his first maiden. So is it curtains for Ian Bell at slip? His hands aren’t so much buckets as planks at the moment, and when chances come only very occasionally that’s a bit of an issue. Nasser Hussain made an interesting point in analysis, saying that Mark Waugh, a memorably great slip fielder, used to stand with his knees pointed slightly inwards, so they didn’t get in the way of a catch - you can kind of see it here:

Hello world!

The entire crowd in Abu Dhabi pops out for some lunch:

In summary then: It’s been Pakistan’s morning, Hafeez and Malik compiling a solid partnership after the early loss of Masood, and batting with an air of authority and good judgment. England haven’t bowled too badly, but that Bell drop looked more calamitous with every passing over. Slip chances such as those don’t come along often in these conditions – we’re not at Trent Bridge now Toto. The seamers have all bowled doggedly and will be encouraged by signs of reverse swing, but a lot will continue to be required of Moeen and Rashid. We’ll be learning things this afternoon I’m sure. Simon Burnton will be back straight after lunch and I’ll see you all a bit later.

27th over: Pakistan 82-1 (Hafeez 44, Malik 36). Moeen has the final over before lunch. Hafeez is watchful with his half-century in sight – he’s batted with skill and intelligence – until he tries to pull the last ball of the session to the boundary but can’t quite time it and finds the fielder. A maiden.

26th over: Pakistan 82-1 (Hafeez 44, Malik 36). Hafeez sweeps Rashid – the first such shot of the day – to the square leg boundary where Root dives well to prevent the boundary; they take three instead. It’s a better over from Rashid though – better lengths, more subtle spin. Malik has now played 20 consecutive dot balls, fact fans.

25th over: Pakistan 79-1 (Hafeez 41, Malik 36). Moeen finds a fuller length, to which Hafeez is more respectful before nudging a single square on the legside for one. There should be time for at least one more over before lunch.

24th over: Pakistan 78-1 (Hafeez 40, Malik 36). Rashid gets a go from the other end this time, but Hafeez gets after him again, planting his foot forward and lofting it over the top for four. Another back foot cut brings a single – Rashid is finding plenty of turn but dropping too short at times.

23rd over: Pakistan 73-1 (Hafeez 35, Malik 36). Hafeez gets a pushed single off Moeen but it’s a good tight over from Moeen again.

“54 people!” corrects Robert Wilson on earlier crowd estimates. “It looks and, more importantly, sounds like grim and deadly county warm-up matches in late and snowy April. Fenners, seven or eight profoundly weird people, a dog and me. I like Neil Waterfield’s bullish style (Over 13) but when they are so few people the question of where to sit becomes very moot. I feel I should offer him some Tiny Crowd Survival tips.
“You can hear everything. From everybody. You might think it wise to avoid the twitching, shouty partisan or the clearly lost drunk person but that’s not the main danger. In a big crowd, amongst the merciful many, you never realise how many crickety people think they are amazingly funny. In a small crowd, you are ruthlessly exposed. It’s bad enough if you have to overhear him regaling his mates with his quips and bon mots but when he’s on his own* he regales the fielders, you, and any soul within semaphore range. It can make a day’s cricket seem very long.
“*In my own defence, I haven’t done it in years and I have a whole load of new material.”

22nd over: Pakistan 72-1 (Hafeez 34, Malik 36). Short mid-on is withdrawn for Broad this time, though the short mid-off remains in place, but it’s still a positive imaginative field, complementing Broad’s own assertiveness, which is delivering some good tight inswinging bowling. A merited maiden.

21st over: Pakistan 72-1 (Hafeez 34, Malik 36). Cook gives Rashid a rest and brings on Mooen for the first time. England’s utility man duly turns in a nice tight over – less spin than Rashid, more control – to begin with a maiden.

20th over: Pakistan 72-1 (Hafeez 34, Malik 36). Broad returns in place of Wood, and is bolstered by a short mid-off and short mid-on. Malik is batting assertively though, and cracks a single away on the offside, before Hafeez does likewise. Broad’s bowling with intent though, and shouldn’t feel too upset by conceding a four off a squirted edge to Malik from a ball that was speared in at him with guile and a modicum of venom.

19th over: Pakistan 66-1 (Hafeez 33, Malik 31). This pair appear to have the measure of Rashid – Hafeez square cuts stylishly off the back foot for four. No sooner do I type that, though, than Rashid sends a ripping leg-break past Hafeez’s edge. A couple more singles follow.

18th over: Pakistan 60-1 (Hafeez 28, Malik 30). It’s been a while since proceedings were delayed by the hasty dragging of tarpaulins over advertising hoardings – at least 20 minutes by my estimation – so we have some more fiddling with the sightscreen before Wood’s over starts. He continues to find some zest off the pitch and forces Hafeez to awkwardly nudge one off his hips – the batsman gets a single but the bowler gets some encouragement. Wood’s pace is then used against him as Malik sends first an effortlessly timed on-drive and then a classy cover drive to the boundary for fours. Runs are flowing now.

17th over: Pakistan 51-1 (Hafeez 27, Malik 22). Hafeez is going after anything erratic from Rashid, crunching a full toss over his head for four to bring up Pakistan’s 50. He adds a single before Rashid finds some exaggerated legspin though to beat Malik. Five from the over. Anyone going to rush wildly to judgment on the debutant on the basis of three overs?

Anyway, on the problem of Test series being too home-dominated, here’s a suggestion:

16th over: Pakistan 46-1 (Hafeez 22, Malik 22). Wood has a big lbw shout against Malik after finding some reverse-swing and bringing one into the right-hander. It hits pad first and hawkeye suggests it may have clipped off stump, though nothing’s given. Malik responds by digging out a fuller delivery and driving smartly past the bowler for four. He shouldn’t feel too despondent though – he’s bowling with purpose and aggression and making the batsmen think.

15th over: Pakistan 42-1 (Hafeez 22, Malik 18). Rashid overpitches and Hafeez bunts it on the volley down to long-on for two. He’s finding a decent variety, but unfortunately that variety includes a couple of presentable deliveries for batsmen, one of which is cracked straight down the ground for four by Hafeez.

14th over: Pakistan 36-1 (Hafeez 16, Malik 18). Wood changes ends to the Pavilion End and his first ball is punched through backward point for four by Malik – that’s been the most productive shot and scoring area for Pakistan by a long way so far. It’s the only scoring shot of the over though.

13th over: Pakistan 32-1 (Hafeez 16, Malik 14). And here’s the moment: at last Adil Rashid has his first over in Test cricket, six months overdue though it is. There’s some variety in flight and length, as well as side spin, one of which induces a grubby play and miss. But the leg-spinner is unable to begin with a maiden, Hafeez rocks onto the back foot and cracks the final ball of the over square on the offside for four.

“Sparse crowd?” writes Neil Waterfield, “Tell Bumble to worry not, the crowd should be boosted by 3.7% tomorrow as my mate Richard and I shall be in attendance for the rest of the Test. We just need to do a day’s work beforehand.” Perhaps we can have an individual roll call of every single fan present.

12th over: Pakistan 28-1 (Hafeez 12, Malik 14). Malik’s square drive on the offside is well fielded at backward point, but he finds the gap next ball with a drive through extra cover for three. Stokes then strays just a fraction down the legside with a short ball that Malik doesn’t properly get hold of, and gloves through a single. England have caused some difficulties for Pakistan’s batsmen with such short balls as they can muster, though it’s obviously not a tactic that can be overused. And that’s the first drinks break – not a bad morning’s work so far for England but it could have been so much better if Bell had held that regulation slip catch.

11th over: Pakistan 24-1 (Hafeez 11, Malik 11). Wood is finding at least some pace, such as there is, and forces Hafeez into a hurried attempted hook with a shorter delivery that he can’t get hold of properly and the ball bobs away on the legside. A maiden, and a good one.

10th over: Pakistan 24-1 (Hafeez 11, Malik 11). We have some shouting for Pakistan among the eerily sparse crowd now – I’ll say one thing, given that they’re in a fairly open stadium, the few dozen fans in here are managing some decent acoustic projection. Malik pushes a couple more runs through backward point from a wider, shorter delivery. We could do with some spin soon – not least to push the over-rate up from its current 10 per hour.

9th over: Pakistan 22-1 (Hafeez 11, Malik 9). Another bowling change, but not the anticipated spin – instead it’s Mark Wood. His first ball, also a little too short, is punched past point for four by Malik. Wood manages to hurry Malik up a little with the last ball of the over though, which almost beats the batsman for pace and an inelegant inside-edge brings him a single, and encouragement for the bowler.

8th over: Pakistan 17-1 (Hafeez 11, Malik 4). We have our first bowling change – Stokes for Broad at the Pavilion End – and the Durham man begins with a pretty rank full toss outside off stump which takes Malik off guard as much as anyone and he only grubs an inside-edge behind for a single. Hafeez helps himself to another four when Stokes drops short outside off stump and he square cuts forcefully to the ropes. There’s really no pace and movement for seamers here at all – but we knew that already. Talking of things we knew already, like there being an actual match on …

7th over: Pakistan 12-1 (Hafeez 7, Malik 3). I’d be expecting a bowling change by now, but Anderson has been bowling well and still has the ball. He’s even got a funked-up field to pep him up now, with a silly mid-on, Moeen, brought in. Then yet again – for crying out loud! – we have more sightscreen-related delays as white tarpaulins are dragged over advertising hoardings. When we do resume, Hafeez finds the boundary for the first time in the innings, a lovely textbook cover drive from a wide-ish delivery. Then – A DROP! Anderson finds Hafeez’s outside edge and Bell spills it horribly at second slip. That’s a bad miss.

6th over: Pakistan 8-1 (Hafeez 3, Malik 3). Again we have sightscreen shenanigans to remedy before starting the over – one of the reasons why we managed only five in the first half-hour. Broad manages to find a bit of in-jagging movement off the seam but Malik’s defences are good. Unlike Masood, he knows how to duck under a bouncer too, as he demonstrates from the fourth ball of the over. Overall though, Broad is pitching it up smartly. Both he and Anderson have been very good in these conditions again, thus far.

5th over: Pakistan 8-1 (Hafeez 3, Malik 3). Stuart Broad’s calling for water already as Anderson begins his third over. There’s no pace off the pitch, of course, and when the bowler drops just a fraction short Malik can get off the mark with a languid back-foot push through the covers for two, before adding another single to mid-off. Anderson then manages another bouncer, of sorts, that passes harmlessly past Hafeez at shoulder height.

4th over: Pakistan 5-1 (Hafeez 3, Malik 0). Hafeez isn’t taking any risks – he’s barely gone forward down the pitch yet - but there’s not much else he can do against some decent, probing bowling from Broad. This one’s a maiden.

3rd over: Pakistan 5-1 (Hafeez 3, Malik 0). The left-hander Masood is off the mark with a push for two square on the offside from Anderson, who follows up by inducing his first play and miss of the morning, finding just enough movement to seam it past Masood’s defensive prod. Then he gets him with an unexpected lifter – Masood doesn’t know how to respond at all, ducking into it and seeing the ball clatter off his helmet and onto the stumps. Shoaib Malik is the new man in.

Anderson gets some bounce and Masood can’t cope with it – it cannons off his helmet and ricochets onto the stumps.

2nd over: Pakistan 3-0 (Hafeez 3, Masood 0). Broad opens up at the Pavilion end and his over, too, is delayed by sightscreen problems behind the bowler’s arm. A sponsor’s name intruding, it would seem, in some kind of enhanced metaphor of the State Of The Game (and much else). He has a decently assertive field in place, three slips, a gully and a short leg, and manages to strike Hafeez awkwardly on the top of the pad with an in-slanter. Overall though, Broad pitches it up too and Hafeez plays it out diligently, scoring only with a dabbed two past backward point off the final ball of the over.

1st over: Pakistan 1-0 (Hafeez 1, Masood 0). The start is delayed slightly as sight-screen readjustments are made. Then Anderson begins to Hafeez, and bowls full and straight which Hafeez squirts along the ground to gully. Jimmy maintains a full length and a decent line, as he must, and Hafeez gets off the mark with a push on the offside fifth ball.

And this is why Pakistan not being able to play at home is such a terrible thing:

The players are out. Looks as if Jimmy Anderson has the ball first up, as per.

So what of the ICC mace, of which we’ve heard little since Strauss was waving it about at The Oval four years ago? Ian Forth very much wants to know. “Who last handed over the ICC mace?” he asks. “Where’s it been? What happens when a team wins top spot during a series? Does Steve Smith (say) have to hop on a plane to Durban (for example), interrupting a family holiday on the Gold Coast, pop the mace in overhead luggage, making sure not to knock his fellow passengers on the head, then meet AB de Villiers at a Hospitality Inn somewhere off the freeway once he lands, where there’s a ceremonial hand over? Only for the whole process to be reversed two weeks later? Seems unlikely.”

Meanwhile, our man in Abu Dhabi is soaking up the pre-match atmosphere:

More doom and gloom: “So will Taylor be rushed into the second or third test once the selectors realise half our batsmen can’t play spin, never use their feet or are horribly out of form?” asks Kevin Wilson. It’s this doughty refusal to jinx anything by being remotely positive that makes me proud to be part of the English cricket Family.

It’s a barren featureless desert out there. Not in Abu Dhabi but here in King’s Cross, where even the nearby prominent-chain sandwich outlet is not yet open to avail me of a coffee. Out in Abu Dhabi, meanwhile, it’s scorchingly hot, to the surprise of no one of course, but it offers us a rare glimpse of Alastair Cook actually perspiring.

Talking of conditions, and the doubts about the opening batting/spinners situation. Here’s Tom Gucht: “It does strike me as a bit short-sighted opening in Moeen, even more so after Mike Selvey drew my attention that he could find himself stepping straight up to bat on the back of bowling 40 overs in 40° heat – a recipe for disaster. It reminds me a bit of the decision to select Robshaw as rugby captain three and a half years ago – a decent fella who might do a stop gap job until a more suitable option comes along – and here he still is four years down the line getting smashed at the breakdown by Pocock, doing alright enough to still get picked with his wholehearted dedication, but not the world class option we ought to be striving for.” Probably a bit harsh on Moeen there, who is a huge and important part of this team, and has been shunted up, in the selectors’ eyes anyhow, for want of better alternatives at the top of the order as the three-year long search for an opening partner for Cook continues.

Pakistan: Mohammad Hafeez, Shan Masood, Shoaib Malik, Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq, Asad Shafiq, Sarfraz Ahmed, Wahab Riaz, Zulfiqar Babar, Rahat Ali, Imran Khan

England: Alastair Cook, Moeen Ali, Ian Bell, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler, Adil Rashid, Stuart Broad, Mark Wood, Jimmy Anderson.

And Yasir Shah’s absence is confirmed. Misbah is not happy about that at all – “it’s mismanagement and we’re really disappointed,” he broadsides at the selectors – while Alastair Cook says England are ‘as ready as we can be’ for what looks set to be a long day in the field.

“It’ll be turgid and attritional,” trills Nasser Hussain excitedly in the punditbox. Meanwhile, some possibly important team news brewing:

Morning everyone. I said MORNING EVERYONE. Time to get up! Cricket’s back, a whole two and a half weeks after after the English domestic season finished. Time was when we cricket fans would sneer at we football fans for the commercially-driven brevity of the latter’s close-season, but now international cricket is the sport that never sleeps. Just like you and me right now, dear reader(s).

That said, there’s no reason to feel jaded as we approach this one. A challenging and absorbing few weeks awaits. Away series against Pakistan in recent times have served to bring English sides surfing triumphant waves crashing back onto the shore in a bit of mess. In 2011-12 Andrew Strauss’s side arrived in the UAE brandishing the world No1 mace and fortified by crushing wins over Australia and India in the previous 12 months. Three Test defeats later, bamboozled by Saeed Ajmal and outbatted by the likes of Azhar Ali and Younus Khan, the picture looked very different for both England and Strauss. And in 2005, the last time England visited Pakistan itself, a team that arrived metaphorically drunk on victory after the finest of all Ashes series soon found itself slapped about the chops and forced to down the gritty black coffee of a 2-0 series defeat, as Naved ul-Hasan, Shoaib Akhtar, Mohammad Yusuf and Co proved too forceful in their home conditions. The Michael Vaughan era never really regained its groove after that.

Tom will be here shortly.

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Pakistan v England: first Test, day two – live!

October 14, 2015, 12:36 am
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110th over: Pakistan 374-4 (Malik 167, Shafiq 56)

Shafiq leans back and wafts a Rashid delivery to the sweeper cleaning up on the off side as Pakistan simply bat and bat. It brings Malik on strike and Cook brings in two very close slips as Rashid begins to look more threatening. It doesn’t stop him being milked for singles though, or indeed from Shafiq clubbing him for four over mid on.

109th over: Pakistan 367-4 (Malik 165, Shafiq 51)

Malik trots down the wicket to Moeen, who is also bowling around the wicket, and thumps him over mid off for four. A single brings Shafiq on strike and Moeen goes back over the wicket. There’s something very pleasant about watching two spinners go about their business against two very competent batsmen with pictures beamed in from thousands of miles away. Something’s right in the world when Test cricket whispers quietly by in faraway countries.

108th over: Pakistan 362-4 (Malik 160, Shafiq 51)

Buttler spotted Shafiq getting down early for a sweep and charged quickly to leg to block the ball’s passage. But to no avail, the batsman still gets Rashid away for one. Malik is then surprised by a Rashid googly from wide around the wicket, as is the bowler when he manages to land it from the looks of things, but he still blocks it out.

107th over: Pakistan 360-4 (Malik 159, Shafiq 50)

Malik prods to mid on and walks a single. This has all the calm serenity of a gentle Sunday game in the vicarage back garden at the moment. Were it not for the fact it’s being played in searing heat and there are minarets in the background, of course. Shafiq drives and runs a tight single to bring up his 50 as Ian Bell puts his head back in his hands somewhere in the field. Then Malik rounds things off by stepping back and picking off a short ball through the covers for four. Lovely shot.

106th over: Pakistan 354-4 (Malik 154, Shafiq 49)

Buttler goes up for a ludicrous lbw appeal as Rashid continues from around the wicket and pitches one about two postcodes outside leg. Still, Rashid has bowled much better from around the wicket and even finds a little bounce. He has more control from here and keeps Shafiq at bay who is looking for the run to bring him his 50.

105th over: Pakistan 353-4 (Malik 153, Shafiq 49)

Moeen, quicker and tight to the stumps, keeps things quiet at his end too. But Malik does carve him through the off to bring up this pair’s 100 partnership. And very well done to them. Shafiq rounds things off with a deft, dinked sweep that goes very fine for two.

104th over: Pakistan 350-4 (Malik 152, Shafiq 47)

No short leg for Rashid now, just a slip, and he continues that line from very wide around the wicket. It’s a much more defensive angle from which to bowl and does at least stop the runs but makes a wicket far less likely. Shafiq sweeps him for one, before Malik brings up the Pakistan 350 with a hoik through midwicket.

103rd over: Pakistan 348-4 (Malik 151, Shafiq 46)

Moeen continues, Shafiq taking a single off his second delivery. Malik attempts to cut him hard later in the over, but his line is good and he fails to get him properly away.

102nd over: Pakistan 347-4 (Malik 151, Shafiq 45)

Rashid continues from around the wicket to Shafiq and get one to turn sharply across the face of the bat. Shafiq takes a two from it, before cutting hard later in the over for another couple. Rashid is bowling from very wide of the crease, really trying to find an angle to knock either of these batsmen out of kilter.

101st over: Pakistan 342-4 (Malik 151, Shafiq 40)

Moeen replaces Wood. I’d have been tempted to give Wood another over directing some short stuff at Malik but he had been expensive. Shafiq, then Malik work singles off Moen before the former has an unholy slog through mid off, catches the bottom of the bat and sends the ball just wide of the fielder. A bit lucky, but he gets four. And that’s drinks.

100th over: Pakistan 335-4 (Malik 150, Shafiq 34)

Rashid, Cook and Root have a long chat before the spinner’s 21st over, and his first ball to Shafiq draws the batsman into a swish outside off that has the slip and keeper briefly interested. He’s trying to bowl faster now, but Shafiq can still cut him through the covers for one. That’s Rashid’s 100 up. Time for a change, he reckons, so he goes around the wicket and Malik blocks his final two deliveries of the over.

99th over: Pakistan 334-4 (Malik 150, Shafiq 33)

Wood is again too straight and Shafiq clips him for a single off his hips. He bowls shorter and outside off to Malik, giving it everything to get the ball to first bounce to chest height, and then force the batmsan to duck. It’s not a bad tactic this: bowling full and straight has not worked so far so why not have a go at short and fast for an over or two? Malik responds by pushing another short delivery uppishly through gully for four for his 150, but his shot wasn’t entirely convincing.

98th over: Pakistan 329-4 (Malik 146, Shafiq 32)

Malik is having none of Rashid. He takes two steps down the wicket and clobbers him straight back down the ground for four. Rashid hardly helps his cause when he tosses Malik a full toss a few balls alter: six runs. Rashid’s figures on his Test debut are a wince-inducing (but a little misleading) 0-99 at the moment.

97th over: Pakistan 319-4 (Malik 136, Shafiq 32)

Wood strays too far to leg again, and Shafiq swings but tickles behind. The ball drops short of Buttler, diving to his left, and rolls to the boundary. Shafiq makes the most of it by driving Wood, who is again too straight, through wide mid on for another boundary. Wood rediscovers his line, finds off stump again, then bangs in a couple of shorter ones. Shafiq ducks the first then chops the second to point.

96th over: Pakistan 311-4 (Malik 136, Shafiq 24)

Rashid lets one drift too far down the leg side and is clipped for three, before Malik trots down the wickets and dinks him over the top (a little unconvincingly) for two, before taking a single a couple of bals later. Shafiq spots a googly and works Rashid for one more, before Malik cuts him hard for four. Not a great over that.

95th over: Pakistan 300-4 (Malik 129, Shafiq 20)

Wood replaces Broad and strays onto Malik’s pads, from where he is worked for a single. He does the same to Shafiq but the ball goes through to Buttler after clipping his pad. A brief appeal is turned down by Paul Reiffel, before Shafiq clips a third leg side delivery to the leg side boundary for three to bring up Pakistan’s 300. Wood has been given some protection on the leg side by Cook, so it would seem he has been told to bowl very straight but the line has not been quite right so far. His final delivery is much better: full and on middle stump, Shafiq edges along the ground to the slips.

94th over: Pakistan 296-4 (Malik 128, Shafiq 17)

Anderson’s opening spell is over, and Cook turns to Rashid to see what he can do. It took him a while to bowl his googly yesterday, but he attempts one third ball today which is good to see. Fifth ball, he saw Shafiq coming down the wicket and slipped him another one which nearly does for the batsman. Shafiq gives Rashid a wry smile after bunting the wrong ‘un to the covers.

93rd over: Pakistan 294-4 (Malik 128, Shafiq 15)

A run! In fact: tree! Shafiq pushes Broad through mid off for two and gets such a head rush that he whips him square off his legs for another single.

92nd over: Pakistan 291-4 (Malik 128, Shafiq 12)

Anderson has just the two slips in for Malik now, and is keeping his bowling gun barrel straight. He sends down a slightly shorter cross seam delivery which Malik leaves well alone, then a fuller delivery on middle and off which is defended calmly. Malik is giving off the impression that he is not going anywhere soon.

91st over: Pakistan 291-4 (Malik 128, Shafiq 12)

There’s a quiet calm about play so far, the two Pakistan batsmen seem serene and comfortable enough as the England bowlers probe the off stump. Broad has bowled largely on a length but midway through this over he digs in couple of short balls, which Shafiq ducks easily enough. Another maiden.

90th over: Pakistan 291-4 (Malik 128, Shafiq 12)

Shafiq gets off the mark for the day with a back foot push to mid off. It brings Malik to the crease, who plays an immaculate forward defence, a couple of leaves, then pushes Anderson elegantly to the fence for four. Might be long day for England …

89th over: Pakistan 286-4 (Malik 124, Shafiq 11)

Broad takes up the four-over-old ball at the other end. There are two slips and a gully in for Malik, and none of them will be heartened by Broad’s second delivery, which barely gets up above ankle height. Broad strays a touch too straight and Malik plays him off the hips, before attempting a scampered single. Wood’s throw sends him scurrying back to his crease though. Another maiden.

88th over: Pakistan 286-4 (Malik 124, Shafiq 11)

Jimmy Anderson gets things started, and the first thing to note is that Alastair Cook has come out of the slips after splitting the webbing on his hand and Joe Root has come in at first slip (and is singing along to the few England fans who are in and who are singing Jerusalem). Bell is still in at second slip. Anderson sends down an over on or around off stump to Shafiq who leaves outside off and plays straight to anything on the stumps. A maiden.

England are out in the field, the batsmen are striding to the middle and the spectator is in the stands. Play in a few minutes.

Jimmy Anderson has been describing the regime post-play. More or less as you would expect: cold baths straight off the field, a massage, a good meal and then a good night’s sleep.

He’s relatively sanguine about the two dropped catches off his bowling - disappointing, he says, which I doubt was the word he used in the dressing room. “It happens,” he adds. “It’s frustrating but Belly’s taken some fantastic catches off my bowling in the past. In cricket you have days like that.”

As for Younis Khan, he was delighted to pass Javed Miandad’s target of 8,832 runs to become Pakistan’s leading run scorer.“It was a huge target for me. I knew if I pushed myself I could pass the great Javed. I now want to become the first Pakistani to pass 10,000 runs and, if I work hard, I think will achieve my goal.”

So only another 1,150 or so runs to get. Probably get those in the second innings on this wicket.

Stuart Broad was very open after the the first day’s play, admitting his fault in having Shoaib Malik caught off a no ball. “I have to hold my hand up and say the no-ball was unacceptable, certainly in these conditions. I’m not a huge no-ball bowler but there’s no excuses. I said sorry to the guys at tea because we don’t need to be getting any chalked off here. It is something we need to improve on.”

Then he stuck up for Bell, who didn’t face the media. “Ian is disappointed. He has his head in his hands in the changing room. The first one was a tricky catch, low to his left. That second one you would expect him to take 99 times out of 100.

If Ian Bell drops two catches in the slips but there is not a soul in the crowd there to see it happen, has it really happened? I suspect that was probably not the line he would have taken to Jimmy Anderson in the dressing room after depriving him of a four-fer on a wicket that is flatter than a Bolivian salt flat that has undergone extensive lump smoothing. The first drop was forgivable to an extent – low chances being tougher than the high ones – but shouldn’t Alastair Cook have had him out of there shortly afterwards? A confidence player like Bell, when low on confidence, is something of a hazard in a key position where chances must be taken, surely? And the second chance was a dolly.

But to look at the positives: Anderson could have taken four wickets yesterday on a wicket that is flatter than etc and so on. Also, that last chance – when Bell dropped Asad Shafiq – came in nearly the last over of the day, suggesting England’s bowlers have the fitness to keep making things happen late on under a punishing sun. It also came with a new ball that will only be slightly less new this morning, so there is a chance that after an ice bath and night’s kip Anderson and co can do the same again today. In fact, England’s bowlers were generally excellent on day one with Broad only let down by taking a wicket on a no ball, Wood consistent and accurate, Moeen more convincing and Rashid slowly coming into the game on his debut.

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Pakistan v England: first Test, day three – live!

October 15, 2015, 1:04 am
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England 122-1. The first three quarters of that session were very much England’s but the final half hour belonged to Pakistan.

That’s it from me for now. Dan Lucas will be your guide after the interval.

49th over: England 122-1 (Cook 78, Bell 1) Shoaib Malik, his compulsory non-bowling stint completed, gets the chance to have a quick twirl before lunch. He sends down a tidy maiden at Cook.

48th over: England 122-1 (Cook 78, Bell 1) Zulfiqar continues to torment Ian Bell. England’s No3 looks a little more secure this over, but he’s faced 27 balls for his solitary run now. And he’s been troubled by about half of those. A maiden.

47th over: England 122-1 (Cook 78, Bell 1) Wahab drops a little too short and a little too wide to Cook and is chopped forward of point for four by the England captain.

46th over: England 118-1 (Cook 74, Bell 1) Bell keeps getting that front pad in the way. And in fact he’s dropped at silly point, the ball cannoning off the pad and onto the bat but Masood can’t take a sharp chance.

45th over: England 118-1 (Cook 74, Bell 1) Wahab returns and beats Cook outside off with one that just shapes away a touch. He’s a whisker away from finding the edge. All of a sudden England really need the lunch break.

“The answer to Guy Hornsby (over 42) is that this pitch is a road,” writes Robin Hazlehurst. “And not just any old road, but a laser-straight pan-flat four-lane motorway with no other traffic on it and no scenery on either side as far as the eye can see. Coincidentally, just such a motorway was used last week for the most boring professional cycling race ever held, the inaugural tour of ... Abu Dhabi.”

44th over: England 117-1 (Cook 74, Bell 1) There’s a yelp of appeal as Zulfiqar drifts one into Bell’s pad from round the wicket. It appeared to be bat first to the naked eye but the replay is far from conclusive. That was closer that it looked. Next up, he rips one past the outside edge. And from the last there’s another appeal, the bat again tucked just behind the front pad. This is good stuff from Pakistan now.

43rd over: England 117-1 (Cook 74, Bell 1) Imran Khan continues, with plenty of men around the bat. Cook keeps his powder very dry.

“Having the same name as others can have other problems,” writes Colum Farrelly. “A John Boyce of Donegal was acquitted the other day of a charge of failing to pay a fine. His defence was that he didn’t receive the notice - it might have been posted to any of the five John Boyces in his townland, or indeed to any of the 22 Boyce households in the area.”

42nd over: England 117-1 (Cook 74, Bell 1) With a right-hander at the crease, Zulfiqar returns. Bell defends, defends and defends again.

“Funny how 110/1 felt like the end of the world on Day 1 and now this feels like a warm, comforting blanket, even though Moeen has sadly gone now,” writes Guy Hornsby. “But if England get even 400+ then what the hell are we doing playing on a pitch like this? There’s Chief Executive’s pitches, but what’s an upgrade on that? It’s not like they’re coining it in with a full house either. Seems like lunacy really when Test Cricket is fighting for its fans.”

41st over: England 117-1 (Cook 74, Bell 1) Bell gets off the mark with an inside edge.

Moeen goes! Imran threatened this in his last over and this time, with Moeen in his crosshairs rather than the more settled Cook, he does find the edge. A tickle just carries to the keeper and Pakistan have the breakthrough.

40th over: England 116-0 (Cook 74, Moeen 35) Shafiq drops short and Cook clatters a pull away for four.

“Given that Pakistan won’t be playing at home any time soon, and their ‘home’ matches are practically inaccessible to actual Pakistani fans, why hold the matches in the UAE?” wonders Alfred Moore. “Why not hold them in the USA or Canada? The Toronto test match. Why the hell not?

39th over: England 109-0 (Cook 69, Moeen 33)

Imran Khan: “No really. I’m Imran Khan, the cricketer.”

38th over: England 109-0 (Cook 69, Moeen 33) Shoaib Malik isn’t able to bowl for another 20 minutes due to the time he spent off the field rehydrating yesterday, so Asad Shafiq continues. Three singles are nudged away.

37th over: England 106-0 (Cook 67, Moeen 32) Imran Khan comes on for a first blast of the day. You wonder if he has any difficulty when it comes to life in general:

Official type: “Name?”

36th over: England 106-0 (Cook 67, Moeen 32) Asad Shafiq, proud owner of two wickets in 84 first-class matches, comes on for a part-time twirl. It’s tidy enough until the last ball, which is dragged down and tucked away for a single by Moeen.

35th over: England 104-0 (Cook 66, Moeen 31) Rahat strays a little full to Cook and is clipped away to midwicket for a single that brings up the England hundred. Not a bad start for this new opening partnership. A Moeen glance to fine leg brings four more from a poor Rahat delivery.

34th over: England 98-0 (Cook 63, Moeen 27) Sky’s microphones pick up a bit of birdsong, which is rather nice. Also rather nice is this sweep shot from Alastair Cook, who clubs the labouring Zulfiqar to the square leg boundary for four.

33rd over: England 91-0 (Cook 58, Moeen 26) Rahat once more. He keeps both batsmen honest with a decent line outside off. Just one from the over.

More Z news:

@john_ashdown Billy Zulch seems to have been a batsman https://t.co/TOOmtoLWxx

32nd over: England 90-0 (Cook 58, Moeen 25) Zulfiqar continues and the batsmen milk a couple of singles. The spinner then beats the bat as Cook looks to flick to leg and there’s the first appeal of the morning as he’s hit on the pad. The ball is going to miss the stumps by several feet but, hey, it’s an appeal.

31st over: England 88-0 (Cook 57, Moeen 24) Rahat once more. Moeen brings up a century (of balls faced) with a slightly squirty drive. He’s not really found the middle much this morning but, that said, he’s not been unduly troubled either. A maiden.

30th over: England 88-0 (Cook 57, Ali 24) Cook gets the sweep out once more and this time connects, picking up a single.

An email!!! “It’s not hard to put together a capable attack of test match ‘Z’ bowlers to accompany Zulfiqar,” writes Ian Forth. “Zaheer Khan, Monde ‘All Hands’ Zondeki and hat trick taker Nuwan Zoysa would do nicely. Put Tim Zoehrer behind the stumps and you’re halfway there. But the batting rather lets things down once you’ve pencilled in Zaheer Abbas. My rudimentary fossick around databases suggests he’s pretty much it.”

29th over: England 86-0 (Cook 56, Ali 23) Rahat Ali replaces Wahab Riaz. Moeen leans into an on drive that brings him his first boundary (from his 87th delivery). A tidy enough opening over from Rahat.

28th over: England 82-0 (Cook 56, Ali 19) Another attempted sweep from Cook collects nothing but fresh Abu Dhabi air but a ball or two later he rocks back and crashes a drive forward of point for four more.

27th over: England 76-0 (Cook 52, Ali 18) Wahab attempts a yorker and it’s a beauty – perhaps half-an-inch short of perfect but a beauty nevertheless. Cook does very well to dig it out and even picks up a single for his trouble. Moeen punches through point off his toes for a couple more.

26th over: England 72-0 (Cook 51, Ali 16) Cook misses with an attempted sweep as Zulfiqar probes away again. The bowler isn’t turning it much – at all – but he is mixing things up nicely in the air. A leg bye is the only run added to the total.

25th over: England 71-0 (Cook 51, Ali 16) Fifty for the captain. Cook guides Wahab’s first of the new over through gully and away to the boundary for four, just the third of his innings. It’s enough to take him to his 45th Test half century. A clever little slower ball from Wahab – bowled with an off-cutting action – almost catches Moeen out but his attempted drive is scuffed safely away. Wahab sends down a bouncer with the next and catches Moeen a glancing blow on the shoulder as he looks to half-duck half-veer away. He’s fine though.

24th over: England 65-0 (Cook 46, Ali 16) Moeen picks up his first run of the morning, pushing Zulfiqar down the ground for a single. Cook nurdles to fine leg for a couple more then takes a big stride down the pitch and hoists over midwicket for three.

23rd over: England 59-0 (Cook 41, Ali 15) Wahab Riaz takes the ball at the other end. He begins with a no ball, the first addition to the England total of the day. The left-armer keeps it full and tight outside off but without any semblance of threat. Cook blocks out the last – and gets enough on it to send the ball trundling down the ground for a couple of runs.

22nd over: England 56-0 (Cook 39, Ali 15) Zulfiqar Babar begins the day with the ball with his left-arm spin. Moeen props forward and blocks with the deadest of dead bats for three balls, then looks to crash a sweep through square leg. It’s miscued into the deck and there’s no run. Babar skims one past the outside edge with the next, and the last is swept, more proficiently this time, but again straight to a fielder. A maiden.

Out come the players to a smattering of applause. This stadium might be quite a fine one if it was full. It’s not.

No one seems to be expecting any reverse swing on this road of a pitch. And, equally, no one is predicting much deterioration. “If you want to kill Test cricket, keep producing pitches like this,” says Bumble.

JINX ALERT!! Stage set for a Cook epic.

Such is the obviousness of the truism that in the far reaches of the vast darkness of space there are alien lifeforms who had they accidentally picked up a broadcast of the second day’s play in Abu Dhabi – despite having had no previous contact with Earth or human languages and being composed of nothing but a mass of tentacles and a selection of strange and intricate orifices – would have turned to their various progeny and told them: “This, Squirgleflop. This is why it’s called Test cricket. It’s because it’s a test.”

England suffered, toiled, and scrapped their way through yesterday’s play, at the end of which Pakistan had racked up 523-8 declared and England’s latest opening pair had mustered 56 in reply. Adil Rashid had an unwanted Test record and along with Moeen Ali and Joe Root combined for a total of 302 runs and 0 wickets from 69 overs of spin.

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Pakistan v England: first Test, day four – live!

October 16, 2015, 1:13 am
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139th over: England 391-3 (Cook 198, Root 74)
Another single from Cook, a back-cut that’s half fielded at point, which signals the 100 partnership between England’s best two batsmen. Root helps himself to a couple more, then whacks one between mid-wicket and mid-on, the ball hopping away to the fence. Shoaib Malik is bowling, if that matters at all.

138th over: England 384-3 (Cook 197, Root 68)
Wahab chokes off an appeal, a flirt down the leg side that Cook got nowhere near, but it does persuade Misbah to put a leg slip in. Cook inches closer to his double with a single out to deep mid-wicket from the last ball of that over.

137th over: England 383-3 (Cook 196, Root 68)
Cook takes a single, and as far as I can work out he’s scored only in ones for over an hour - the last multiple from him was a swept four in the 122nd over. I think.

Meanwhile, Graham Foreman writes in with something that, like Vienna, means nothing to me, but some of you might make sense of it: “I write with news of Chris from the Basement (OBOs passim). He’s no longer in the basement, having ascended to the 3rd floor and now sits next to me.

136th over: England 382-3 (Cook 195, Root 68)
The batsmen exchange singles, before Root pulls down to fine leg where Shan Masood keeps him to a couple. Then - what a shot! Wahab bangs one in, Root waits until the very last moment before wristily flapping the ball over the slips with a brilliant ramp effort. What a marvellous thing. A couple more singles, and we plod on.

Proper cricket going on in Abu Dhabi #PAKvENGpic.twitter.com/eeDEhv3Jrx

135th over: England 372-3 (Cook 193, Root 60)
Be good if Cook just lost his thread a bit here and went all out attacking, smashing the thing all over the show an...oh, no, wait, there’s a pushed single to point. Root then produces a brief moment of excitement with a slightly ill-advised reverse-sweep from outside leg, which misses the stumps by about six inches but that’s enough to get everyone going for a minute, there.

134th over: England 369-3 (Cook 192, Root 58)
Wahab Riaz has had a rest, if you can really rest in 36 degree heat, and he’s back bowling. Root greets him with a nice drive through the covers, not quite from the meat of the bat and they take a couple. Root dabs a single towards third man, as a collection of home fans gamely continue chanting in the stands.

Meanwhile, some subtle straw manning in the commentary box...

Ramiz Raja is currently arguing against a point HE made about 15 minutes ago.

133rd over: England 366-3 (Cook 192, Root 55)
Root cuts a brace in front of third man, after Cook had flicked a single to fine leg. Root is noisily told to return from whence he came next up, settling for a mere single after a cut past extra-cover.

“If we are considering the application of the economic realist theories of the great Hansie Cronje (Over 127),” writes Comrade Robert Wilson, “then surely we must listen to Marx on making the best of flat pitch despondency (from his often misunderstood opium of the people riff):

132nd over: England 362-3 (Cook 191, Root 52)
Root generously donates the strike to Cook with a single, before Cook pushes another into the covers, running through with a contended smile on his face, as if he’s just settled down with a pot of coffee and the Saturday morning papers.

“Those two grubbers are incredible,” recalls Guy Hornsby, referring to the update in over 125. “I remember Nasser’s one like it was yesterday. I felt so appalled when it happened, like someone had taken my Christmas presents away before I sat down for Turkey and bread sauce. God knows what Nasser felt like. There’s about as much chance of that happening on this pitch as Stokes getting a five-fer with his off spin.”

131st over: England 360-3 (Cook 190, Root 51)
Cook clips a single out through the leg side, then Root, presumably fuming that Cook had faced five balls in that over, retains the strike with a single of his own.

130th over: England 358-3 (Cook 189, Root 50)
Zulfiqar has bowled his legs down to his knees, and gets a rest - Shoaib Malik has the ball, starting with a full-toss that Root clips into the deep for a single, then is immediately cross with himself for not giving that one some proper treatment.

Joe Root absolutely fuming that he only got a single there. Genuinely angrier than most batsmen would be about getting out. Joe Root >>>>>>>

129th over: England 350-3 (Cook 188, Root 43)
Singles ahoy, three of them to be specific, and England get the 350 up with a Root pull out to deep mid-wicket. Which of course means he keeps the strike. Greedy Joe.

128th over: England 347-3 (Cook 187, Root 41)
Zulfiqar sends down a lowish full-toss on Root’s pads, and the Orville-voiced Yorkshireman retrieves the candy from the baby by swatting him just wide of mid-on and to the boundary. He sweeps once with no result, then sweeps again and gains a single. Another full-toss is clipped away by Cook for one (maybe he doesn’t actually want that balls faced record, as mentioned in over 119), before another single from Root ends the over.

127th over: England 340-3 (Cook 186, Root 35)
And Cook seems relatively happy to allow Root the strike, taking a single off Rahat Ali, who replaces Imran Khan. Root drives pleasantly through the covers for a couple, before once again jealously grasping the strike to his bosom with a single down to third man.

Meanwhile, a lightbulb has popped on over Phil Russell’s head: “Wouldn’t it be lovely if the two sides got together to set up an England run chase in the final 2-and-a-bit sessions? Perhaps England declaring around teatime today, then Pakistan setting 250ish for us to have a go at in about 70 overs. I vaguely remember something similarly sporting happening in a rain-ruined game against South Africa a few years back. South African skipper seemed a lovely bloke too, although there was a bit of fuss about it afterwards, for some reason.”

126th over: England 336-3 (Cook 185, Root 32)
Root has hogged the strike today, rather. By my count he’s faced 61 of the 90 balls bowled so far this morning, including all of that maiden sent down by Zulfiqar.

125th over: England 336-3 (Cook 185, Root 32)
Root cuts nicely in front of third man, who grudgingly trundles around to field with the enthusiasm of a man just sat down in his favourite chair, before realising he’s left his spectacles upstairs. A couple of balls have sort of kept a bit low, which is something to keep an eye on and one of the few chances the bowlers might have; they’re hardly Carl Hooper to Nasser Hussain style grubbers, but Root keeps the latest example out, before a thick inside-edge brings him a single from the last ball of the over.

124th over: England 333-3 (Cook 185, Root 29)
Everyone has a drink, Cook takes a single, then a refreshed Root celebrates his hydration with a belting sweep for four, in front of mid-wicket. Another one brings the score to a pleasing 333-3, triple Nelson, Graham Gooch and all that.

Eventful (by this Test's standard) 1st hour. Cook dropped, Root survives tight lbw, follow-on avoided, Pak bowlers impressive. Eng 327-3


123rd over: England 327-3 (Cook 184, Root 24)
Lovely drive by Root from a Khan half-volley, not perfectly timed but there’s enough middle on it to ensure the ball reaches the fence. The first four of his knock, that, and he immediately collects the second but in an altogether different manner; Root thinks it’s the same ball as before and plays the same shot, but it’s not quite as full and with a little more in-dip, and Root inside-edges just - just - past the stumps and to the boundary. There’s a big lbw shout next ball, but there was almost as much inside-edge on that one as the ball before. Then that review, and an eventful over comes to a close with a brief moment of vague uncertainty over a single to point, which isn’t taken.

He was a long way down the track, and the review shows it was just clipping leg, but umpires call means it stays with the not-out call on the pitch.

Root comes down the pitch, but is struck on the pads. They think for a while, and finally go upstairs.

122nd over: England 319-3 (Cook 184, Root 16)
Root, not a man who enjoys getting bogged down, has three goes at piercing the covers with some inside-out drives against Zulfiqar, succeeding with the third and taking a single. Zulfiqar then gets one to grip out of the rough and hop up at Cook, disquieting him slightly, but not enough to put him off sweeping the next ball with some oomph for the first boundary of the day.

121st over: England 314-3 (Cook 180, Root 15)
Khan, looking for all the world like Umar Gul after spending about six months in the gym, gets Cook to jab a little unconvincingly outside off, a jab which fortunately for the England skipper doesn’t actually go anywhere near the bat. A maiden, the first of the day.

120th over: England 314-3 (Cook 180, Root 15)
Turns out it was just an end change for Zulfiqar, who trundles in once more. Cook sweeps him for a single, then Root looks just a little bit uncertain in keeping out the rest of the over out, but keep it out he does.

119th over: England 313-3 (Cook 179, Root 15)
A bowling change, as Imran Khan replaces Zulfiqar, and is promptly whipped through square for a couple by Root. Root tries to take a couple of steps down the pitch to a couple of deliveries, but doesn’t have much joy.

Meanwhile, a milestone is coming up for Cook, a milestone that is absolutely absurd given he’s not even 31 yet...

By the end of the series, Cook may have faced more balls in Test cricket than any other England batsman. http://t.co/3UxFpr1jrr#PAKvENG

118th over: England 311-3 (Cook 179, Root 13)
Wahab bangs one in, the effort to do which must be akin to pushing a piano up a spiral staircase, but it nearly sort of almost produces a half-chance, Cook pulling round the corner, a ball that lands just in front of leg slip. It hops over the fielder’s grab and they take a single, then Root irks Wahab by pulling away from the crease at the very last moment. The bowler reacts with good humour, with not a hint of a Mervian ‘arsewipe’ sledge, then gets his own back with a jaffa that moves away just enough to beat the outside edge. Big grins all round from both ends of the pitch. A short ball is kept down well by Root who sort of dab-pulls down to fine leg for a single to end the over.

117th over: England 309-3 (Cook 178, Root 12)
Cook sits back and cuts Zulfiqar for a single, before Root reaches outside off to sweep a couple out to deep backward square.

“What’s been disturbing about the growing howls of pain and dismay in the last three days,” writes Robert Wilson, “is that there is not a serious cricket fan who is not inordinately vain about their capacity to endure nuclear-grade boredom. We boast to the French and Americans of our joy in the kind of ennui that could stun a team of oxen. Chris Tavaré would not be an icon in any other sport. A slow pitch and a crawling draw can be a thing of beauty, of course. And we’re all getting more attention-deficit quite clearly. But this has been something else. If the commentariat are so openly mutinous and mocking, it’s a very bad sign. Their entire careers depend on the notion that this stuff is significant. Botham would be honour-bound to chunter about anything but if the measured and in-touch-with-his-melancholy-side Atherton is putting the existential boot in, we’re in trouble.

116th over: England 306-3 (Cook 177, Root 10)
For such a chanceless pitch, Wahab is actually extracting what he can from this. He gets Cook to waft at one a little outside off, which he misses, then a yorker speared in at the toes is just clipped round the corner for a single. Wahab comes around the wicket to Root, who collects a pair of runs with a dab down to third man.

115th over: England 303-3 (Cook 176, Root 8)
Three singles from the over, one that got the fielders briefly excited because Root stepped back a fair way in his crease and for the briefest of seconds it looked like it might have been a leg before chance.

Incidentally, we have slightly different playing hours today, due to Friday prayers, with an extended morning session and lunch break. So, the hours are thus (all times BST):

114th over: England 300-3 (Cook 174, Root 7)
Wahab’s back, pounding in like the faithful workhorse that he is. Boxer himself would be proud. Cook flaps him off a stiff front pad down to fine leg for a single, Root dabs one past point, then a drop! Wahab gets one to tail in slightly at Cook, he jabs at it rather and it goes low to Ahmed’s right, but he grasses the diving catch. A tricky one, but a catch that should’ve been taken, and that’s the second time they’ve dropped Cook. To add insult etc, they take a single, bringing up England’s 300.

113th over: England 297-3 (Cook 172, Root 6)
England look fairly busy this morning. Cook and Root exchange singles, the latter taking a half skip down the track to do so, before the skipper turns one through square-leg for another.

112th over: England 294-3 (Cook 170, Root 5)
Wahab Riaz starts with a yorker, then has a shout for lbw against Cook, but that was heading way down leg. Another one on Cook’s pads is flicked fairly stiffly away for a single. Root then gets away for the day, opening the face and running a ball past point for a couple.

Meanwhile, this is a wonderful mail from Tony Whitley:

111th over: England 291-3 (Cook 169, Root 3)
Zulfiqar starts for Pakistan, bowling to Cook who sweeps the fourth ball of the over out to deep backward square for a single. Which is all for the over.

But over in Abu Dhabi, the players are out, and cricket is happening.

Meanwhile, over in Australia, Steve Smith has just scored another century, for New South Wales in the one-day Matador Cup. His scores this season have been 143*, 72, 0, 0, 101*.

Mushtaq Ahmed has just said it’s a ‘funny old game.’ He’s right, Saint.

Recommended listening: Kevin Pietersen spoke to Eleanor Oldroyd on the wireless yesterday about batting, and it was excellent. Listen here, if you haven’t already.

His book is out next week, ghosted by the Guardian’s Daniel Harris. A couple of marks of quality right there.

I love @MayorofLondon! What a legend! Hilarious buddy! https://t.co/g2N6SawhNE

Tom Gucht has been reading the runes: “Statistically speaking, there’s a lot riding in today’s play. Root and Cook are both battling out for who’s scored the most runs in 2015 whilst Broad and Anderson are gunning for the most wickets, interestingly with the same average: 25.17 runs per wicket. As a slightly superstitious person, I’ve possibly read too much into this and have used their figures as divine stable intervention into tonight’s Euro Millions and I’m about to head out and buy myself a ticket.”

“Am I the only one who has a huge soft spot for Tests like these?” asks Ian Forth. “Surely this is quintessential Test cricket. I can go and do something else when the opposition are batting, knowing nothing’s going to happen. Then crash onto the sofa, surround myself with remote controls, Toblerone, bantering texts, flavoured milk and arrange for Toby, my cocker spaniel, to be within head patting distance and drift into a happy semi-waking dream where England calmly glance and cut their way to arbitrary records and milestones. It’s Brisbane 2010 all over again (but with less schadenfreude). What’s not to like?”

Well - is he the only one?

So, who’s up for another day of watching batsmen score runs and bowlers wonder about the choices they’ve made in their lives that has led them to running up and down in the middle of the desert with barely any hope of taking any wickets?!?!??!?! You are? Great!

If it’s a relatively demoralising business watching this stuff, imagine what playing it must be like. Whether there’s much that can be done about it is unclear, but having a pitch for a Test match, theoretically the toughest test for both main facets of the game, is a little like bricking up half a football goal, or stretching clingfilm across the tryline on a rugby field. To give such an advantage to one half of the players renders the game basically pointless, and at the moment it looks like the only way of taking wickets is for the batsman to do something a bit daft. And given the men at the crease, Alastair Cook and Joe Root, do not generally have much form for daftness (unless you count Root giggling uncontrollably at Cook discussing Stuart Broad’s ‘length’ after the Ashes were won in the summer), then these Pakistani bowlers could be in for another long day.

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Pakistan v England: first Test, day five – live!

October 17, 2015, 2:07 am
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18th over: Pakistan 49-3 (Y Khan 14, Misbah 0) Misbah-ul-Haq is the new man in the middle, and Adil Rashid will, privately at least, be counting that as a wicket. It was all Stokes’ work though, collecting with his left hand, spinning and hitting the stumps from a distance. I say all Stokes’ work – the collective brain fade from Pakistan’s batsmen certainly helped.

Well, this was entirely avoidable. Hafeez prods Rashid to Stokes at point, starts to run, hesitates, and Stokes rattles the non-striker’s stumps with a pinpoint throw!

17th over: Pakistan 47-2 (Hafeez 34, Y Khan 12) Chance first ball, as Younis again slashes at a wide ball, and cuts it just beyond Ian Bell at slip, running away for four. It was a very tricky chance, with Bell having to fly low to his left. He has, as you’ll be aware, missed better chances this week. Stokes is getting a bit of pace out of the pitch, and the rest of the over flies by without a run...

16th over: Pakistan 43-2 (Hafeez 34, Y Khan 8) “Catch!” hollers Rashid, somewhat optimistically, as Hafeez nudges one off his hip towards short leg. Hafeez then drives into the covers, and the rest of the over plays out without incident. A second maiden in a row – and a most welcome one for Rashid – but not quite the ripsnorting start to the afternoon England might have hoped for.

15th over: Pakistan 43-2 (Hafeez 34, Y Khan 8) Stokes keeps Younis guessing, forcing him onto the back foot before switching to the short stuff, which the wily batsman repeatedly ducks underneath, before having a pointless swing at a wider delivery that squirts past the outside edge. A maiden.

Bad news for England, good news for this series as a spectacle: Yasir Shah was out on the field having a bowl during lunch,and looks to be fit and firing for the second Test.

14th over: Pakistan 43-2 (Hafeez 34, Y Khan 8) Now Rashid, who was unfortunate at the least not to claim Hafeez’s wicket before lunch, gets another go. Younis and Hafeez are both keen to attack poor Adil, not wanting to give him any confidence. Their slashed efforts are collectively mistimed, finding fielders routinely, with one particularly wild slap from Younis flying just wide of the bowler’s grasp.

13th over: Pakistan 38-2 (Hafeez 33, Y Khan 4); Pakistan trail by 40 runs Ben Stokes has ball in hand, trying to bluster his way through early in the afternoon session. He bangs the first ball in short to Younis, who nudges it away for a single. Stokes holds the line, angling in a series of short balls, which are seen off with little fuss.

The Guardian’s own Mike Selvey has been chatting on the telly, sporting a Breaking Bad t-shirt and making Athers look quite the square in his shirt and tie. Here’s what he had to say:

On the conditions: “I take my hat off to anyone playing cricket out there... it’s so hot, and the pitch is flat and slow. The teams haven’t helped themselves though, have they? Dropped catches don’t help when it’s 38 degrees in the shade”

Hello! Niall McVeigh here. Trudging up a dusty, pan-flat track, surrounded by wasteland, with nothing but empty luxury apartments twinkling on the horizon to rouse the senses – but enough about my walk through King’s Cross. This could (still) be exciting...

An intriguing session, that. Relative to the Test so far, we could also label it “compelling”.

Pakistan are still 40 runs behind England but, having lost two wickets in one Jimmy Anderson over, Hafeez has kept things going. Should he have been out on review against Adil Rashid? Compo thinks so. More OBOing in a bit.

That's out

12th over: Pakistan 35-2 (Hafeez 32, Khan 2)

Rashid’s got two slips and a bat-pad, but he veers onto Khan’s pads and allows him to manufacture a single. Rashid then beats Hafeez with a full, turning leg spinner. Umpire says not out for caught behind so Cook reviews on Buttler’s recommendation. Not out, still. The next ball is a dot before Hafeez ends the morning session with a towering six back over the bowler’s head!

Not out - as you were...

Appeal for caught behind as Adil Rashid turns out away from Hafeez. Umpire says not out, Cook gives it the ‘T’...

11th over: Pakistan 28-2 (Hafeez 26, Y.Khan 1)

Wood drops short and Hafeez thumps him into the mid-wicket fence for four! A better – quicker – short ball has Hafeez moving his hands and body out of the way of that one. He finishes with another bouncer though, this one guided sweetly through cover.

10th over: Pakistan 20-2 (Hafeez 18, Y.Khan 1)

Adil Rashid is into the attack and starts with a gentle but turning leggie. Khan finally gets off the mark, beating the cover fielder – the ball makes its way to the off side sweeper – for a single. The slow pitch allows Hafeez to dab through the off-side too.

Mark Putt has some equality for us...

“I noticed (on Cricinfo) that Anderson and Broad have exactly the same test average at the moment 29.22 - remarkable symmetry after more than 700 test wickets between them! 5 wickets each today wouldn’t be bad symmetry either!”

9th over: Pakistan 17-2 (Hafeez 16, Khan 0)

Change of bowling as Mark Wood comes on to replace Anderson. He’s taking a page out of Broad’s book, angling the ball into the right-hander, but Hafeez is getting onto the front foot convincingly, turning the last ball into the leg-side for a single.

8th over: Pakistan 16-2 (Hafeez 15, Khan 0)

Khan still yet to get off the mark as Broad keeps him honest with a good, angled spell into his stumps. Serves up a juicy wide one last ball in an attempt to draw a loose, lazy shot but Younis ignores it.

7th over: Pakistan 16-2 (Hafeez 15, Y.Khan 0)

Sublime from Hafeez, who cuts Anderson through cover, powerfully, for four! The next ball is pushed back to Anderson, who goes to throw the ball back at the batsman and chucks his white rag at him, too. But no chance Jimmy’s giving up that easily.

6th over: Pakistan 12-2 (Hafeez 11, Khan 0)

Anderson and now Broad throwing in the odd cutter to make use of what turn there is out there. Broad does well, coming wider on the crease and dishing out a “leggie” which beats Younis’ outside edge.

5th over: Pakistan 12-2 (Hafeez 11, Y.Khan 0)

Hafeez takes two into the leg-side before hitting a cross-seamer from Anderson down the ground for four. Anderson goes back to outside off but follows up with a yorker that Hafeez digs out. There was a suggesting from the fielders behind the stumps that the ball might have hit pad first, but it didn’t.

4th over: Pakistan 6-2 (Hafeez 5, Y.Khan 0)

Hafeez looking in good order, pushing another two into the off side before taking a singe off the fourth ball. Khan finishes the over edging just short of Joe Root at first slip.

Important news from Ali Martin on the ICC’s potential changes to World Cup qualifying which would hand a boost to the associate nations...

“As it stands, the next edition of the 50-over showpiece will see the top eight of the 12-team ICC rankings – on 30 September 2017 – go through by right, with the final two spots decided by a qualifying tournament the following year. But following criticism of that structure as part of the World Cup’s overall reduction from 14 teams down to 10, the ICC is mulling over whether to cut the number of sides that book their places via the rankings to six, leaving four berths up for grabs.”

3rd over: Pakistan 3-2 (Hafeez 2, Khan 0)

A smile on Jimmy’s face as Masood plays onto his stumps for the second time in the match. Shoaib Malik comes to the crease, “fresh” from his double ton with the bat and double ton in the field. But he’s gone! Jimmy manages to summon something out of this nothing of a pitch and has Malik fending a short-ball to Bairstow under the helmet! Game on?

Well well well! Jimmy gets a second in the over as one is bounced in short and straight and Malik can only punch the ball in the air to short-leg!

Poor bloke. After heading a ball onto his stumps in the first innings, Masood gets a scuttler that he gets bat on but can’t prevent dribbling onto middle stumps and dislodging the bails.

2nd over: Pakistan 3-0 (Hafeez 2, Masood 1)

Broad starts around the wicket to the left-handed Masood, who’s off the mark second ball. Broad puts a few outside off-stump, which bounce demoralisingly into the gloves of Buttler. The ones that don’t are defended by Hafeez.

1st over: Pakistan 2-0 (Hafeez 2, Masood 0)

Anderson was pretty grump when he walked off for the declaration and it seems like he’s pretty peeved now as he readjusts his field. Starts down the leg-side before Hafeez pushes into the covers for two. Root’s singing along to Jerusalem and offers the Barmy Army applause as they finish. Awful hymn, though. No swing at all.

Bit of early #funk with short mid off and short mid on to start... #PAKvENGpic.twitter.com/cX49vsrA6i

England have declared. The last time they batted 200plus overs was 21 years ago against WI in 1994. The Lara-375 match. #PakvEng

206th over: England 598-9 (Broad 17, Anderson 3)

Jimmy gets his reverse out and is caught at first slip – off his arm guard, it turns out. He tries it again at the end of the over but to no avail.

NOT OUT! England’s innings continues...

Anderson tries to reverse sweep Babar, but the ball loops up into the hands of first slip. The umpire gives it out but Jimmy reviews straightaway. Looks like arm guard...

205th over: England 597-9 (Broad 16, Anderson 3)

Block, play and miss then a tuck into the leg side for one. Broad on strike and he has a hoik and a miss. A pull behind square leg gets Broad one and then Anderson nearly skews a leading edge to cover. But doesn’t. Yay.

204th over: England 595-9 (Broad 15, Anderson 2)

Riaz gets a go at Anderson one ball in, but Jimmy’s up to the task: digging out a swinging yorker and nabbing himself a single in the process. Then a beamer! Totally accidental: he’s tried to bowl a leg-cutter but releases it far too early and Broad just ducks into the off-side.

203rd over: England 590-9 (Broad 13, Anderson 0)

Imran Khan into the attack and he removes Rashid with a good ball. James Anderson comes out and leaves his first ball before having his edge beaten for the final one.

Rashid goes to drive Imran Khan but the ball nips in off the seam and cuts through the right-hander, hitting middle and leg. Good nut.

Richard Harris has a suggestion for Cook on email:

“Cook should open the bowling with Rashid, using his quicks in two-over bursts from the other end. He won’t, of course, but it would be interesting.”

202nd over: England 590-8 (Rashid 12, Broad 13)

Riaz manages to get a bouncer in and the umpire calls it as his one for the over, to much amusement from the Pakistan fielders. Rashid whips one into the leg-side, Broad plays out the rest of the over in dots and I’m starting to wonder if it was worth coming into the office for this...

201st over: England 589-8 (Rashid 11, Broad 13)

Strange moment as Rashid seemingly volleys a ball – with his front foot – behind point. Babar’s the bowler, by the way, and the there’s an appeal from the keeper and a close-in catcher, but not him. Turns out it hit Rashid just outside off stump.

200th over: England 586-8 (Rashid 9, Broad 13)

Some short, some full – some Broad was comfortable with, some he wasn’t. Ends the over with a scampered two.

199th over: England 583-8 (Rashid 9, Broad 11)

Rashid gets off strike and Broad gets two with a lovely square drive. Elbow high, swagger tip-top as he saunters there and back before picking off another single to give “Rash” back the strike. Another single from Rashid, dropping his hands on one into the leg-side. The square leg umpire, to his credit, is moving from one side to another for the right and left-hander. Broad finishes the over with a tidy four through cover. Asad Shafiq dives, tries and fails to keep the ball in play.

198th over: England 574-8 (Rashid 7, Broad 4)

Wahab Riaz gets his first over of the day and, two balls in, decides to try and bump Rashid. But the leggie does well, playing it out into the off side and rolling his wrists on it to ensure the ball goes straight into the ground. Naturally, Broad also gets something short, first thing. And again, as Broad ducks.

197th over: England 573-8 (Rashid 6, Broad 4)

Three left from Rahat Ali’s over from last night to finish. Broad plays as correct a play and miss as you’ll see, then skews one between second slip and gully for four.

A quick word from Joe Root on Cook’s knock and England’s tactics today as the players make their way to the middle...

Vice-captain @joeroot05 says England will try and extend their lead and have a go at Pakistan on day five #PAKvENGhttps://t.co/UCjPHD6QEB

Morning all - Vish here to send some fifth day chat your way.

This was supposed to be an opening post full of whimsy. “Get ready for Adelaide redux” I’m supposed to bellow, two floors up in Guardian HQ: an unlikely deterioration of the Abu Dhabi surface lending itself to Adil Rashid’s maiden seven-fer. As Pakistan scrape to a lead of 120, out come Cook and Moeen and Mark Wood, England’s pinch-hitting Nightwatchman, to secure a thrilling victory.

Hello. Vithushan will be along shortly for the fifth and final day of the first Test.

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Pakistan v England: second Test, day one – as it happened

October 22, 2015, 6:40 am
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The Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq scored a brilliant century on an even opening day’s play in Dubai

Right, that’s it from us for today. Thanks for your company and your emails. Be sure to stick around on site for all the reports and reaction from Dubai. But from me, cheerio!

Pakistan 282-4. A fairly even state of affairs, I’d say. Neither side dominated and both sides have the chance to put themselves in control on day two. Misbah’s crazy final over was an incongruous way to end but thoroughly enjoyable nevertheless.

90th over: Pakistan 282-4 (Asad Shafiq 46, Misbah-ul-Haq 102) In the gloaming, Moeen hops in to bowl the final over of the day. Misbah, contrary mary that he is, hoists a huge slog-sweep high over midwicket for six! And then he unfurls the reverse-sweep! A thick edge prevents him from being trapped plum in front. And from the third ball he skips down the track and lofts Moeen into the stands at long on! To go to 99! Another reverse sweep takes him to three figures. Wonderful batting from the Pakistan captain. It’s taken him 191 to get to his 100. Sixteen – 16! – from the final over of the day. Bonkers.

89th over: Pakistan 266-4 (Asad Shafiq 46, Misbah-ul-Haq 87) Ben Stokes returns for what will in all likelihood be a fairly thankless six balls at Shafiq. In fact, out of nowhere, Shafiq leans into a gorgeous drive – one of the shots of the day – and sends the ball whistling for four.

88th over: Pakistan 261-4 (Asad Shafiq 41, Misbah-ul-Haq 86) It’s pretty dark out there now but we may just squeeze in these final three overs before they go off. This pair have closed up shop for the evening already though. Misbah plays out another maiden.

87th over: Pakistan 261-4 (Asad Shafiq 41, Misbah-ul-Haq 86) Shafiq leaves alone and blocks, blocks and leaves alone as Anderson steams in once more. A maiden.

86th over: Pakistan 261-4 (Asad Shafiq 41, Misbah-ul-Haq 86) Broad returns for a quick blast before the close. Misbah remains unmoved, then flicks the final ball for a couple into the on side.

85th over: Pakistan 259-4 (Asad Shafiq 41, Misbah-ul-Haq 84) Shafiq has a big waft with a cut shot outside off as Anderson offers him room to free his arms. Ball misses edge by a whisker. Shafiq does lay bat on ball later in the over, picking up a couple of runs to midwicket and two more straight down the ground.

84th over: Pakistan 255-4 (Asad Shafiq 37, Misbah-ul-Haq 84) England do in fact take the new ball now. Misbah smacks Wood’s first ball with it through gully for four and hoists the third over the man at square leg for four more.

83rd over: Pakistan 247-4 (Asad Shafiq 37, Misbah-ul-Haq 76) England didn’t actually take the new ball there. Stokes, with the old ball, strays full and wide to Shafiq and the batsman smears the ball away through the gully area for four. He wasn’t in full control of that by any means. He nudges to square leg for two more from the last.

82nd over: Pakistan 241-4 (Asad Shafiq 31, Misbah-ul-Haq 76) England take the new ball now and hand it to Mark Wood, who has bowled superbly today. Misbah stays rock solid in defence – he’s barely played a shot against the seamers but the only time he’s looked in any difficulty has been when tested by a bouncer. He sways out of the way of Wood’s attempted bumper with the last.

81st over: Pakistan 241-4 (Asad Shafiq 31, Misbah-ul-Haq 76) Is that the new ball in your pocket, umpire Reiffel, or are you just pleased to see me? It’s the new ball, but England haven’t taken it yet. Instead they’ve thrown the old one to Ben Stokes, who has probably extracted more reverse swing from the battered old cherry than any other bowler today. There’s not much for him here, though.

80th over: Pakistan 240-4 (Asad Shafiq 31, Misbah-ul-Haq 75) The new ball is available after this over, though there’s no guarantee England will take it immediately. And there’s 10 overs left in the day after this, though we probably have only another half hour of playable light.

There’s a big shout here from Broad as he crashes a ball into Shafiq’s pads. With the reviews being refreshed in two balls’ time England opt to send this to the third umpire, just because they might as well. To the naked eye it looks to have hit Shafiq outside leg stump and be continuing on its merry way down. Hawkeye shows the ball impacting in line but missing leg stump by a good couple of inches.

79th over: Pakistan 240-4 (Asad Shafiq 31, Misbah-ul-Haq 75) Shafiq elegantly guides a wide one from Rashid through backward point for a couple. And then picks up three more in less aesthetically pleasing style to the same region. On both occasions Broad has to wearily chase the ball down. The glare currently being pointed at Rashid could melt steel, you presume. An excellent googly almost slips through Misbah’s defences later in the over.

“That is one bloody big bat!” notes Robert Wilson. “It’s adorable and everything but I’m not the first to say that these over-sized bats are just ruining the game as a contest …”

78th over: Pakistan 235-4 (Asad Shafiq 26, Misbah-ul-Haq 75) Stuart Broad, for whom these conditions are anathema and has the air of a man who knows it, replaces James Anderson. He troubles Misbah with a bouncer, although the batsman picks up a couple of runs for his trouble.

77th over: Pakistan 233-4 (Asad Shafiq 26, Misbah-ul-Haq 73) Shafiq works Rashid to leg for a couple, then charges down the the pitch and plays a wild one-legged swipe back over the bowler’s head for four.

76th over: Pakistan 227-4 (Asad Shafiq 20, Misbah-ul-Haq 73) Short and wide from Anderson and Shafiq tucks in with a similar amount of relish as this fruit bat:

75th over: Pakistan 222-4 (Asad Shafiq 15, Misbah-ul-Haq 73) CLONK! Misbah thunks Rashid into the stands at long on for six. And he repeats the trick from the next! He’s just scored more runs in two balls than in the previous nine overs combined.

74th over: Pakistan 210-4 (Asad Shafiq 15, Misbah-ul-Haq 61) Anderson drifts onto Misbah’s pads and is tucked away for a single to leg, the first run conceded by Anderson in this spell.

Pink ball chat in the Sky commentary box. “It’s messing with something that should not be messed with,” says Sir Iron Bottom of the Ark of the Covenant prospect of day-night Tests.

73rd over: Pakistan 209-4 (Asad Shafiq 15, Misbah-ul-Haq 60) Shafiq breaks run of dots by pushing Rashid down the ground for a single. And the runs are suddenly flowing in a deluge, Misbah making it two in two from the next ball. It’s good stuff again from Rashid though.

72nd over: Pakistan 207-4 (Asad Shafiq 14, Misbah-ul-Haq 59) England are stringing together maidens once more. Anderson sends down the third on the bounce.

71st over: Pakistan 207-4 (Asad Shafiq 14, Misbah-ul-Haq 59) Shafiq struggles to get Rashid away, prodding and poking a little uncertainly and then missing with an attempted sweep. Another maiden.

70th over: Pakistan 207-4 (Asad Shafiq 14, Misbah-ul-Haq 59) With Pakistan beginning to settle down again after that post-tea scare, England turn to Jimmy Anderson once more. He wobbles one back in to Misbah, who just gets his bat down in time. A maiden.

69th over: Pakistan 207-4 (Asad Shafiq 14, Misbah-ul-Haq 59) Rashid returns. Misbah misses out on a full toss so juicy it should have come served with a side salad and choice of potatoes.

68th over: Pakistan 204-4 (Asad Shafiq 13, Misbah-ul-Haq 57) Some fascinating replays of Misbah seemingly snapping the handle of his bat earlier (60th over). But he just twisted it back into place and carried on. Very strange. Still, batting with a handle made of Wham bars doesn’t seem to be hampering him. He casually picks up another single from Stokes’ latest offering.

67th over: Pakistan 203-4 (Asad Shafiq 13, Misbah-ul-Haq 56) Confusion! Shafiq has to dive full length to make his ground after setting off for a single in which Misbah had precisely zero interest. He’s safe, though, and he’s safe after scurrying through for a run from Moeen’s next ball despite a direct hit from Joe Root.

66th over: Pakistan 201-4 (Asad Shafiq 12, Misbah-ul-Haq 55) Stokes sends down a maiden at Misbah.

65th over: Pakistan 201-4 (Asad Shafiq 12, Misbah-ul-Haq 55) Shafiq almost gets a swipe through midwicket horribly wrong, the ball only just flying wide of a diving Bell. He picks up four runs for the shot, though, taking Pakistan past 200.

“Re: orange balls. James Lupton can very happily tell me about it being a bad idea,” writes Ian Palmer. “I have no authority over anything, but I will duly note it for future reference as my brother is colour blind and it might be useful for a competitive advantage next time we play cricket in the garden.”

64th over: Pakistan 196-4 (Asad Shafiq 8, Misbah-ul-Haq 54) Ben Stokes (8-2-25-1) returns. A yorker almost gets through Shafiq’s defences but an edge instead squirts away to third man for four. England are on top here and no mistake.

63rd over: Pakistan 191-4 (Asad Shafiq 4, Misbah-ul-Haq 53) Shot! Misbah goes to his half-century with a reverse-sweep for four. Another tidy enough over from Moeen, though.

62nd over: Pakistan 184-4 (Asad Shafiq 3, Misbah-ul-Haq 47) Misbah again gets himself into a bit of a mess with a short ball, ducking his head down and hoping for the best. The ball cannons away safely off his gloves. From the next, though, he’s on the offensive, pulling firmly away for a single. From the next, Wood tempts a drive from Shafiw and the ball misses the outside edge by a whisker.

61st over: Pakistan 183-4 (Asad Shafiq 3, Misbah-ul-Haq 46) “Come on Mo!” chirrups Jos Buttler from behind the stumps, bringing this to mind for some reason:

60th over: Pakistan 182-4 (Asad Shafiq 3, Misbah-ul-Haq 45) Misbah manages to break his bat handle while sliding it into the crease at the end of a quick run, the handle jamming underneath his thigh pad and bending like a Highland Toffee. Very odd. Wood is bowling terrifically here, finding bounce in the pitch and squaring Shafiq up with the last.

“I notice there is a plan for orange balls too,” writes James Lupton. “Who do I need to contact to say THIS IS A VERY BAD IDEA? For colour blind players, orange ball against green grass = invisible ball. Take my word for it.”

59th over: Pakistan 180-4 (Asad Shafiq 1, Misbah-ul-Haq 45) Misbah turns Moeen to leg for the first run since tea, and Shafiq is equally watchful, a thick inside edge off the final ball of the over getting him off the mark.

58th over: Pakistan 178-4 (Asad Shafiq 0, Misbah-ul-Haq 44) A bit of a Brucey bonus there for England. Since tea the collective bowling figures read 3-3-0-1.

Five more dots … and then England have their man! Younis attempts a tickle to fine leg but gets a faint touch on the ball and sends it through to Buttler.

57th over: Pakistan 178-3 (Younis Khan 56, Misbah-ul-Haq 44) Moeen finds a hint of turn with a couple of his off-breaks but Misbah is as solid as a rock in defence. Back-to-back maidens after tea.

56th over: Pakistan 178-3 (Younis Khan 56, Misbah-ul-Haq 44) Mark Wood begins after tea. There’s a huge appeal as he fizzes the first ball of the session onto Younis’s pads. Have England made an immediate post-break breakthrough again? Um, no. And they opt not to review. It’s probably sliding down … and Hawkeye confirms it.

“All this pink ball chat,” writes Steve Hollick. “Am I going daft or is it not really pink at all? It just looks bright red to me.” I don’t know, Steve. They look pretty pink to me.

Hello again. Out come the players once more, with the sun already getting low in the Dubai sky.

That’s all from me. Mr John Ashdown will take you home after tea. Yer emails to John.Ashdown@theGuardian.com, and yer tweets to @John_Ashdown. Enjoy.

A fun game for us all later on, from Tom Bowtell:

“If this last session turns out to be a bit of a slog, OBO-readers are welcome to join me in my new obsession: trying to spot the moment when Anderson and Broad’s test average, strike rate and economy rate become identical.

So a partnership of 93 that has lasted a session minus one ball, and Pakistan are ahead now. Misbah is a weird batsman in that he can look like the wallest of walls, a granitey splicing of Rahul Dravid and Jonathan Trott, but then very occasionally play an absurd attacking shot, which sometimes comes off but also can merrily donate his wicket.

55th over: Pakistan 178-3 (Younis Khan 55, Misbah-ul-Haq 45)
Here comes Adil Rashid, with an over before tea, and it nearly brings some joy as Misbah plays a really, really weird hoik that he only gets a thick toe-end on, it squirts square and drops just in front of Joe Root at mid-wicket.

“I am reminded of a tour match many years ago when South Africa played Gloucester,” writes Andy English on the lack of action a few moments ago. “Jack Russell was padding up and kicking everything away, much to the chagrin of the crowd, who wanted to see the tourists have a bat by then. Jonty Rhodes took it upon himself to lie in the middle of the wicket between overs and do 10 sit ups.

54th over: Pakistan 177-3 (Younis Khan 55, Misbah-ul-Haq 45)
Oooh, something happening! Misbah drives pleasantly through the covers for four. “Missus-bah likes it too,” comments Rameez Raja on commentary as the crowd cuts to the batsman’s wife applauding in the crowd. Doesn’t really work, that, Rammo. Two more singles from the over.

53rd over: Pakistan 171-3 (Younis Khan 54, Misbah-ul-Haq 39)
Couple of chaps in the crowd are asleep. It’s warm, it’s a leisurely sport, but come on boys - you’re not helping with the people who take one look at these grounds and say “But there’s nobody there!”

52nd over: Pakistan 170-3 (Younis Khan 54, Misbah-ul-Haq 38)
Sorry. Another relatively uneventful over. Two runs from it. Maybe someone should do a quick dance or something. Something will happen soon. Promise.

51st over: Pakistan 168-3 (Younis Khan 53, Misbah-ul-Haq 37)
Just a single from that over, a flicked one off Younis’s pads. Not much more to say about that. Sorry.

50th over: Pakistan 167-3 (Younis Khan 52, Misbah-ul-Haq 37)
Mo Mo Mo, Moeen Ali Moeen Ali replaces Stokes, and immediately gets an inside edge from Misbah that dribbles just wide of short-leg. Then a quite spiffing reverse-sweep from the skipper, a telegraphed effort that all the fielders saw coming from a mile off, but none could stop it going for four. A single brings Younis to strike, and he notches another 50 with a flick into the leg side.

49th over: Pakistan 158-3 (Younis Khan 48, Misbah-ul-Haq 32)
Stokes troops off the field for a well-earned lie down and rub, as Broad continues. Buttler stands up to the stumps, with one slip at about third, and Younis promptly drives airily and edges, which flies through to roughly knee height of where first slip would’ve been. Oy vey. That’s four runs and one pretty cross bowler.

48th over: Pakistan 153-3 (Younis Khan 43, Misbah-ul-Haq 32)
Stokes drops a touch short, and Younis carts him round the corner for a couple down to fine leg, this shortly after upbraiding the latest selection of pillocks wandering around near the sight screen. One more single from the over.

47th over: Pakistan 150-3 (Younis Khan 40, Misbah-ul-Haq 32)
Stuey Stuey Stu Stu Broad is back with the ball with a few cutters, and moving around the crease a bit. A good over that, Younis taking a single but Misbah playing the rest of it away with some caution.

46th over: Pakistan 149-3 (Younis Khan 39, Misbah-ul-Haq 32)
Stokes again, and he aims a hearty left boot at a ball that Younis pats back towards him. He misses, but his mood won’t be helped, firstly after Younis drives him through the covers for three, then Misbah gets a proper edge that drops exactly between first and second slip, and about a foot in front of both. Not a drop/chance by any stretch, but irksome nonetheless, particularly for someone who has reacted to misfortune before by punching a locker.

45th over: Pakistan 140-3 (Younis Khan 34, Misbah-ul-Haq 28)
Misbah’s bat can look like something akin to an oar when he gets down for a lap-sweep, which he does and sweeps a four round the corner off Rashid.

Meanwhile, one from the ‘I’m not racist right, but...’ files here...

Related: Former Derby winger Stefano Eranio sacked over racist comments

44th over: Pakistan 134-3 (Younis Khan 33, Misbah-ul-Haq 23)
The last thing you want when you’ve got a ropey belly (as in Stokes’s illness, rather than a butter-fingered No.3 bat and slip fielder) is a misfield, but Bairstow lets push from Misbah under his hand at mid-wicket, and a dot turns into a single. Well, actually, probably the last thing you need with a ropey belly is prannets on over-by-over blogs going on about it. Stokes beats Younis with a nice away shaper that the whole English team thinks about appealing for, but then collectively realise it didn’t hit the bat.

43rd over: Pakistan 133-3 (Younis Khan 33, Misbah-ul-Haq 22)
Careful defence from Misbah, propping forwards carefully and not taking any ris...oh, he’s hit Rashid back over his head for a straight six. Weird how these things turn out.

An ode to Jimmy, from Christopher Dale: “Never cease to be impressed by Anderson’s craft, guile and skill, particularly on unfriendly wickets. For a bowler who’s neither particularly fast nor short enough to be skiddy or tall enough to generate discomfiting bounce, and who was originally a specialist swing bowler, Anderson has developed into a wonderful player. Strike and stock bowler, decent slip fielder, and seems to be a better influence on the team than Flintoff, Harmison et al. were.

42nd over: Pakistan 126-3 (Younis Khan 33, Misbah-ul-Haq 15) Stokes, finding a bit of reverse swing, troubles Younis a touch and is a little unlucky to see a thick edge zip away to third man for four.

And with that I shall hand you back over to Nick Miller, who will take you through until tea.

41st over: Pakistan 120-3 (Younis Khan 27, Misbah-ul-Haq 15) Sky Sports returns from an ad break to find Sir Iron Bottom in mid-sentence: “… which these days, when you’re travelling around the world, is essential.” I can’t help but feel we’ve missed out on some important travel titbit there. Misbah, crawling along, sweeps Rashid for a couple.

40th over: Pakistan 117-3 (Younis Khan 26, Misbah-ul-Haq 13) Ben Stokes replaces Mark Wood to complete the double change. And with the final ball of the over, he beats the outside edge of Misbah’s bat with one that just seams away a touch.

39th over: Pakistan 116-3 (Younis Khan 26, Misbah-ul-Haq 13) Adil Rashid enters the fray for the first time this afternoon. He offers a bit too much width to both batsmen, and both swipe through the covers for singles. In fact, his radar is all over the shop here. Misbah pounces on a rank half-tracker and clubs in slightly miscued fashion over the top for four. Eight from the over.

38th over: Pakistan 108-3 (Younis Khan 24, Misbah-ul-Haq 7) Misbah again ducks into a Wood bouncer and this time he wears it on his helmet. He’s fine, though, and Younis seems to find it hilarious. A couple of leg byes are added to the total.

37th over: Pakistan 106-3 (Younis Khan 24, Misbah-ul-Haq 7) Anderson, increasingly red-faced with the effort, continues into the fifth over of this spell. Buttler stands up behind the stumps in an attempt to pin down the batsmen. Younis is twice able to work the ball to leg for two. He’s scored the bulk of his runs backward of square of the on side.

36th over: Pakistan 102-3 (Younis Khan 20, Misbah-ul-Haq 7) Misbah ducks into a Wood bouncer and takes a glancing blow on the shoulder blade. And that’s pretty much the only action in another maiden.

35th over: Pakistan 102-3 (Younis Khan 20, Misbah-ul-Haq 7) Younis opens the face and guides Anderson down to third man for a couple. This might well be the final over of Anderson’s post-lunch spell – he’s got a bit of a dab on.

@John_Ashdown Jimmy now 9th in list of test wicket takers. Overtaken harbhajan

34th over: Pakistan 100-3 (Younis Khan 18, Misbah-ul-Haq 7) It’s such a strange atmosphere in Dubai – a bit like playing cricket in a giant empty saucepan. Younis takes Pakistan into three figures with another tickle to leg. From the last there’s the yelp of an appeal as the ball flicks off some part of Misbah’s anatomy on its way through to Buttler, but it’s fairly clear that it’s off the thigh pad.

33rd over: Pakistan 99-3 (Younis Khan 17, Misbah-ul-Haq 7) Anderson strings together four dots at Younis, who is able to work the fifth wide of midwicket for a couple. And he adds a single, flicked off his pads, from the last.

32nd over: Pakistan 96-3 (Younis Khan 14, Misbah-ul-Haq 7) Mark Wood returns, looking to bowl full and straight at Misbah. The Pakistan captain deals with him easily enough, so the bowler sends down a couple of bumpers to mix things up. Rinse and repeat. A maiden.

31st over: Pakistan 96-3 (Younis Khan 14, Misbah-ul-Haq 7) Just a single for Misbah as Anderson bends his back once more.

30th over: Pakistan 95-3 (Younis Khan 14, Misbah-ul-Haq 6) Moeen returns at the other end. Misbah plays a gentle, caressing sweep for a couple, then repeats the shot in rather more clunking fashion to earn three more. And Younis gets in on the act next up, latching onto an overpitched ball from Moeen and driving confidently through the covers for four.

29th over: Pakistan 86-3 (Younis Khan 10, Misbah-ul-Haq 1) That was a cracking delivery from Anderson, slanted across the left-hander – and you didn’t need Snicko or UltraEdge to hear the nick. Misbah gets off the mark with a tickle to leg.

Anderson strikes with the first ball after lunch! Masood is tempted into a rusty grope outside off, and there’s a faint edge thought to Buttler. Masood wastes a review in his befuddlement.

The players are back out. Off we go again …

Hello all. I think that goes down as a pretty good morning for England. But the fact that 85-2 counts as “pretty good” for the bowling team tells you something about this pitch.

And with that, I’ll hand over John Ashdown, who’ll take you through the first hour of the afternoon. Email him at John.Ashdown@theGuardian.com, or tweet @John_Ashdown, ideally about cricket but feel free to take it for a walk.

The question posed earlier on about the most catches taken by a position - rather than an individual fielder - is probably one that can’t be answered, given the fluidity of positions and the lack of reliable records about these things in the past. However, we can say that Ajinkya Rahane has the record for most taken by a fielder with eight, two seemingly at gully and the other six at slip.

So, honours even? Honours to Pakistan? Probably just about the latter, although England will be not despondent with the two wickets so far on a pitch that still looks rather flat, despite promises/suggestions of rather more juice than last time.

28th over: Pakistan 85-2 (Younis Khan 10, Masood 54)
Younis carefully keeps out a few from Rashid, including a very full one that actually nearly yorks him. However, as is often the case with Rashid, he offers a full-toss that Younis whacks through the covers and to the boundary.

27th over: Pakistan 81-2 (Younis Khan 6, Masood 54)
Broad bowls straight and true, one of which Younis drives a little uppishly at, but it falls safe. He then escapes the deadest of lbws by just about getting an inside-edge on a delivery, the ball scooting down to fine leg for a single.

Here’s Robert Wilson on some pretty saucy sounding gnats: “Of course gnats do NOT have toenails (21st over). They are however, admirably enough, amongst the most sexually promiscuous and indefatigable of insects (the large clouds of them you walk through are, in fact, giant orgies called ghosts). They don’t like tomatoes but adore bananas and village cricket grounds are amongst their favourite preying areas - open spaces ringed by trees + sweaty humans = gnat happiness. I once had a pet gnat called Colin. I used to give him tiny saucers of milk. I miss him.”

26th over: Pakistan 80-2 (Younis Khan 5, Masood 54)
Adil Rashid is on, and gets a bit of turn straight away, turn that Younis feels confident enough to leave outside off. Well, apart from that one he drives out to the cover sweeper for a single. Masood swats a googly out to just wide of fine leg for a couple, before just about keeping out a standard leg spinner from the final ball.

25th over: Pakistan 77-2 (Younis Khan 4, Masood 52)
Couple of overs of Stuart Broad before lunch, and his first ball is an in-ducker that Younis leaves and it flies not a million miles from off stump. Another is worked/squirted past square-leg for a single, before Masood brings up his 50 with a late cut that skips just past point and to the boundary.

24th over: Pakistan 72-2 (Younis Khan 3, Masood 48)
Moeen continues, and Masood fidgets around the crease but can’t get the ball out of the inner ring of fielders, the last ball producing a good bit of fielding at point to stop any sort of runs. A second maiden in a row.

23rd over: Pakistan 72-2 (Younis Khan 3, Masood 48)
A relatively uneventful but good over from Stokes, the final ball causing the most excitement as he gets it to shape away just the right amount to beat Younis’s outside edge by one of those gnat’s toes we were talking about before.

@NickMiller79 Do we need a Stokes-face-shade-o-meter? Pink-Red=Ginger under the sun, Green=Dubai cuisine strikes?

22nd over: Pakistan 72-2 (Younis Khan 3, Masood 48)
Masood jabs at one with little certainty that drops not far short of mid-on, but next up he comes down the track and smacks a delightful inside-out drive wide of mid-off for four. His three partners so far haven’t done a great deal, but Masood looks in smashing touch.

21st over: Pakistan 68-2 (Younis Khan 3, Masood 44)
Younis is away, driving through the covers and they take three. It has to be said, Stokes doesn’t exactly look delighted to be out there, but that might well be just a man of fair complexion not enjoying this heat. Anyway, he cuts Masood in half, missing both inside edge and off stump by a gnat’s toenail width. Do gnats have toenails? Do they have toes? Probably not. In less important news, Masood flicks a single down to fine leg.

20th over: Pakistan 64-2 (Younis Khan 0, Masood 43)
Woof. Masood’s been eyeing up a big shot for a while, and he gets one at last after skipping down the pitch and launching Ali way over the straight boundary for six. He carries on quite nicely.

So two catches at short-leg - do we know what the most number of catches taken by one position - that’s position, rather than player - apart from wicketkeeper in a Test match is?

19th over: Pakistan 58-2 (Younis Khan 0, Masood 37)
Brilliant reactions in that catch from Bairstow. Younis ducks under a short one, and that’s an outstanding start from Stokes, who was apparently not ‘100%’ before this one.

Ben Stokes is on for Wood, so now we’ll discover just how iffy that stomach of his is. And it’s very good indeed! Malik swipes at one from middle stump, looking to turn it into mid-wicket but the ball thuds into Bairstow at short-leg, the ball loops up and he takes a sharp catch.

18th over: Pakistan 58-1 (Malik 2, Masood 37)
Masood comes down the pitch and nearly gets himself into a very unpleasant difficulty, before just sorting his feet out in time. However, he then waits on a shortish ball from Moeen that he cuts with some confidence through an empty point region for four.

17th over: Pakistan 54-1 (Malik 2, Masood 33)
Wood carries on around the wicket, with short-leg buzzing about looking for any catch that might come his way. Masood then pushes a fuller one for a quick single, which they dash through for but Shoaib did shilly-shally a little, meaning a bullet throw might have troubled him, but the effort from the fielder coming round from mid-on hit the stumps at the non-striker’s end, with Masood well in his ground.

16th over: Pakistan 53-1 (Malik 2, Masood 32)
Shoaib Malik is the new bat, and he gets off the mark straight away with a push through the covers. But England are away, and one can only assume a clatter of wickets will follow...

After drinks, the breakthrough. Hafeez cuts a short one through point for four, then props forward rather casually, gets a big inside edge onto his pads and offers a looping catch to Bairstow at short-leg, who turns around and pouches the thing.

15th over: Pakistan 47-0 (Hafeez 15, Masood 32)
Wood continues with the short balls, the first of which Masood ducks under but does leave his front arm out a little, rather closer to the ball that might be advisable. Of course, the problem with this approach on a pitch that ain’t exactly Perth in the 1970s is that when you don’t quite get enough pace on the ball, you’re serving up long-hops, which Wood does and Masood pulls him carefully for four. Wood goes fuller, on Masood’s pads, and he clips a couple in front of mid-wicket, before one ball from around the wicket that Masood again evades.

14th over: Pakistan 41-0 (Hafeez 15, Masood 26)
Masood advances to Ali, smearing one with no huge amount of conviction into the covers, getting a single for his troubles when more than that looked to be the plan. That’s yer lot from the over.

13th over: Pakistan 40-0 (Hafeez 15, Masood 25)
Wood serves up a bit of a long hop that Masood cuts towards the cover ropes, but Bairstow dashes out from the infield to keep them to three. It must be vaguely demoralising to sprint after a ball, dive headlong after it, drag it in from before the boundary then throw it in, only to save a single run. Hafeez clips a single off his shins, then Wood continues the short stuff at Masood, the last ball nudged off his hip for a single.

12th over: Pakistan 35-0 (Hafeez 14, Masood 21)
Hafeez tries a sweep on which he’s later than the White Rabbit, missing by some distance, one of those hoiks that you just close your eyes and thank the deity of your choice when the ball thuds into wicketkeeper gloves rather than stumps. Otherwise, a maiden.

11th over: Pakistan 35-0 (Hafeez 14, Masood 21)
Mark Wood, imaginary horse hopefully tethered somewhere safe, is into the attack, and ponders his field at some length with Cook, and it looks like there might be a few short ones coming. Although not immediately, as Masood flicks a full ball off his toes for a couple, one of those fielders in the deep collecting the ball near the ropes. Smashing bouncer though from Wood next, which Masood dodges but it just brushes his sleeve on its way to whistling past his ears.

“Poor Stokes,” writes Robert Wilson, and you should probably nudge the porridge to one side before reading on. “I’ll never forget watching Phil De Freitas stop his run up to projectile vomit before blithely resuming his delivery stride. It had been a pretty pukey tour of I can’t remember where but going all Exorcist while running into bowl was a whole new level. I’d always liked Daffy but that put him in the Pantheon for me.”

10th over: Pakistan 33-0 (Hafeez 14, Masood 19)
Ali in again, and Masood advances and punches one to a deepish mid-off, taking a single. There are at least three England players out there in long sleeves, which even from an office in London looks like a very bold choice in the heat. What’s the theory there, then? Protection from the sun? Masochism? Covering of a large anchor tattoo on the forearm?

9th over: Pakistan 32-0 (Hafeez 14, Masood 18)
Anderson continues, trying one from a bit wider on the crease but Hafeez watches it go past with mild interest and little else. Those predictions of a pitch with more juice than before look more than a little optimistic at the moment.

8th over: Pakistan 32-0 (Hafeez 14, Masood 18)
Early bowling change, as Moeen Ali comes on for Broad. He starts with a full-toss that Masood clips off his ankles for a couple before, emboldened, he attempts a skip down the track and gets halfway through perhaps the least convincing hoik over cow corner you’ve ever seen, thinking better of it before it’s too late.

Ali Martin has word from elsewhere:

Meanwhile the Bangladesh Premier League auction is underway ... Chris Jordan is now a Sylhet Superstar, Darren Stevens is a Comilla Victorian ... names like Sam Billings, Ravi Bopara, James Tredwell, Jade Dernbach and Paul Collingwood yet to go under the hammer.

7th over: Pakistan 30-0 (Hafeez 14, Masood 16)
More patience from Hafeez, before playing an absolutely delicious drive through mid-off and to the boundary. Broad then chases a jab through mid-wicket into the shade of the stands, and the batsmen return for a couple. A very good start from these two, with Masood already quintupling his aggregate score from the last Test, plus one.

6th over: Pakistan 24-0 (Hafeez 8, Masood 16)
Another four, this time a lot less convincingly, for Masood, driving at Broad without much conviction outside off and the edge goes past gully and to the third man fence, but he follows up with a much better shot, middling an admittedly inviting leg-stump half-volley through wide mid-wicket and to the boundary. The rest of the over is a little better directed from Broad, and no more runs come.

5th over: Pakistan 16-0 (Hafeez 8, Masood 8)
Hafeez is playing at Anderson’s off stump probers extremely carefully, like an Aardman animator delicately moving the arms of a clay character. He gets four in roughly that manner, dabbing with soft hands at one that sort of squirts off the outside edge along the ground, and through the slips to the boundary.

4th over: Pakistan 11-0 (Hafeez 4, Masood 7)
First boundary of the day, Masood clipping one off his pads down to fine leg and the boundary, before a push in front of mid-wicket gets a single. And then another four, this time from Hafeez, with a pleasant push through the covers and to the ropes.

3rd over: Pakistan 2-0 (Hafeez 0, Masood 2)
Two men on white plastic chairs sit too close to the sight screen, and are asked to move. Perhaps this is their first Test match, but if not they both need a good slapping with a wet slipper. Masood pushes Anderson into the covers for a single, before Hafeez gets a thick inside edge that loops up to where short-leg would’ve been, but was not. That whiff of away movement gets Hafeez prodding at the last ball of the over, missing the outside edge. Promising start from Anderson.

Tom Gucht has some admiration for Ben Stokes: “Stokes clearly is a hero amongst men; there’s not a chance I’d appear in front of TV cameras in white strides if I had the trots, there’s no hiding any sticky situations...”

2nd over: Pakistan 1-0 (Hafeez 0, Masood 1)
Stuart Broad tumbles in from the other end, round the wicket to Masood, who pokes at one on his hips that drops just short of the Ginger Brian Close (Jonny Bairstow to his mam) at short-leg. He gets off the mark with a fairly unconvincing hook (he wasn’t looking when ball met bat) that causes brief excitement in the field, but dropped well short of fine leg.

1st over: Pakistan 0-0 (Hafeez 0, Masood 0)
Bit of carry early on for Anderson, everything on or around off stump and with a whiff of away swing, all of which bodes rather well. For England, and everyone else’s boredom threshold. The final ball of the over is a shade shorter and Hafeez nearly chops on, the ball dropping at his feet, one of which he uses just to nudge the thing away from the stumps, just in case.

Meanwhile, a report from Ali Martin in Dubai on the weather, and other conditions: ‘Slightly cooler than last week but temperatures forecast to reach 38c during the day. One advantage in this ground is that crescent shadow created by the stands means there is more shade on the outfield and it will move around the ground as the day goes on. One disadvantage is that without the open sides of Abu Dhabi, the light tends to get quite dim earlier (left training at 4.45pm yesterday and it was very dark out there). Bumped into the umpire Bruce Oxenford outside afterwards and asked if it would be a problem and he said the “ring of fire” floodlights that circle the top of the ground are better than the pylons at Abu Dhabi at enhancing the light.’

The players are out. James Anderson has the ball. Cricket. CRICKET.

@NickMiller79 Is it as hot as the last match? What are the odds Stokes ends up retired hurt with dehydration?

Apparently it’s about as hot, but not quite as humid. Not sure if that will make a difference to a man with a dicky tummy.

Ah...

Cook on Stokes, yesterday: "Five days in this heat, you have to be 100% before you start" Today: "He's not 100% but he's pretty close"

And Alastair Cook reckons Jos Buttler will score some runs soon. Although admittedly it would be a rather bigger story if he’d said the wicketkeeper was a grasping buffoon and he’ll struggle to get the thing of the cut strip:

Jos has had a tough six or seven games with the bat,” conceded Cook, who pushed Buttler up to open in their second innings run chase. “The shots are there but people find out more about you as a Test player and do more research.

“He’s had to go away and think about his game a bit more.

Just time for some pre-match reading. Here’s Mike Selvey’s preview, hoping for some better balance between bat and ball:

The final day of the first Test in Abu Dhabi was a crackerjack but the preceding four days, even containing as they did some remarkable feats of endurance, did few favours. As someone rightly pointed out, it was not a bad advertisement for Test cricket, simply because it was actually the real thing.

How that pitch was marked by the match referee, Andy Pycroft, has not been disclosed, but it would be a surprise if the International Cricket Council, whose headquarters are no more than a decent par four from the Dubai InternationalCricket Stadium where the second Test starts on Thursday, has not let it be known that more of the same is simply unacceptable. If the first Test was one of sheer drudgery for the bowlers, then the second is likely to offer some respite in the form of a pacier surface: seamers and spinners alike would be grateful for that.

Related: England upbeat for second Pakistan Test but Dubai pitch offers new challenge | Mike Selvey

So no changes for England, with Ben Stokes “not 100%” following stomach problems but he’s in the team and ready to go, according to Alastair Cook, while as expected Yasir Shah returns for Pakistan, replacing Rahat Ali.

Mohammad Hafeez, Shan Masood, Shoaib Malik, Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq (c), Asad Shafiq, Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), Wahab Riaz, Yasir Shah, Zulfiqar Babar, Imran Khan

...and they will have a bat.

So then. That last one was unexpectedly rather good, wasn’t it?‎ Or, at least, the last bit of it was rather good. Once again cricket provided a fine opportunity for non-fans to ask ‘Why aren’t they playing if they’ve got floodlights on?’ and for us to sort of shrug, mumbling something about light meters on earlier days. But still, a fine finish after four days of endless batting.

This Test promises to be a little more day five than days one to four, not least because Pakistan have their proper spinner fit and ready, Yasir Shah set to give it a solid rip and trouble the English batsmen who, historically, have a similar relationship to leg spin as a young boy does to soap and water; that is to say they don’t like it and panic whenever it comes near them.

Nick will be along shortly. In the meantime, here is Mike Selvey on how the universal use of DRS is getting closer, but is still not close enough:

The objections by the Board of Control for Cricket in India to the universal adoption of the decision review system are twofold: firstly the general principle of using technology and secondly the accuracy of the equipment in any case. To a degree they must be contingent, and it has been the task of the International Cricket Council, which decides on the protocols for international cricket, to attempt to get all the equipment available tested independently and hopefully verified and in that way convince the BCCI, and indeed sceptics everywhere, of the value that technology can bring to the game without taking it over.

Related: Why universal use of DRS is getting closer, but still not close enough | Mike Selvey

Continue reading...
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Pakistan v England: second Test, day two – as it happened

October 23, 2015, 6:50 am
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England ended day two 196 runs behind Pakistan, having lost three first-innings wickets, after recovering well from a worrying 14-2

Here’s Mike Selvey’s report from day two in Dubai.

Related: England fight back but still have mountain to climb against Pakistan

And with that, it’s all over. We’ll be back bright and early for another intriguing* day in Dubai. Bye!

* It may not actually be intriguing, but it looks at this stage like it will be. That’s the best we can do.

And between overs, pretty much without warning, the umpires remove the bails and day two is over. From the point this morning when Pakistan stood on 334-5, England have done extremely well to end the day less than 200 runs behind, with three wickets down. All very much to play for.

51st over: England 182-3 (Root 76, Bairstow 27)

Bairstow, who’s having a delightfully feast-or-famine time of it, with just five singles and three twos to his name, and then five boundaries including a six, plays out another maiden from Zulfiqar.

50th over: England 182-3 (Root 76, Bairstow 27)

The 78th over of the day, by may calculations, and it’s one Root only narrowly survives after he gets a thick edge to Yasir’s delivery and it flies high but wide of the single slip for a couple. For a while the batsmen’s scores are then beautifully reverse-mirror-poised (or something) on 72 and 27, but then Root ruins it all by smashing the final devliery past square leg for four, the rotter.

49th over: England 176-3 (Root 70, Bairstow 27)

A few more dots from Zulfi to Bairstow, before the batsman pummels a full delivery through the covers for four.

48th over: England 172-3 (Root 70, Bairstow 23)

We’re into that phase at the end of the day when the batsmen concentrate on survival and Mark Wood straps his pads on and hopes he won’t need them. Yasir bowls and four runs are scored, in ones and twos.

47th over: England 168-3 (Root 69, Bairstow 20)

In which Bairstow’s all-out assault on Zulfi continued, in the shape of five successive dots and two off the last.

46th over: England 166-3 (Root 69, Bairstow 18)

Root tries to sweep Yasir, gets a little bottom-edge and the ball trundles past Sarfraz and away for four. “As a fellow Old Actonian given the fourths’ desire for promotion we might be able to rustle up volunteers to inflict the pain of a <18 hour childbirth on Mr Grant (over 44) if it would help him deliver 800 runs and 40 wickets a season,” writes Nicholas Clark. “We could bring it up at the AGM if he wants?”

45th over: England 162-3 (Root 65, Bairstow 17)

After his six-scoring high-jinks in Zulfi’s last over there was a certain amount of expectation on Bairstow going into this one. It is, inevitably, a maiden.

44th over: England 162-3 (Root 65, Bairstow 17)

Bairstow’s bullishness continues as he hoists Yasir to deep midwicket, the ball in the air for much of its journey but with no fielders anywhere relevant he’s in no danger. “To clarify it is ‘simply’ Childbirth <18 hours,” writes Andy Grant. “If it its over 18 hours plus pregnancy and breastfeeding etc I personally would want the wicket of a former international and a brief spell in a county 2nd XI.”

43rd over: England 156-3 (Root 64, Bairstow 13)

Zulfiqar returns in place of Wahab, and after a single Bairstow hits to midwicket for a couple, and then dances down the ground to hoist the ball over mid off and just over the rope for six runs! Woof! England now trail by the thrillingly repetitive 222.

42nd over: England 147-3 (Root 63, Bairstow 5)

Ooof! Yasir has Bairstow squirming here, turning the ball past the bat, and then Bairstow taps the ball straight to short leg and squirms again in his desperation to ground his bat before the stumps are broken. The stumps aren’t broken, as it turns out, but he wasn’t to know that when he started squirming. Maiden.

41st over: England 147-3 (Root 63, Bairstow 5)

Wahab bowls, and Root spears the ball through the cover field, two fielders set off after it and neither quite catches it up. Then he does something similar next ball, only this one isn’t even worth chasing. What a human Joe Root is. I’d go through childbirth if I knew another Joe Root would pop out, and consider the pain worth bearing for the future glory of my country and all humanity. Is that excessive? I’m not sure.

40th over: England 139-3 (Root 55, Bairstow 5)

Yasir’s 12th over yields a final-ball single to Root. “Do you get to choose the childbirth, as that’s got to be the key factor here,” suggests Tom Atkins. “If we’re talking a 30-hour extravaganza with no drugs and various complications, then nothing less than a man of the series performance in an Ashes series would do. But I’d take the pain of my friend’s 10-minute job on her second son in exchange for getting my brother out in the back garden.”

39th over: England 138-3 (Root 54, Bairstow 5)

Play resumes with shadows lengthening rapidly, though because of the shape of the stadium roof there’s only a small sunshine zone in the middle of the ground in which there are any shadows visible at all. Root clips the ball handsomely through midwicket for three.

Wahab back into the attack ... light gloomy ... big spell coming up

39th over: England 135-3 (Root 51, Bairstow 5)

Root prods Yasir’s first delivery into space on the leg side and takes the run that brings up his half-century. A couple more singles follow as does, once the over’s done, the drinks break.

38th over: England 132-3 (Root 49, Bairstow 4)

Imran Khan slams the ball into Bairstow’s pads, just above the ankle, and launches into the appeal of someone who genuinely thinks he’s about to celebrate. He doesn’t celebrate, there’s no review, and HawkEye has the ball missing leg stump by six inches. Singles for him and for Root leave the latter on the very verge of a half-century. “I’m tempted to say that I’d undergo the relevant suffering in order just to get six consecutive deliveries on the cut strip,” writes Robin Hazlehurst. “Can the pain of childbirth really compare to the pain of seeing yet another beautiful googly land four yards to the left of where it was supposed to? Though I’d probably get into trouble for suggesting that, so I won’t.”

37th over: England 130-3 (Root 48, Bairstow 3)

Bairstow is immediately off the mark, pushing the ball towards the square leg boundary and getting three runs before anyone caught up with it. Critical times in the match, these.

Cook’s gone! And that was reward for Pakistan’s planning, as they move in a leg slip and get near-immediate reward, Cook trying to tickle the ball around the corner, apparently oblivious to the fielder waiting there!

35th over: England 126-2 (Cook 65, Root 47)

Imran Khan bowls at Cook again, and this time Pakistan abandon second slip entirely, stick someone back on the boundary on fluky-edge-watch and have a wide fourth slip who might actually deal with said edges. There are, inevitably, no edges.

34th over: England 126-2 (Cook 65, Root 47)

Ouch! Yasir bowls, and Cook clobbers the ball into the calf of poor Masood at short leg, who tried to make himself small but needed to disappear altogether. “Having this summer made the first ever 50 of my life in division 4 of Guernsey’s evening leagues, I‘ve acquired the taste for big runs and would gladly suffer childbirth for a 100,” writes Richard McKeary. “From what I recall of my daughters’ births, the process consists mostly of lying around and taking drugs, so it’s something of a win-win.”

33rd over: England 125-2 (Cook 64, Root 47)

Imran Khan bowls, Cook edges and the ball bounces two or three times before it passes wide of third slip, and away for four. And if Pakistan found that frustrating, it was as nothing compared with the very next delivery, which Cook edges, and this time it bounces only one time before it passes wide of third slip - by now moved wider and almost a gully - and away for four.

32nd over: England 116-2 (Cook 55, Root 47)

A couple of singles brings up the 100 partnership, off 168 balls, a landmark vigorously applauded by those who could actually be bothered to get tickets and enter the stadium. The batsmen are so encouraged they score a couple more. “On male pregnancies (28th over etc), isn’t there also the fear that when you do return to cricket your captain, who you used to quite like, turns out to be a Neanderthal and makes you bat at 11 and doesn’t throw you the ball on the basis he thinks you’ll be off having another one in a minute,” asks Ronald Grover.

31st over: England 112-2 (Cook 53, Root 45)

Cook reaches his 45th Test 50 with a couple to backwards square and then a clip off his ankles to the long leg boundary. Meanwhile Richard Lunt has been to the stadium, and here’s his on-the-ground, or at least outside-the-ground, report: “£15 taxi ride to the stadium, and tickets being sold from one window only in a portokabin in a car park. Long queue, and got nowhere after 15 minutes, so a £15 taxi back to the hotel. Pakistan should desert this country, and play ‘home’ tests in Sri Lanka. SLCB, saddled with new stadiums, needs the cash.”

30th over: England 106-2 (Cook 47, Root 45)

Yasir bowls, and his final delivery thwacks Root on the front pad and leads to a loud appeal. The umpire says no, and a brief discussion about possibly reviewing ends when the bowler admits the ball hit the bat. And it quite clearly did.

Root has become the world's best middle-order initiative-seizer. Since the 2013-14 Ashes his strike-rate is 63.47; before that it was 39.69.

29th over: England 105-2 (Cook 46, Root 45)

Imran Khan gets the final session started, with just one slips and a gully in position. A key session, this one. Should England not lose a wicket, they’ll be feeling extremely chuffed about life this evening. Should they lose one wicket soonish, though, they could lose several and have a very glum Friday night.

Hello again. Simon here, from now until the sun sets on day two. All emails to me from now on, if you would. Full address and twitter stuff in the standfirst (refresh the page if Vish’s is still there).

Michael Avery is looking to clarify something over e-mail:

“Is it only the pain of childbirth we have to go through or are the hellish 9-months of pregnancy thrown in as well?”

28th over: England 105-2 (Cook 46, Root 45)

Riaz has two slip fielders, neither of whom are being allowed a game by Root, who is happy to leave almost everything outside off stump. He’s waiting for the short ball, and there it is, fifth ball, and is worked to the square leg fence for a single. And that’s tea.

@Vitu_E any century would be worth it, or maybe a dozen fivefers. Think that gives you an idea of my batting ability

27th over: England 104-2 (Cook 46, Root 44)

A maiden of Malik tempting Cook outside leg stump and Cook not managing to get a hold of any he approached with a bit of malice.

26th over: England 104-2 (Cook 46, Root 44)

Riaz digs a couple in short and then bowls a brute of a yorker that Cook gets a thick inside edge on. The ball then goes off his pad and races away to the fine-leg boundary but Misbah sends it for a review for LBW (not out). A full ball is met with the full face of the bat, before Cook is easily onto a short ball which he works inside the man at fine leg for four. A single in the same direction and the over is done.

@Vitu_E Not sure what's at the Root of Bell's problems, but Broadly speaking he seems to be going down a blind Ali. Apologies.

YEP – NOT OUT

Riaz serves up a dishy yorker that Cook edges onto his pad and then through to the boundary for four. Umpire gives it as runs but Misbah wants another look at it for LBW...

25th over: England 95-2 (Cook 37, Root 44)

Mailk’s trying to do his best Saeed Ajmal impression by holding his action at the crease and trying to put the batsman’s timing off. But Malik isn’t Ajmal – even Ajmal isn’t Ajmal anymore – and Root just waits a little bit longer before threading him through extra cover for four.

Andrew Grant has e-mailed in with an interesting (and surely unique) topic for OBO discussion...

“A discussion I had with my Mrs last night was what would I want in exchange for the pain of going through chidlbirth- my initial answer was £250k.

24th over: England 89-2 (Cook 36, Root 39)

Back to pace, now, as Wahab Riaz gives Yasir Shah a rest. Again Root takes a single, again Cook looks to sap the bowler’s will.

23rd over: England 88-2 (Cook 36, Root 38)

Bit of spin for Malik, who does Cook on the inside edge, from outside of leg stump. Cook is happy to soak up the pressure while Root does his tip-and-run thing.

22nd over: England 87-2 (Cook 36, Root 37)

Brilliant shot to end the over from Cook. Yasir gives it some flight so Cook gets out the slog sweep. Despite it being a straight delivery, he reads it perfectly, going down to up over mid wicket for a one-bounce four. Slayed a few Aussie spinners with that one in the 2010-11 Ashes.

21st over: England 82-2 (Cook 32, Root 36)

Shoaib Malik’s off breaks making an appearance for Babar, as Misbah brings on his fifth bowler. Root does that jive and flick to the leg side, twice, in between Malik continuing over the wicket to the left-handed Cook.

20th over: England 79-2 (Cook 31, Root 34)

Cook plays out the entire over and gets two from it – a patient cut to the off side sweeper allowing him a two. The rest is played out in front of him. Shoaib Malik now into the attack...

19th over: England 77-2 (Cook 29, Root 34)

Cook sweeps at Babar, misses completely and the ball hits his pad. An appeal goes up – his pad is outside the line – but the ball then rolls and ricochets into the stumps. And nothing happens. Amazing. It thudded into them, too. Lucky boy.

Yasir Shah's action looks a bit dodgy imo. pic.twitter.com/jHg9dYQTKJ

18th over: England 74-2 (Cook 27, Root 33)

Cracking shot from Root – a big stride out to Shah allows him to meet the ball before it pitches which he works through midwicket for four. A single squirted behind square on the leg side gets Cook on strike, who sweeps for one. Root then sweeps fine and well for a second boundary. Good over from England.

17th over: England 64-2 (Cook 26, Root 24)

Bat well in front of pad stuff for the Babar and pushing back and then forward to Shah. It’s working so far for these two, as Root pushes into the off side for a single.

16th over: England 63-2 (Cook 25, Root 22)

Cook tries to reverse-sweep Yasir, leading to an excited shout as the ball loops into the air, which lasts only as long as it takes to realise there’s nobody anywhere near catching it, and that it didn’t hit his bat anyway. Then there’s an lbw shout against Root, but the umpire’s unimpressed and the ball was surely clearing the stumps. And Vish will take you through the remainder of this session - all emails to vithushan.ehantharajah.casual@theguardian.com from now until tea, if you would.

15th over: England 58-2 (Cook 25, Root 19)

Cook thrashes Zulfi’s penultimate delivery over midwicket for four, an aggressive if not enormously risky stroke. And they’re still coming ...

@Simon_Burnton an analysis of Sledgehammer's career batting returns could be plotted as a Bell curve graph, tailing off sharply of course

14th over: England 53-2 (Cook 21, Root 18)

A maiden from Yasir, largely thanks to the poor bugger at short leg, Masood presumably, who took a nasty blow as Cook tried to make something of the final delivery, spearing it into the back of his arm as the fielder turned in terror.

13th over: England 53-2 (Cook 21, Root 18)

Zulfi’s first ball is pummelled to the square leg boundary by Root, who adds a couple through midwicket. At the end of which, and with Yasir flexing his ball-twiddling muscles and eyeing Cook hungrily, the players take drinks.

12th over: England 47-2 (Cook 21, Root 12)

Yasir Shah makes his long-awaited arrival in the series, and very swiftly launches a loud lbw appeal against Cook, foiled only because the ball would have missed leg stump by a distance. Still, some promising turn here.

11th over: England 44-2 (Cook 20, Root 10)

Zulfiqar brings the spin, and Cook brings the sweep, sending the last delivery of the over scuttling away for four. Right, it appears to be pun o’clock, as I’ve had a minor avalanche - a Belly-ful, if you like - of Bell-related tweets:

@Simon_Burnton If the two-time Tour de France were to dismiss England's incumbent no#3, it'd be 'Froome the Bell tolls'.

@Simon_Burnton if that is Bell's last match then why not simply go for "Bell end"?

@Simon_Burnton Please dissuade readers from composing any more punning tweets, Simon. There's no Bell prize for literature.

10th over: England 39-2 (Cook 16, Root 9)

More short stuff from Wahab to Root, with one ball hitting the batsman with a glancing blow to the chest and the next clearing both batsman and wicketkeeper and racing unmolested to the rope. There are also a couple of full deliveries, just to keep the batters honest.

9th over: England 29-2 (Cook 15, Root 5)

Imran Khan is going at a titchy 1.86 an over, and this is his second maiden.

@Simon_Burnton To be fair, given that he has no-one else to blame, if he does get dropped, could it be a case of All's Bell that ends Bell?

8th over: England 29-2 (Cook 15, Root 5)

In which Paul Reiffel shows off his no-ball-calling skills by making a couple of close calls, one of which was almost certainly not a no ball at all. It’s longer than it should have been but it’s very far from a bad over, Wahab making Joe Root’s life distinctly uncomfortable with a couple of roaring short balls, though he scores a single off one and four off another, top-edged very nearly for six. Cook in between essays a very lovely pull stroke, which earns him one run and a bit of appreciative purring.

7th over: England 21-2 (Cook 14, Root 0)

Phwoar! Cook expunges all memory of his nearly-but-not-quite getting out the previous over with a Michelin-starred cover drive for four. He wisely decides that to so much as attempt another scoring stroke would merely reduce the chances of people remembering that one, and gives us all time to genuflect in its enormous glory.

@Simon_Burnton I'm sure you have loads of similar tweets but sadly, it could be Bell for whom the bell tolls #seewhatididthere

6th over: England 17-2 (Cook 10, Root 0)

Oooh! Cook pulls the ball just past Masood, who had been stationed at backward square for precisely this moment. He gets a run, and Pakistan get the minor morale boost of seeing their trap being blundered into, even if it didn’t actually trap anything. “Sadly, I can’t watch or listen today and find myself in the odd position of actually missing David Lloyd’s voice,” writes Robert Wilson. “Particularly disturbing since, during the last Test, I forced a top-notch, English-speaking French intellectual (they still exist) to listen to five minutes of Bumble’s rambling commentary. She understood not one single solitary word but found it all intensely lyrical, like a pigeon reciting Shakespeare. She then asked me - no word of a lie - if he was good looking! It was quite a difficult moment. I’m still haunted.” I trust you answered in the affirmative.

5th over: England 14-2 (Cook 7, Root 0)

Root, as if to emphasise where the now-watching Bell went horribly wrong, leaves three of the five remaining deliveries as they head wide of off stump, and defends the other two.

England shouldn't look at the scoreboard again until lunch on Sunday @Simon_Burnton

Another one falls! And it’s a lovely delivery, full and moving fractionally away from the bat to take a tiny but clearly audible nick on its way through!

4th over: England 14-1 (Cook 7, Bell 4)

Cook starts the over with England’s first boundary, clipped off his thigh to deep square leg. Wahab is bowling at around the 90mph mark, fast enough to make life uncomfortable and, more specifically, to make Bell uncomfortable as the fifth delivery zips across him and he briefly looks to wave his bat at it inadvisably.

3rd over: England 8-1 (Cook 2, Bell 3)

Four slips - three, a gap and then one - and a short leg in place at the start of the innings. Bell gets a couple of early runs and then sees out the remainder of the over without further scorage, looking uncomfortable only when making a last-moment decision to withdraw the bat as the fifth delivery passed six inches wide of off stump.

2nd over: England 6-1 (Cook 2, Bell 1)

To be fair, it was a sharp catch from Shan Masood. But to be equally fair, he didn’t have to move his hands, just cup them and start celebrating. Given how close he was to the bat, had the ball gone so much as six inches either side it would have been almost uncatchable. Thing is, it didn’t.

Moeen tries to just knock the ball away into the leg side, which is all well and good unless there’s a short leg right there, standing with knees bent and hands poised, and you push the ball right into them.

1st over: England 4-0 (Cook 2, Moeen 1)

Imran Khan’s second delivery is straightforward in every sense of the word, and Cook plays it off his pads for a couple. A leg bye and a Moeen Ali single follow in what is a pretty low-octane opening to the innings.

Imran Khan has the ball, and stands at the end of his run-up. Play.

Players have started to stumble onto the field. Can Alastair Cook do it again, and haul England single-battedly through a marathon second-innings run-accumulation effort? We’re about to find out!

If you’re desperately refreshing and frustrated not to find new stuff, it’s not because the Guardian is broken, it’s because this is a super extra long Friday-style lunch break, to allow plenty of time for Friday prayers. Be reassured, we’ll be back before anything actually happens.

Hello world!

There’s been something of a baton hand-over here at OBO HQ, so please cast aside your Vish-ful thinking and instead send your emails to me here and your tweets to me here, if you wouldn’t mind. But first there’s the matter of lunch, which England will probably enjoy, and Asad Shafiq will probably not, spending it as he presumably is with an icepack on his knee, though there’s a chance he’ll have been whisked off to hospital for some scans. Either way, painful times.

119th over: Pakistan 378 all out

A nasty looking blow sustained by Shafiq who, after a few minuets, decides to carry on. The next ball is short and Shafiq does well to crouch underneath it, before hobbling to square leg to collect his thoughts. A couple of balls later, he’s out trying to beat the infield.

With the field in, Shafiq tries to go big but can only skew the ball to Root at midwicket. End of the innings - brilliant work from England today.

Shafiq swings across the line to a quick delivery from Wood and it strikes him on the inside of the knee and hits the floor amidst a strangle appeal for LBW. The replay shows that the ball misses the top of the back pad and crunches the batsman just above the knee cap. Ouchie.

118th over: Pakistan 378-9 (Shafiq 83, Khan 0)

Imran Khan, who doesn’t have a Test run to his name, is Pakistan’s number 11. Shafiq is turning down singles all over the shop until he sweeps the fourth ball on the full for one. He swipes to mid on but it doesn’t reach Anderson.

117th over: Pakistan 377-9 (Shafiq 82)

A good battle between Wood and Shafiq. A fine yorker is kept out by the Pakistan batsman, who nods in appreciation. A single is taken off the penultimate ball and it’s enough for Wood to see-off Babar. He expects something short, ducks far too early and a yorker wraps him on the knee roll. Hitting leg. Gone.

No idea what he was doing, there. But he’s out.

Babar ducks a yorker (yes, really) and is given out LBW. We have a review...

116th over: Pakistan 376-8 (Shafiq 81, Babar 3)

Tidy from Rashid, who turns one sharply past Babar’s outside edge. But the veteran is off the mark with three around the corner. Shafiq gets a single to the cover fielder on the off side to bring Babar back on strike. A swipe and miss ends the over.

115th over: Pakistan 371-8 (Shafiq 79, Babar 0)

As expected, Shafiq is turning down singles. Though that might be more down to the face that Mark Wood is the bowler. A searing yorker nearly knocks Shafiq off his feet. There’s a muted appeal but the ball was sliding well down – it pitched outside leg and all. Wood goes short for the last couple and Shafiq manages to work him around the corner to retain the strike.

114th over: Pakistan 370-8 (Shafiq 78, Babar 0)

Shah goes trying to slap Rashid through the covers. Babar, the number 10, is a decent bat but presumably Shafiq will still look to shield him from the strike.

Rashid tosses one up and Shah has a heave but can only nick to Stokes at slip. Every England bowler now has a wicket to their name. Yay.

113rd over: Pakistan 369-7 (Shafiq 77, Shah 16)

Shafiq’s continuing to use his feet to the spinners, while Shah is staying rooted to the crease and opening his body to nudge into either side of the wicket. One does one, the other does the other, and another three-run over comes and goes.

112nd over: Pakistan 366-7 (Shafiq 75, Shah 17)

Three from the over as Rashid is brought back into the attack and goes up against a fellow leggie. Shah’s playing him very inside out: looks a bit funky but I’m all for it.

111th over: Pakistan 363-7 (Shafiq 73, Shah 14)

Shafiq dabs a three around the corner and then Shah punches a nice four through cover.

Quickest English spinners to 50 Test wickets in time: 344 days R Tattersall 1 yr, 5 days GP Swann 1/99 MS Panesar 1/133 MM Ali

110th over: Pakistan 356-7 (Shafiq 70, Shah 10)

Stokes is short to Shah who stands up well to work him around the corner for two. The Cumbrian Noise has not only decided that short is the way to go but also that he’s going to do it from around the wicket. But Shah top edges a hook for four before timing a nice leg glance in front of square for another boundary.

109th over: Pakistan 346-7 (Shafiq 70, Shah 0)

Riaz shows some malice, going forward and lofting across the line for four. Tries the same again, even with a change in the field to put two men out at midwicket, but can only top edge to mid on, where Anderson does the rest. Good from Moeen. Yasir Shah is the new man but spends the over at the non-striker’s end. The field goes in for Shafiq to keep him off strike for the next over and he decides to take the boundary on offer, over wide mid on. Shot.

Moeen gets hit for four and responds well, serving up a similar ball which Riaz swings across to and top-edges to Anderson, who makes a difficult catch look easy as.

108th over: Pakistan 338-6 (Shafiq 66, Riaz 2)

Not the best start from Stokes, who bowls one down the leg side despite a few additions to the slip cordon. Better for the remainder.

107th over: Pakistan 335-6 (Shafiq 66, Riaz 1)

A timely wicket, just as this partnership was getting going: Ali sees Safraz coming and Anderson takes a smart catch, low to his left. Riaz is the new batsman and it looks like it’s turning out there: Riaz tries to push forward but the ball takes the inside half of his bat. Then he gets off the mark with an edge just wide of Stokes at slip.

Hafeez immediately after drinks. Malik right after that. Shan after lunch. Misbah start of the day. Now Sarf aftr drinks. break se breakthru

Drinks might want to claim an assist for that one. Ahmed comes down the wicket but Ali spies him and gets one flatter than is chipped to Anderson at wide mid on.

106th over: Pakistan 334-5 (Shafiq 66, Ahmed 32)

Ben Stokes replaces Anderson and is immediately getting a bit more swing than others, just away from the right-hander. Atherton on commentary reckons it’s reverse, Shafiq skews a ball just short of Anderson at gully.

105th over: Pakistan 333-5 (Shafiq 66, Ahmed 31)

Ali’s first go today and immediately Sarfraz is on him, deftly cutting him for four. He sweeps hard next ball, but Mark Wood is lurking on the square leg boundary and collects for just one. Shafiq pushes one to midwicket and then Sarfraz is back at his sweeping best. Again, only for one.

104th over: Pakistan 326-5 (Shafiq 65, Ahmed 25)

These two seem to be able to find singles at will, which is started to frustrate Cook and his bowlers. This time, though, Shafiq gets a single off the glove and has to shake it off at the non-striker’s end. Anderson finishes off the over around the wicket at Shafiq’s head, but he ducks well.

103rd over: Pakistan 324-5 (Shafiq 64, Ahmed 24)

Sarfraz gets a single through the cover fielder off Rashid and Shafiq’s back to try and engineer something. He stays put, though, and in the end plays a cautious sweep behind square leg for one.

Anderson warned for a second time for running on the danger area. One more and he's off for the innings #pakveng

102nd over: Pakistan 320-5 (Shafiq 62, Ahmed 22)

Anderson getting the ball to move into the right-hander, here. Late, too, but Shafiq is able to go with the movement and play it into the leg side.

101st over: Pakistan 318-5 (Shafiq 61, Ahmed 21)

Loose from Shafiq, who comes down the wicket to Rashid but is beaten by the turn and skews the ball into the off side. It falls short of Moeen Ali, who keeps things to one. Ahmed gets off the strike into the leg side before Shafiq stays put and finds Ali with a square drive for another single. A full toss is then swatted for four by Ahmed to end the over.

100th over: Pakistan 311-5 (Shafiq 59, Ahmed 16)

A lap-dab/standing paddle/checked-pull/weird shot gets Ahmed a single around the corner. Shafiq works one nicely off his toes to bring Ahmed back on strike. Anderson tempts Ahmed outside off stump and he throws his wrists at it and nearly nicks behind. He then scoots into a defensive shot, which goes into the off side for no run.

99th over: Pakistan 309-5 (Shafiq 58, Ahmed 15)

Adil Rashid on for Broad. Ahmed’s not going to stay put for a slow bowler, but Rashid has cover on both sides of the wicket. The sweeper on the off side, Moeen Ali, is found second ball, just for a single. Shafiq is more watchful but even he comes down the pitch and swipes, but only to mid-off. No run.

98th over: Pakistan 306-5 (Shafiq 57, Ahmed 13)

Wood makes way for Jimmy Anderson and Ahmed is immediately walking down to the pack leader. Ben Stokes is close in at cover-point and, aware of that, Ahmed is stepping across, too, looking to manufacture something into the leg side. He does in the end, but it’s just one.

97th over: Pakistan 305-5 (Shafiq 57, Ahmed 12)

Hands, from Sarfraz – Broad gives a bit of width and Ahmed sets his feet and guides it effortlessly through the covers for four. Top shooting. Three runs later in the over, as he opens up a touch more and pierces cover-point. Now Shafiq’s in the game, flicking Broad through midwicket for the over’s second boundary. 11 from the over...

96th over: Pakistan 294-5 (Shafiq 53, Ahmed 5)

Shafiq’s first runs of the day come through midwicket, as he works Wood into the region for three. Ahmed immediately gives him back the strike with three of his own, tucked off the pads. And there’s his fifty, brought about with an outside edge that races to third man for four. A 12th fifty.

95th over: Pakistan 284-5 (Shafiq 46, Ahmed 2)

Three balls into the over, Safraz is trapped in front by Broad but this time the ball looks to be safely passing down the leg-side. It’s been a fine spell so far and you’d say he has two more overs left in him. A maiden.

Six out of Misbah's 9 Test hundreds have been these: 100, 101, 101*, 102, 102*, 102* https://t.co/ctT8J3EouU

94th over: Pakistan 284-5 (Shafiq 46, Sarfraz 2)

Ahmed fends one down to give Shafiq the strike. A bit of luck comes his way as he tries to play in front of the wicket but gets a thick inside edge that scuttles just in front of his stumps to Moeen Ali at square leg. Wood’s line to him has been good.

93rd over: Pakistan 283-5 (Shafiq 46, Ahmed 1)

Something of a “Red Bull” run to get today’s and Ahmed’s scoring started: pushing a ball angled into middle and leg to the right of Moeen Ali at mid on and then zipping through to the other end.

92nd over: Pakistan 282-5 (Shafiq 46, Sarfraz 0)

Mark Wood is yer man from the other end: he’s starting wide on the crease to Shafiq who is on the cusp of a 20th Test score of fifty or more. Shafiq, younger and thusly more nimble than Misbah, is able to get a proper dip on his ducks. Wood’s bouncers pass harmlessly over his hunched back.

Excellent opening over ... barrage of short stuff then fifth ball full and Misbah in wrong position to get bat on it

91st over: Pakistan 282-5 (Shafiq 46, Ahmed 0)

A short-leg, Superman at bat-pad and a man on the hook (a slip, too) as Stuart Broad gets the day going. We only have to wait a ball for some short stuff. Misbah ducks under the first but can’t sort himself quickly enough so wears the next one on the top hand. A couple more and he’s trapped in front by a full ball which nips away from Misbah slightly. The captain reviews but soon he’s moving off without scoring. Sarfraz Ahmed comes to the crease.

There’s no inside edge and umpire’s call – the ball would have clipped leg stump – stays with Broad, who gets the wicket of Misbah.

Brilliant change-up by Broad, who goes full after a barrage of short balls and traps Misbah in front. He’s given out LBW but Misbah is reviewing...

Play getting underway here soon.

For Friday prayers, the first session will be two and a half hours long, an hour for lunch, a regular afternoon session and a shorter evening thrash...

Morning everyone.

Vish here, coming live and direct from London town, bringing you all the goings on in Dubai. Glory to Misbah, who ended his latest slow-cooked masterpiece with a 15-run bang in the fading light to reach his ninth Test century.

Vish will be with you shortly. Whilst you wait, here’s Ali Martin’s ode to Misbah-ul-Haq, following the Pakistan’s magnificent century on day one in Dubai.

Misbah-ul-Haq hinted before the current series with England that it could be his last in Test cricket, with the Pakistan captain revealing his preference to leave the stage on a high rather than be hooked unceremoniously from the wings.

We must therefore savour his unbeaten 102 on the first day in Dubai that has put his side seemingly in charge of the second Test, for it could well be his last century in international cricket. But then when a batsman is 41 years and 147 days old, that tends to be the default position anyway.

Related: Misbah-ul-Haq’s century for Pakistan shows he is not slowing down

Continue reading...
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Pakistan v England: second Test, day three – live!

October 24, 2015, 3:18 am
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20th over: Pakistan 71-2 (Hafeez 45, Younis Khan 18)
Slightly tidier stuff from Rashid...until a wide half-volley that Hafeez probably could have belted to/over the boundary, but instead carefully drove a single out to the sweeper. Two other singles from the over, and these two look in not the slightest bother at the moment.

19th over: Pakistan 68-2 (Hafeez 44, Younis Khan 16)
Well looky here, it’s Joe Root with a bowl. Younis takes a single, then a slightly short one is carted over deep mid-wicket with the minimum of fuss or flourish, and Wood does the umpire’s job by confirming the six.

18th over: Pakistan 61-2 (Hafeez 38, Younis Khan 15)
Here’s Adil Rashid for a bowl, and gives a long-hop outside off to Younis, who doesn’t quite get hold of it, but it still requires some fine fielding on the boundary by Wood to keep them to a brace. Hafeez is rather more ruthless when a short one comes his way, pulling in front of square and wide of mid-on for four.

17th over: Pakistan 54-2 (Hafeez 34, Younis Khan 12)
These batsman seem to have the measure of Moeen. A couple of singles, a square drive for two by Hafeez, Younis doesn’t take full advantage of a long-hop and gets just one, before Hafeez nails a lowish full-toss down the ground for four.

16th over: Pakistan 45-2 (Hafeez 27, Younis Khan 10)
Stokes is offering too many ropey deliveries here. He follows a couple of decent balls with a wide half volley, that Hafeez drives through the covers and four more runs are notched. Pakistan now lead by 181.

15th over: Pakistan 41-2 (Hafeez 23, Younis Khan 10)
A couple o’ singles from the over, one for each batsman. Which is nice. Younis needs some new gloves, and possibly a bit of tape for his rather elderly looking bat which has a crack towards the bottom of the inside edge, but twelfthers only brings out the former for him.

14th over: Pakistan 39-2 (Hafeez 22, Younis Khan 9)
Stokes again, and after a few perfectly solid deliveries he drops short, but not short enough, and Hafeez thwacks him over straight mid-wicket and four. Another shorter one, but better directed, has Hafeez flapping outside off, and while a couple of those behind the wicket are briefly quite excited about the whole affair, there’s no edge.

13th over: Pakistan 35-2 (Hafeez 18, Younis Khan 9)
Mo gets Younis propping forwards, a brief moment of excitement that is stamped on like a kids’ dying campfire by first a rancid long-hop, sent with gusto to the mid-wicket fence, then a couple of false starts as some clot shifts around behind the bowler’s arm, then a great big fat juicy half-volley, that Younis drives to the cover ropes.

Everyone’s having a drink, and now it’s Nick Miller to take us through to tea.

12th over: Pakistan 27-2 (Hafeez 18, Younis Khan 1)

Now Stokes bowls, with Wood off the field sorting out his footwear and Broad apparently also off the field. So 12 overs bowled, and already five bowlers used – as many as Pakistan turned to in England’s 75-and-a-third-over first innings. Another maiden, though, and drinks to follow.

11th over: Pakistan 27-2 (Hafeez 18, Younis Khan 1)

In which England’s 12th man, Chris Jordan, has to go wondering around the empty stands in an effort to retrieve a ball dumped there by Hafeez’s massive slog-sweep. Younus also has a go at sweeping Moeen here, not quite so violently, for one.

10th over: Pakistan 18-2 (Hafeez 10, Younis Khan 0)

Wood’s over is interrupted by some shoe-related discomfort, and he walks around for a while with his left foot besocked, waving his footwear at the England balcony, before grudgingly lacing himself back up to complete the over. It’s a maiden, with Younis ducking a couple of bouncers, on both occasions taking evasive measures well before the bowler released the ball. Maiden.

9th over: Pakistan 18-2 (Hafeez 10, Younus Khan 0)

Anderson’s spell ends, and Moeen Ali comes on and immediately gets good turn. Hafeez gets a couple of runs off the first, paddled down to long leg, but then edges the last, low and fast to slip, fielded with the foot, not a catching chance.

8th over: Pakistan 16-2 (Hafeez 8, Younus Khan 0)

Wood bowls fast and full at Malik who, surprised, attempts a leaden-footed swish and misses. Then a couple of shortish deliveries, the first hoiked over point for four, and then another full one at Malik who, surprised, attempts a leaden-footed prod and edges.

Malik attempts to drive a full ball and edges into his stumps! Good bowling here from Wood, and Malik never looked comfortable with it.

7th over: Pakistan 12-1 (Hafeez 8, Malik 3)

Four overs from Anderson now, and still no run scored. Just 17 more and he’ll be threatening a world record.

6th over: Pakistan 12-1 (Hafeez 8, Malik 3)

Broad is hooked after just two overs, with Mark Wood replacing him. Malik scores two off the first, taking him to precisely the score at which his last two innings have ended, but then he adds a single, so there’ll be no hat-trick here.

5th over: Pakistan 8-1 (Hafeez 7, Malik 0)

An over interrupted by various field-nurdling, primarily Bairstow moving from short leg to shortish cover, a short journey that seemed to take a long time to organise. The next couple of deliveries are prodded pretty much straight to short leg, though neither of them in the air. Anderson, after three overs, has taken one wicket and is yet to concede a run.

4th over: Pakistan 8-1 (Hafeez 7, Malik 0)

Hafeez gets off the mark stylishly, pulling the ball off his hip to the midwicket boundary, and then he pushes through cover for three. Broad strains to deliver a couple of short balls at around 80mph that keep pretty low and Hafeez can only just duck under.

3rd over: Pakistan 1-1 (Hafeez 0, Malik 0)

Anderson has bowled 17 deliveries at Masood in this series so far, has conceded four runs and has taken his wicket four times. Not so much his bunny as his entire rabbit farm. And Robert Wilson, for one, hasn’t given up on this Test yet. “Surely this is the moment for a mass collective reverse jinx,” he suggests. “If all of us make dire predictions of Pakistan declaring on 300 for 0 and then skittling England out for 87, there’s a chance. The OBO’s astrological record is pretty poor in the first degree but it’s got serious reverse-hexing form. Nearly worked in the last Test after four and a half days of dismal whining (I, myself was proudly sepulchral). Come on, we can do this…”

This time he’s got him! Masood fails to profit from his big let-of, and Buttler gets a near-immediate chance to make good his mistake – and takes it. Masood pushes at the ball, gets a very clear edge and Buttler does the honours.

2nd over: Pakistan 1-0 (Hafeez 0, Masood 1)

There’s a delay between this over and the last while groundsmen come on to repair a strange hole that’s appeared in the grass. The hole is so perfectly circular it is surely man-made, which means either the pitch has been invaded over lunch by some emphatically belated George Davis protesters, or it’s something that a sprinkler occasionally pops out of. Whatever, it’s eventually filled in, and play restarts with a hideous drop! Shan Masood has a little nibble at Broad’s first delivery, which pitches on off stump and moves away, and then nicks the second down the leg side. Buttler dives, reaches it easily, but drops it all the same! It’s a metaphorical punch in the guts for England, in dire need of some kind of early-innings pick-me-up, and for Buttler, who really needs to be demonstrably excellent at something at the moment!

1st over: Pakistan 0-0 (Hafeez 0, Masood 0)

Anderson does the first-over honours and Mohammed Hafeez doesn’t even try to score a run. And he doesn’t score one by accident, either. Maiden.

The players are back out. If Pakistan end this session even half as chuffed as they did the last, the die for this Test will be truly cast. Let’s play!

Hello world!

“England have a lot of hard work to do if they’re to fight their way back into the game,” says Ian Botham as the players break for lunch. Well, not really. Because they’ll either blast their way through Pakistan in short order, in which case it will only have been a bit of hard work, or they won’t fight their way back into the game at all.

That’ll do from me for now. Simon Burnton is your man for the first hour after lunch – email here or tweet here.

Quite so...

Lunch. England 242 all out as Jimmy fences one up to the keeper off Imran. Seven wickets for 60 in that session (7-36 w-w). 136 behind. Grim

Even if Eng bowl Pak out for 100 I wouldnt fancy Eng chasing 230

Well. Well. Well well well. Awful stuff from England, but while they were partly the architects of their own calamitous downfall with some horrendous shots, Wahab Riaz and to a slightly lesser extent Yasir Shah bowled absolutely brilliantly, knocking England over with a big lead. They took the last seven wickets for 36 runs, instigating a collapse for the ages. The really troubling thing for England, if being skittled like this wasn’t troubling enough, was that Shah got some serious turn and variable bounce, which doesn’t make for a comfortable prospect in the fourth innings.

WICKET! Anderson c Sarfraz b Imran Khan 4
An absolute shorter from Imran, and Anderson can only wave his hands vaguely in the direction of the ball, it loops off his gloves and goes behind for a simple catch.

75th over: England 242-9 (Anderson 4, Broad 15)
Broad draws himself up to play a grand-looking shot, but only gets a single from it. Anderson props forwards and gets an inside-edge, that flicks his pad and whistles just past short-leg’s ear. Then there’s the review, and that’s the over.

That bounced just about a centimetre before Shan Masood’s boot at short-leg, and while it’s not 100% clear by any means, they can’t and don’t give it out.

Broad sweeps, it hits short-leg’s foot and loops in the air. He claims the catch, but umpire Reiffel isn’t certain and goes upstairs.

74th over: England 240-9 (Anderson 3, Broad 14)
Broad plays a square shot for one, but tries to turn it into two, before Anderson drives carefully through the covers, and actually does collect two. England absolutely rocketing along now.

Seems an appropriate time to plug an old blog of mine - England batting collapses of the 1980s: https://t.co/rVjOOuPxlg@NickMiller79

73rd over: England 237-9 (Anderson 1, Broad 13)
Sorry, that was Broad who was given not out. Corrected now, but it’s always better to own up to mistakes like that. A single, then Anderson tries that reverse-sweep again. You’ll get there one day, James.

It was hitting Broad marginally outside the line of off, and was heading down leg. Which, all in all, means not out.

A full one on Broad’s ankles, the umpire says no to the lbw shout, but Pakistan review, because they might as well.

72nd over: England 236-9 (Anderson 1, Broad 12)
Imran sends down a loopy slower ball that Broad waits for and plays with the care of someone handling a newborn kitten, and they take a single. Imran goes big on a leg-before appeal to Anderson, which was absolutely stone dead apart from it pitching outside leg and Anderson, you know, hitting the thing.

I think Tim Gray’s trying to tell us something here. Not entirely sure though: “Bairstow for Buttler, frees up a spot for Taylor. Just to comfirm: Taylor, Taylor, Taylor, Taylor, Taylor.”

71st over: England 233-9 (Anderson 0, Broad 10)
Anderson tries a reverse-sweep from his first ball - you’d say that was daft, but it’s no dafter than some of the other shots that have been played this morning. Shah then gets one to spit furiously out of the rough, which climbs on Anderson and thumps his glove, but hits Sarfraz in the chest and he can’t take the catch.

And it is indeed out. Well, that was weird. Wood either didn’t think he hit it, or was just chancing his arm. Even though third umpire Gaffaney had already checked if he’d hit it, and decided he had. Weird.

A very full ball from Shah, and it loops up to Younis at slip. The umpires go upstairs to check if it was a bump ball, which it wasn’t, but then Wood reviews it himself. Which is an interesting shout...

70th over: England 232-8 (Wood 1, Broad 9)
Wahab finally gets a rest, and Imran Khan is in. Broad tries to wipe him over mid-on first up, but doesn’t get enough on the flat-batter and is lucky that it just drops in front of the fielder. He takes a single with a bunted one off his toes, and that’s all from the over.

69th over: England 231-8 (Wood 1, Broad 8)
Wood leaves one that, if off stump had a motion sensor on it, would’ve set it off loudly. Then he swings lustily at a much wider ball, missing completely. Still, no wickets from the last two overs, which counts as progress this morning.

68th over: England 231-8 (Wood 1, Broad 8)
Riaz is back again, and first up Broad cuts - a little airily - in front of point and to the boundary. The next reverses threateningly in the direction of Broad’s stumps, but he gets enough on it to take two in front of mid-wicket. A couple of short ones trouble Broad rather, the second of which he shovels off the back foot and just in front of short-leg, who seemed to react very late - could’ve been a chance, that.

Big shout from the boy Naylor here...

That is the worst hour of cricket I have ever seen from an England team. Yes, really. @nickmiller79

67th over: England 223-8 (Wood 0, Broad 1)
So much for those hopes of a lead. Absolutely trousers batting from England so far this morning - they all appear to be playing as if they were only told there was a Test on five minutes before the start, and are all a little discombobulated. Shah’s first ball to Broad, from around the wicket, goes down the leg side and everyone - batsman, keeper, leg slip - misses the thing, and it goes for four byes. Broad shoves a single into the covers to get off the mark, after which Bairstow departs.

The decision is upheld, although it must be said Mr Gaffaney didn’t exactly linger over whether it did take an inside-edge. It probably didn’t, mind, and England are in quite the mess.

Bairstow goes back to Shah and is caught in front, but reviews straight away. He must think he’s hit it, because it looks pretty straight.

Rashid tests the old maxim that there are only two types of leave, letting one go about two inches outside off stump, then plays an absolutely abysmal slog-sweep that skews off a leading edge and loops up to Hafeez, who takes a simple catch in the covers.

66th over: England 218-6 (Bairstow 46, Rashid 0)
Another over from Riaz, which isn’t too surprising given how well he’s bowling, but this is number eight of the day. A no ball is probably his first misstep of the day, but other than that he bowls another fine over.

Meanwhile, the Aussies (winners of two Ashes series in the last seven) are gloating...

Wahab Riaz! The Pakistan quick has taken three wickets to leave Eng 6-216 LIVE: https://t.co/2X1peUQWxJ#PAKvENGpic.twitter.com/OiwN6iImtK

65th over: England 217-6 (Bairstow 46, Rashid 0)
Oy vey, that was an ugly shot from Buttler. When most of the footwork is done after playing the shot, when the ball was already comfortably nestled in the keeper’s gloves, you know it’s no good. Bairstow plays out the over, driving a single off the last ball.

64th over: England 216-6 (Bairstow 45, Rashid 0)
Buttler’s scores since the start of the Ashes: 27, 7, 13, 11, 9, 12, 1, 42, 23, 4, 0. Not so good.

Riaz is back, the old horse, for his seventh over of the morning. After trying his usual angle he goes around the wicket to Buttler, whose struggles continue as he drives loosely outside off and edges through to Sarfraz, who takes a good low catch.

63rd over: England 216-5 (Bairstow 45, Buttler 0)
More fortunate runs for Bairstow, who cuts Shah but gets an under-edge on that goes straight into the turf and bounces under the keeper, scuttling to the back-stop boundary. Much hilarity as Younis, chasing the ball, finds another ball resting against the ropes. Then a big lbw shout as Shah thumps one onto Bairstow’s pads, but that was drifting down leg and Paul Reiffel says not on your life you big dingo. Or something like that.

62nd over: England 212-5 (Bairstow 41, Buttler 0)
Brilliant bowling this, from Riaz, one of the more underrated bowlers in the world. The consensus seems to be that Bairstow was extremely lucky to still be out there, with plenty of reference to the catch that Jimmy Anderson took in the previous Test.

The lack of consistency in third umpire decisions is alarming. If jimmy's catch last week stands then Jonny had to go there.

No doubt about that catch. Stokes plays a horrible shot, off the back foot and on about a sixth stump line, pushing nondescriptly at the ball and he edges to Sarfraz, who pouches at about chest-height, to his left.

61st over: England 212-4 (Bairstow 41, Stokes 4)
That was almost a brilliant catch by Younis, and you can’t really blame him for claiming it - no hint of any pulling of wool over eyes there. Three singles from the over.

Well, well, well. Bairstow gets away with it, as thirders Chris Gaffaney judges that the ball did meet grass without Younis keeping his fingers underneath it. Big call, that.

Bairstow rocks back and jabs at a cut, it goes low to Younis Khan at slip who claims the catch, but it goes upstairs. He took the catch but really difficult to tell if the ball then touched the turf.

60th over: England 209-4 (Bairstow 40, Stokes 2)
Gorgeous delivery from Wahab to Stokes first up, angling in but moving away just enough to leave Stokes grasping, and just hoping he doesn’t get an edge. Which he doesn’t. Just. A single clipped through square-leg, and that’s it for the over.

Root has been out for scores of 83, 98, 84, 85 and 88 this year. Not much of a weakness... But the No1 batsman might have to consider it one

59th over: England 208-4 (Bairstow 40, Stokes 1)
Eeesh. Stokes does the foxtrot on a high wire as he goes for a big sweep, getting a colossal top-edge that flies high in the air, dropping exactly in the middle of two fielders. A single there, and another one cut by Bairstow from the over.

58th over: England 206-4 (Bairstow 39, Stokes 0)
Smart catch that from Sarfraz, particularly given his difficulty in the previous over. New batsman Ben Stokes plays out the remainder of the over.

“I really think the lack of strike rotation cost us the wicket of Joe,” first-names Krishnan Patel. “Contrary to their reputations as busy players, Root and Bairstow didn’t take many singles since the morning allowing the bowlers to settle into their rhythms and making the scoreboard rather static.”

Well that was slightly unexpected. Root had looked entirely unfussed and comfortable at the crease, then he drives loosely at a widish fullish one, and nicks behind to the keeper, who takes a solid catch diving to his right.

57th over: England 206-3 (Bairstow 39, Root 88)
Ooof, lucky escape for Bairstow, who goes back to Shah and plays almost calamitously late, getting an edge that flashes between keeper and slip - too quick for the former, too far to the left for the latter. It goes for an accidental four, but he collects a more deliberate boundary with a firm cut through point. And then, in a rather eventful over, Bairstow again rocks back and cuts and again gets an edge which thunks the heel of Sarfraz’s hand, loops up over his shoulder and plops safely, from an English perspective, to the turf. Lucky Jonny.

56th over: England 198-3 (Bairstow 31, Root 88)
A single for Bairstow, driven in that not-quite-entirely-on-the-front-foot-so-he-can-look-a-bit-jumpy manner of his - you know the one - before Root delightfully guides one off the back foot, with a late cut through gully and to the third man fence.

55th over: England 193-3 (Bairstow 30, Root 84)
Runs! Lovely runs! The first alteration to the scoreboard of the day comes as Bairstow drives through the covers, and they come back for three after Imran Khan lumbers after it then tries to stop, half-successfully, with his big boot. And then Root goes one better, gobbling up a low full-toss from Shah and clipping it in front of mid-wicket and to the boundary. And then he does almost exactly the same thing, with the same result, from the next ball. Absolute dirt from Shah, that.

England’s morning so far:

54th over: England 182-3 (Bairstow 27, Root 76)
First hint of anything approaching danger of the day, as Root makes a minor hash of an attempted pull shot that was probably a bit too full, but definitely kept a bit low. It thudded into his pads, but there’s no prospect of lbw there. A third maiden on the spin.

53rd over: England 182-3 (Bairstow 27, Root 76)
And another maiden. Yasir Shah is the man with the ball from the other end, and Bairstow blocks away, hinting at a drive from one ball but circumspectly playing himself into the day.

“Stuart Broad’s comment about younger players being able to feed off Joe Root’s batting gave me pause for thought,” writes Sean McNeill. “Is there anyone in the team who is younger than Root?”

52nd over: England 182-3 (Bairstow 27, Root 76)
And we’re away. Wahab sends down a maiden to Root, who plays at a couple but leaves the rest well alone. A suitably gentle start to the day.

Pretty confident that I, along with a vaguely bemused security guard, are the only two people in the Guardian office at the moment. Possibly the only two people awake anywhere. Possibly.

Morning everyone. So who’s ahead? Our own Mike Selvey reckons it’s Pakistan, as you can see, but I’m not so sure. Of course it depends a huge amount on Joe Root, but if he can stick around for a long time, then a lead inside three days could be on, and who knows what could happen from there.

Here’s Stuart Broad on young Mr Root:

From a bowler’s point of view, you can feel quite relaxed when Joe is out there batting,” Broad said. “He doesn’t look like he’s panic-sweeping and dancing [down the pitch] because he’s not sure what to do. Last time we were here it was like tossing a coin as to which shot we would play.”

“I think Joe has brought a lot of calmness to the batting unit – and Cookie, of course, he played beautifully today – that the young guys can feed off. He’s as good a player of spin as I’ve played with. He’s very natural, he doesn’t look or rushed, he just knows his areas to score.”

Nick will be here shortly. In the meantime read Mike Selvey’s day two report.

Pakistan have taken control of the second Test. As well as the England bowlers performed on the second day to halt the Pakistan innings in its tracks, Pakistan’s own bowlers were starting to exert pressure of their own in a manner redolent to an extent of England’s last tour here.

Replying to Pakistan’s 378, a brace of early wickets had set England’s reply back before a third wicket stand of 113 between Alastair Cook and Joe Root restored a balance. In the final session though, the legspinner Yasir Shah, much-hyped but missing from the first Test because of injury, claimed the most valuable wicket of Cook for 65, taken at leg slip.

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Pakistan v England: second Test, day four – live!

October 25, 2015, 3:38 am
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15th over: England 43-2 (Bell 18, Root 12) Yasir changes ends, and has Root on the back foot with a ball that zips unexpectedly off the turf. Root again leaves it late to flick the next from in front of his stumps, before a slightly too full delivery is driven away for two. An uncomfortable over for Root.

14th over: England 41-2 (Bell 18, Root 10) Ah, here’s Zulfiqar – the left-armer getting a welcome shot at the two right-handers at the crease. Bell, who (dare I say it) is starting to settle, blocks and leaves with a degree of comfort, before picking up two runs to close the over, with an edge wide of the slips. Maybe he’s not settling in that well.

“Why pretend that this is bad news?” asks Robert Wilson.

“This is exactly what everyone here loves. The word ‘rueful’ was invented for English cricket fans. Cue the usual litany of Vietnam vet flashbacks to the 90s and the moral arms race of gallows humour. This is where the OBO lives. The only way people would be genuinely upset is if Buttler knocks out a run-a-ball double ton during Bell’s unbeaten match-saving fifty.”

13th over: England 39-2 (Bell 16, Root 10) Malik comes in for a bowl, rather than Zulfiqar, and has Bell in a mess first ball, going over the wicket and catching the batsman’s glove – but it drops short of bat pad. A flurry of singles, then a rick in the field as Hafeez overthrows and the ball runs away to the boundary. Misbah looks absolutely furious.

12th over: England 30-2 (Bell 13, Root 4) Bell offers a first show of defiance, despatching Yasir when the bowler drops short, opening his shoulders and cracking the ball away for four. Only 461 more for England to win this thing...

11th over: England 25-2 (Bell 9, Root 4) Mind games from Pakistan here, chatting away amongst themselves, with Khan taking his sweet time between deliveries. They know that the flaky middle order is in reach, and will be keen to stop this partnership before it gets started. Root gets off the mark with a four, slashing a wide ball past backward point.

10th over: England 19-2 (Bell 7, Root 0) Joe Root staggers to the crease, with the weight of England’s faint, faint hope strapped across his shoulders, after Cook, who looked in no fit state to be at the crease, succumbed to Yasir for the second time in this Test. There’s a big shout for lbw against Root second ball, but it was pitching well outside leg.

Oh boy. Yasir tempts Cook into a sweep, and he gets a top edge, sending the ball high into the Dubai sky, and into the grateful arms of Wahab Riaz, deep in the outfield.

9th over: England 19-1 (Cook 10, Bell 7) We resume, and Khan has Cook in trouble first ball, with a terrific delivery that whips past the edge, and drops just in front of Sarfraz. Bell leaves, then has a jab that just misses short leg, then leaves, then drives silkily through the covers for four. Inconsistent.

“The funniest part about this entire defeat is that our batsmen aren’t falling to spin,” begins Krishnan Patel. “No, we seem to have this fetish for collapsing to pacers in dry conditions where pace bowling is supposed to be hard - just like the Lord’s and Oval tests in the Ashes this summer.”

8th over: England 14-1 (Cook 10, Bell 3) Just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse for England, here comes Yasir Shah to have another dig at Cook. Yasir starts over the wicket, but Cook pinches a single with a clip past short leg. Two slips join said short leg as Yasir sizes up Bell, who scrapes through the rest of the over, straight batting back down the wicket. Drinks.

7th over: England 13-1 (Cook 9, Bell 3) Imran Khan aims and fires in the direction of Bell’s off stump, with a shorter ball forcing a nervous flick towards gully that drops short. Bell defends the rest of the over for a maiden. Bumble amuses himself by reading out the places on the Barmy Army’s flags. “Sunderland... Wigan... Dunnington, that’s where Bairstow’s from”. You get the idea.

6th over: England 13-1 (Cook 9, Bell 3) This is Niall, taking over from Vish and sticking with this until stumps. So, a crocked Alastair Cook and a timid Ian Bell start their long walk up the mountain. Wahab comes steaming straight in at Bell, who has the composed swagger of a rabbit in headlights. A handful of hurried singles from the over, with Cook visibly limping up and down the wicket.

5th over: England 10-1 (Cook 8, Bell 1)

We’ve pinpointed Cook’s issue to a groin strain which he was stretching while in the field, says Bumble on comms. Oh and there goes Mo, nicking to second slip. Poor. I suppose that’s the end of that experiment? Speaking of end, Ian Bell is up next and he needs to keep the wolf from the door. Off the mark with a dab in front of square on the leg side.

This is possibly the most futile chase since Wile E. Coyote decided he fancied game for dinner. #PAKvENG

Alastair Cook running like C3PO during an oil shortage. Not good.

Grim from Moeen, who sniffs a bit of width and throws his hands at a wide one and nicks to second slip.

4th over: England 8-0 (Cook 7, Ali 1)

A stiff pull – steady – sees Cook get to the other end for a single, leaving Wahab to have another go at Ali. Short ball served up and Ali sways underneath. Ali ends the over with a delightful punch off the back foot, which finds the fielder at extra cover. No run.

3rd over: England 7-0 (Cook 6, Ali 1)

The umpires seem keen to track Imran Khan’s follow through, which is encroaching the danger area down the middle of the pitch. Ali plays out a maiden.

2nd over: England 7-0 (Cook 6, Ali 1)

That man Wahaz Riaz, who bowls took quickly, is opening from the other end. Early movement for sure, but Ali manages to get off the mark comfortably with a well taken single. Cook tests his back with a nice shot through midwicket that has him ambling the first and trudging back for the second.

1st over: England 4-0 (Cook 4, Ali 0)

Cook starts as he means to go on with a crunching defence into the leg side. He follows that up with a brutal dead bat that dribbles back to the bowler and then a hellacious tap down the ground. What will Imran Khan do now? Weep, that’s what, as Cook skews a Lara-esque edge through gully for MORE RUNS. Brilliant finish from Cook, as he toys with Khan and pulls out his reverse playing of a shot. Four from the over.

Come on – let’s count them down together: 491 runs or 144 overs. I’ll take overs, you lot count the runs...

More good news...

If theres no bad light Eng will have to bat 144 overs to draw. Or score 491 runs to win. Both will be Asian records https://t.co/ZaRPGOZgUj

Don’t to be the bearer of worse news, but apparently Alastair Cook is carrying a niggle. Yay...

Ah Shafiq's dismissal for 79 prompts declaration at 354 for 6, a lead of 490. Eng have i think 54 overs to bat today.

Pakistan declare on 354-6 after Asad Shafid lbw to Moeen for 79, leaving England need 491 to win the second Test. More chance of rain

Ali gets one to turn into the pads and, crucially, not bounce much. Shafiq reviews but it’s umpire’s call on impact outside the line.

AND MISBAH HAS DECLARED!

94th over: Pakistan 352-5 (Shafiq 78, Sarfraz 2)

Shafiq steals two as England fail to maintain the illusion of interest, allowing an overthrown hurl to the keeper to go through two covering fielders. Sarfraz is busy enough to return the trike to Shafiq when it’s given to him, and Shafiq’s seeing it well enough to do the same even when he mis-times one.

@Vitu_E this is where we're at now https://t.co/9gH8AQSkAL

93rd over: Pakistan 347-5 (Shafiq 74, Ahmed 1)

Ahmed gets off the mark second ball, allowing Shafiq to nab two through the off side with a well-watched cut. Next ball he skips down the track and hits Ali over the top of midwicket for four. Cracking shot, for free really given there’s no one near that part of the fence. He then drops one into the leg side to retain the strike.

92nd over: Pakistan 339-5 (Shafiq 67, Ahmed 0)

Khan falls to Rashid, attempting to push the rate. Brilliant catch by Moeen Ali. Rashid thinks he might have another one as a ball booms from outside leg stump to James Anderson at slip. Via the edge? Apparently not – so say the standing and third umpire, the latter being consulted as England choose to review. Scampered two allows Sarfraz the strike for the next over...

Not out. Bat hitting pad/boot was the noise...

Rashid fizzes one sharply from leg to off which finds its way to Anderson at slip. They appeal for the catch, umpire says not out. England choose to ask upstairs...

Khan tries to smash Rashid out of the rough but can only sky, high, down the ground. Moeen Ali, running around from mid on, takes a brilliant catch.

91st over: Pakistan 334-4 (Y.Khan 118, Shafiq 62)

Hundred partnership between these two comes up with a delightful back cut from Shafiq. He takes a two, then a single as Wood over steps the front line. Khan then opens the face towards Moeen Ali, coming on from the third man fence. And now Shafiq hits another four, down the ground nicely. Cook does well to make up the ground and get to the ball, but his intervention doesn’t stop it racing away to the boundary.

@Vitu_E Surely it's time for a declaration? They can't really fear England's batting line up this much...

90th over: Pakistan 320-4 (Y.Khan 113, Shafiq 50)

Adil Rashid from around the wicket once more. Shafiq gets down and one knee and sweeps after a succession of misses, one of which causes the ball to balloon up, but safely into the off side. Shafiq then moves to another well-compiled fifty. Younis helps him celebrate by skipping down and thumping Rashid for a straight four.

89th over: Pakistan 313-4 (Y.Khan 113, Shafiq 47)

Mark Wood taking the first over of the second session and he’s bang on the money straightaway: Younis Khan playing across the line but getting a thin edge onto his pads, scuppering any hopes of an LBW. Picks off a single into the leg side to bring Shafiq back on strike. England haven’t taken the new ball but the cameras pan to Wahab Riaz who is dressed in his whites and checking the seam on a shiny new red one.

Players emerging – second session due to get underway. Declaration speculation and more Younis Khan up next...

Right, get some lunch/breakfast/dinner/Uber and kebab, and I’ll see you all in 20 minutes...

Younis Khan picking off runs into the leg side from outside off like: pic.twitter.com/xc4hZ618Ji

88th over: Pakistan 311-4 (Y.Khan 112, Shafiq 47)

Bit of spit from Adil – not literally – as this one bounces out of the rough, past the outside edge. Bye given! Amazing scenes. Short ball and Shafiq works this to the leg-side sweeper. A single off the final ball brings about LUNCH.

87th over: Pakistan 308-4 (Y.Khan 111, Shafiq 46)

A shout for LBW is turned down. England decide to review it and it turns out the umpire was right, it did hit the pad outside the line. Over ends with Pakistan leading by 444.

NOT OUT – as you were...

Moeen Ali turns one into the pads of Shafiq and appeals. Not out. Looks like it hits outside the line (umpire gives it NOT OUT)...

86th over: Pakistan 307-4 (Y.Khan 110, Shafiq 46)

Rashid bowling around the wicket now to Shafiq – the first one is padded away. The next one is short and Shafiq waits for the turn before playing it wide of mid off for a single. Khan gets a short one and pulls it through midwicket, again for a single. Decent bite from the rough, but that means sod all now, doesn’t it?

85th over: Pakistan 305-4 (Y.Khan 109, Shafiq 45)

Moeen Ali into the attack. Younis picks him through midwicket for one before Shafiq brings out the reverse sweep for two. A leg slip is put in, Khan is brought back on strike and he finishes with a delightful smash to mid-wicket, skipping down the track, for four.

84th over: Pakistan 295-4 (Y.Khan 104, Shafiq 40)

Younis Khan gets his 31st Test hundred (third against England). Gets some applause from the England fielders, as he takes his helmet off to salute the dressing room and his own fan base. He’s worn England down here.

Test century No31 for Younus Khan and his 12th in 2nd innings (Just Cook & Tendulkar, both 13, and Sangakkara, 14, above him in this regard)

83rd over: Pakistan 286-4 (Y.Khan 98, Shafiq 38)

Khan’s adopting the off-side Hotline Bling squat as the bowler runs in. He gets four behind square on the leg side first but Broad pulls out of his run-up next ball, meaning Khan stays where he is for the ball after.

82nd over: Pakistan 282-4 (Khan 94, Shafiq 37)

Younis Khan takes a single and gives Shafiq a few goes at Rashid. But it’s only to the fifth ball that he goes after the leggie: a ball is dropped short and Shafiq smites it to midwicket for four. Takes a single to deep point.

Younis Khan has not been dismissed in the 90s in last 14 years, the period in which he has scored 28 centuries - via @MazherArshad

81st over: Pakistan 276-4 (Y.Khan 93, Shafiq 32)

The new ball is available but England have taken it yet. Younis Khan shuffling across his stumps, presumable as an homage to Drake: legs bowed as he claims the fourth and fifth stump line as his own. He gets a single and Shafiq gets two thanks to a misfield from sub-fielder Alex Hales at third man.

80th over: Pakistan 273-4 (Y.Khan 92, Shafiq 30)

Spin now as Adil Rashid comes into the attack. He finds an edge straightaway but the ball bounces just short of Anderson at first slip. A couple of shorter balls don’t get up at all, but the fourth ball does and Shafiq takes the single out to deep point. Beats Younis’ outside edge before the right hander sweeps against the spin for a single.

79th over: Pakistan 271-4 (Younis 91, Shafiq 29)

That previous over took Pakistan to a lead of 406. Shafiq nearly goes to the penultimate ball: the right hander approaches the pitch of the ball, but misreads the bounce and spoons the ball to Cook at mid off but it drops well short. A single is taken to the leg side, as Adil Rashid comes in from the boundary to field. Two from the over.

78th over: Pakistan 269-4 (Y.Khan 90, Shafiq 28)

Now he’s finding the gaps: Shafiq nails a straight drive and then one through the cover – both for boundaries. Stokes is, well, not entirely chuffed.

77th over: Pakistan 261-4 (Y.Khan 90, Shafiq 20)

Anderson takes a well earned break and Broad comes into the attack. His first ball his inside-edged for four. A more deliberate boundary comes two balls later as Broad gives Younis a bit of width and he smashes it through point off the front foot. Glorious.

76th over: Pakistan 253-4 (Y.Khan 82, Shafiq 20)

Shafiq having a net at the moment: lovely looking shots for no value whatsoever. He finds mid off with a crisp front foot drive, cover is found with one off the back foot. He finishes with a defence back to the bowler. All the right shapes, this lad. England have been quick to remind any and every Pakistan batsmen that they’ll have to do it against the moving Dukes ball next summer. Shafiq looks like he’s got the set-up to succeed in those conditions.

75th over: Pakistan 253-4 (Y.Khan 82, Shafiq 20)

Some shift this is from Anderson, who has just bowled his seventh over on the bounce this morning – the longest spell of any England bowler. Just a single from it as Shafiq goes to his favoured third man region.

74th over: Pakistan 252-4 (Y.Khan 82, Shafiq 19)

A single from Shafiq brings up the Pakistan 250. Younis then picks off Stokes through midwicket as the allrounder strays, ever so slightly, from his off stump/fourth stump line.

73rd over: Pakistan 249-4 (Y.Khan 80, Shafiq 18)

Shafiq’s not quite got to grips with Anderson, who looked to have deliberate stepped in the batsman’s way during the previous over. Shafiq went to have a word with the square leg umpire about it. He’s at the non-strikers end at the moment as Younis Khan attempts to work Jimmy into the off side but can only play onto his own foot. Maiden.

72nd over: Pakistan 249-4 (Y.Khan 80, Shafiq 18)

Younis steps across to the off side and finds a gap between mid off and mid wicket for a single. Ah, there’s Shafiq’s middle – threads a nice shot through cover point for four.

71st over: Pakistan 244-4 (Younis 79, Shafiq 14)

Anderson’s got two short-mid ons now but Younis leaves them both stranded as he flicks the second ball through midwicket for three. He now has more than a thousand Test runs against England. Shafiq’s not quite found the middle of his bat but he’s tucking the ball hither and, erm, thither (?) – is that right? Anyway, thether he goes, to square leg, for a couple.

70th over: Pakistan 238-4 (Younis 76, Shafiq 11)

Wood has a blow and Stokes takes over from him. Starts with two runs down to third man before a drive into the covers is stopped well by Ian Bell, though a single is allowed. If you’ve not seen Wood’s interview with Stokes in his latest tour diary video (they’re excellent, by the way), have a watch:

.@benstokes38 joins @mawood33's video blog for a first Test review on Cook, Rashid, heat and off-spin #tan#minthttps://t.co/EcEMxYw2oe

69th over: Pakistan 235-4 (Younis 76, Shafiq 8)

A wide-brim-hatted fielder at short mid on (think it’s Broad) for Anderson who bowls a tidy few to Shafiq before a thick edge through point brings Younis back on strike (he took a single first ball).

68th over: Pakistan 233-4 (Younis 75, Shafiq 7)

Three dots, then Shafiq and Younis exchange the strike before the first boundary of the day comes as Shafiq gets one on his hip and works it fine, behind square leg, for four.

67th over: Pakistan 227-4 (Y.Khan 74, Shafiq 2)

Interesting graphic being shown on the telebox showing Anderson’s variation in pace. The cutters are in the low 70s and, as soon as they come back to the live coverage, Jimmy dishes up a couple at 86mph, carrying well through to Buttler. Not bad with a ball this old.

Misbah may be out. But, philosophically, is anybody ever really out once they’ve done something like this? #PAKvENGhttps://t.co/bEF1tvZb1P

66th over: Pakistan 226-4 (Younis 74, Shafiq 1)

Another maiden for Wood. Whatever margin this England defeat (come on), he has acquitted himself brilliantly. Once we fully master bionic back/ankle replacements, he could have a long and prosperous international career.

65th over: Pakistan 226-4 (Y.Khan 74, Shafiq 1)

Misbah tries to go after Anderson but, while he picks the slower off break, he can’t do much with it – lifting it tamely to Cook, who has to hunch to his left to take the catch. Even given the current game situation, that shot was out of nowhere. Shafiq gets off the mark with a thick edge down to third man. Another slower ball, this time to Younis, grips and stops a bit in the pitch. It’s shorter, so Younis dabs it into the leg side for one.

No second hundred in the match for Misbah as he tries to go after a slower ball but can’t beat Cook at mid off.

64th over: Pakistan 223-3 (Misbah 87, Y.Khan 72)

The first run of the day comes as Wood is flicked to the man out at midwicket by Younis for a single. Misbah happy to get forward and leave or defend Wood. This stat just about sums up his approach...

Misbah has scored 189 runs in this Test: 55 off the quicks and 134 off the spinners

63rd over: Pakistan 222-3 (Misbah 87, Y.Khan 71)

Another maiden, this time James Anderson to Misbah. Good lines from Jimmy, as you’d expect, and even a bit of movement too: the last ball actually swings a touch into the pads, but Misbah is able to get a thick-ish inside edge.

62nd over: Pakistan 222-3 (Misbah 87, Y.Khan 71)

Mark Wood starts with a maiden against Younis and the commentators are already looking at England’s highest fourth innings scores to win a Test. At the stop sits an effort of 332 for seven against Australia. They just need to evoke the spirit of Percy Chapman’s barmy army.

Players are out in the middle. England seem in fairly good spirits considering the game situation. Pretty sure Misbah won’t be happy until he has a lead of 500, but maybe I’m doing him a disservice there...

Younus Khan joins a very exclusive club with just 14 members! Who are your favourite batsmen on this list? #cricketpic.twitter.com/GuaGbriNST

Sorry, how have I managed to get on the wrong side of the clocks going back?

“Don’t forget, you’ve got an extra hour in bed,” beamed the BBC weatherman who once did this. Not so, Schafernaker. Here we all are, at 5:43am. I’ll be honest, I’m a bit worried. I’d assumed Sky Sports’ coverage would have started by now. Instead, I’m watching Gilo (7*) and Hoggy (8*) stick it to the Aussies at Trent Bridge in 2005. Do they know we’re doing this an hour early?

Misbah #PAKvENGpic.twitter.com/pkXlMzmEO8

Hello. Vithushan will be along shortly. Until then, here’s Mike Selvey’s verdict on day three, which was not a great one for England:

Any ambition England may have had about forcing their way back into the second Test were firmly dispelled when they were bowled out before lunch in a vintage display of good old Chuckle Brothers deckchair batting. Two hours have all but cost them the match.

On a surface that was far from spiteful, with Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow going well, they envisaged a lead, perhaps enough to make life as tricky for Pakistan as they had managed in Abu Dhabi. Instead the batting imploded against a mixture of wonderful, sustained left-arm pace bowling from Wahab Riaz, and mystery spin from Yasir Shah, the most important ingredient missing from the Pakistan team in the first Test.

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Pakistan v England: second Test, day five – live!

October 26, 2015, 4:06 am
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There’s a liveblog on the Asian earthquake running here. If you or your loved ones are affected, my thoughts are with you.

Related: Pakistan, India and Afghanistan rocked by earthquake – live updates

Bookmaking latest: Coral have an England win at 45-1, which strike me as startlingly stingy odds, particularly with a few bookmakers offering 1000-1 for the same bet. It hardly matters, as you’d have to be bonkers to put any money on it. More sensibly, a draw is hovering between 4-1 and 10-1, with a Pakistan win somewhere between a tempting 1-8 and 1-50 depending on who you ask. Play is about to restart.

113rd over: England 281-8 (Rashid 47, Wood 17)

Shoaib Malik bowls, and there are runs! Rashid strokes the ball through the covers and takes two, and then he follows that with a single. Wood edges, safely, and gets one of his own. Four runs! FOUR! And that’s tea.

112nd over: England 281-8 (Rashid 44, Wood 16)

And another maiden. The last four overs have yielded a combined one single solitary run. Not that it really matters, obviously. “Do you really see them having to survive another 35? How’s the light?” asks Grahame Ash. Looks fine from here, though TV can play tricks with these things. But Pakistan are fair zipping through the overs, so probably.

111st over: England 281-8 (Rashid 44, Wood 16)

And another maiden, from Zulfiqar to Rashid. A little over 10 minutes to tea, which will be spent quite nervously by both sides if England lose no more wickets.

England at least fighting here, but paying a heavy price for that awful Saturday morning @Simon_Burnton

110th over: England 281-8 (Rashid 44, Wood 16)

A maiden, from Yasir to Wood. “Might I be the third Wilson to comment today?” wonders Robert Wilson. Well, OK then. “Shout out to Gareth & Kevin (keep the faith, brothers). The world has changed. It seems there’s scarcely a Smith or Jones left. It’s all Wilson all the time. Have you noticed? We’re everywhere. There are Wilsons in North Korea now! Taking over the OBO is just the start. Soon the Test team itself will be entirely Wilsonian (Carl & Callum are real prospects, Roger and Rhun too though we’ll have to loosen up the gender rules to give Anne and Fran a game). Rob Smyth can no longer keep us down. The days of anthropomorphic volleyballs and changing our name to Giggs are over. We’re coming.” Be afraid. Be very afraid.

108th over: England 281-8 (Rashid 44, Wood 16)

Spin from both ends, as Yasir replaces Wahab following the latter’s expensive last over. And Rashid is dropped! Rashid tries to cut, edges, and it flies straight and speedy to Mohammad Hafeez at gully, who doesn’t have time to get his hands up and in position, and isn’t even close to catching it. 35 overs remaining

107th over: England 276-8 (Rashid 40, Wood 16)

Zulfi bowls, and Rashid heaves the first delivery through midwicket for a couple, before taking the single that brought Wood on strike for that review-based drama.

The ball missed the bat by a margin, and would have missed the stumps by an even bigger margin. That was a very swift, confident and also terrible decision to review, and Pakistan have no more in their locker.

Either lbw or caught, Pakistan don’t really care. The on-field umpire said no.

106th over: England 273-8 (Rashid 37, Wood 16)

Nice! Wood pulls Wahab for four off the hip, very nearly does it again - for two this time - and then diverts a wide one to deep backward point for four more, before crashing the penultimate delivery wide of and also above mid off for another boundary. This thus becomes the joint (with one other) second most expensive over of the match, and England’s most profitable of either innings!

105th over: England 259-8 (Rashid 37, Wood 2)

An over from Zulfiqar, and a single for Wood.

104th over: England 258-8 (Rashid 37, Wood 1)

I was literally just looking up Broad’s batting statistics, and noting that this was a chance to score what would have been a first half-century for nearly two and a half years, when it fairly emphatically ceased to be such a chance. Wood grabs a swift single, and Rashid ends the over with a four smacked past point.

A beauty! Wahab destroys the stumps with a dazzling corker of a yorker!

103rd over: England 251-7 (Rashid 33, Broad 28)

Zulfi’s back, and Rashid plays it out risklessly and indeed runlessly.

102nd over: England 251-7 (Rashid 33, Broad 28)

Oooh! And also aah! Broad pops the ball into the air on the leg side, where there are two short legs, but the ball flies between them, and the batsmen set off on a run. The ball’s fielded and thrown to the bowler’s end, where Broad would have struggled to make his ground, but it misses the stumps, nobody’s backing up and off it goes to the boundary. Five runs ... woa-oah, we’re halfway there!

101st over: England 245-7 (Rashid 32, Broad 23)

Rashid hoiks Yasir through midwicket, to bring up the 50 partnership. Meanwhile there is news coming from northern Pakistan, where an earthquake measuring 7.7 on the richter scale has been reported. More when I get it, or from our news department.

Related: Earthquake of 7.7 magnitude strikes south Asia

100th over: England 241-7 (Rashid 28, Broad 23)

Wahab bowls, and after the batsmen take a single each he unleashes an obscenely hostile short ball at Broad, which the batsman just about sways away from as it speared towards his nose. England’s innings is 100 overs old, and there are 45 remaining in the day. This partnership has so far survived 11 and a bit. All they have to do is keep going for that long again, and again, and again, and also again, and England will be very much home and hosed.

99th over: England 239-7 (Rashid 27, Broad 22)

As in the previous over, a single for Broad from the second delivery. Unlike the previous over, Rashid sees out the remainder without any sort of drama.

98th over: England 238-7 (Rashid 27, Broad 21)

What’s the point, these days, of appealing for a catch when it is very clear that the ball didn’t go anywhere near the bat? Even if you manage to convince the on-field umpire, the decision will only get reviewed and overturned. Anyway, Pakistan have a go, in a half-hearted way, after Rashid tries to pull a shortish delivery from Wahab and gets nothing on it. Later Wahab bowls across him, the ball heading towards first slip, and Rashid stretches for it inadvisably, and is lucky to again make no contact.

97th over: England 236-7 (Rashid 27, Broad 20)

Yasir doesn’t really worry Rashid, who gets two off the last, turned to square leg. This, meanwhile, is a crushing disappointment.

@Simon_Burnton FYI Junaid Jamshed is a clothing retailer (Pakistan's Tom Singh) turned religious commentator and noted misogynist.

96th over: England 234-7 (Rashid 25, Broad 20)

Wahab replaces Imran Khan, and starts his spell with a no ball, before continuing with some trashy wide nonsense, given the treatment by Broad. It improves, as it pretty much had to, and Broad looks uncomfortable when one is banged in short, rearing up to pass just past Broad’s nose, with the batsman quite unsure what to do with his bat. “After a surprisingly competent summer, it’s refreshing to have England back,” writes Christopher Dale. “Some of the dismissals to Yasir Shah are straight out of the Warne and Kumble locker of English batsmen failing against legspin, it’s very nostalgic.”

95th over: England 227-7 (Rashid 24, Broad 15)

Broad gets in on the act, pulling off his hips for four. And then, after another short ball is called a wide, there’s a gorgeous cover drive for four more! This is easy! These two are going to be back in the dressing-room with their feet up by tea, no problem. (This last statement is probably true)

94th over: England 217-7 (Rashid 24, Broad 6)

Yasir Shah’s back, but without immediate reward. Indeed, when he drops one a little short Rashid is upon it in a flash, sending it past point for four, and then he swishes the last ball of the over through midwicket for four. Easy! Just 60 more of those and England have this Test wrapped up.

#CricViz has called it. There is officially zilch chance of England saving the second #PAKvENG Test. pic.twitter.com/RVnjDKDYGk

93rd over: England 209-7 (Rashid 16, Broad 6)

Ooof! Broad edges, the ball coming off the top of the bat and heading downwards, bouncing a yard in front of first slip. The next is sent through the covers for four. James Anderson’s been a busy lad, putting pen to paper on a new deal with Lancashire mid-Test.

BREAKING: James Anderson signs new two-year contract with Lancashire. More on #SSNHQ

92nd over: England 205-7 (Rashid 16, Broad 2)

Zulfi’s over yields a single for Broad and two pairs for Rashid. Whenever the wicket is shown on screen from side on, an advert for Junaid Jamshed is superimposed onto the outfield. I’m hoping and frankly expecting that this is an actual shed full of jam, some kind of suburban retail outlet, similar say to Britain’s Sport’s Direct but dealing only in jams, conserves and marmalades.

91st over: England 200-7 (Rashid 12, Broad 1)

Imran Khan continues, and one delivery simply refuses to bounce and Broad is absolutely clueless as it zips under his bat but wide of the wicket. The Englishman then gets off the mark, and brings up England’s 200, with a push to mid on. It is perhaps not the very finest excuse for a celebration that any Englishman has ever experienced, but those fans present cheer it pretty heartily just the same.

90th over: England 199-7 (Rashid 12, Broad 0)

Rashid pushes through the covers for a couple, and then lets another float down leg side, past Sarfraz and away for four byes. Rashid, too, is batting very sensibly, taking an approach he could really have shown a bit more of in innings one.

89th over: England 193-7 (Rashid 10, Broad 0)

Imran Khan’s first delivery to Broad is pretty nasty, sliding across his bat and only just missing the edge of it. And then he does it again. This could end quickly.

A furious Stokes beats the turf with his bat, which moments earlier he was limply hanging out to edge the ball to first slip. After playing so patiently and impressively under probing pre-lunch spin-based examination, he’s out to seam.

88th over: England 193-6 (Stokes 13, Rashid 10)

Imran Khan’s return doesn’t signal a complete break from spin, as Zulfiqar bowls from the other end. Rashid prods the ball to midwicket and runs a couple, with the speed and appetite of someone who believes that runs still have meaning, despite England needing 300 more of them.

87th over: England 191-6 (Stokes 13, Rashid 8)

The session starts with Stokes edging low, along the ground, wide of gully for four. It’s his second boundary, which means that, five dots later, fully 61.5% of his 13 runs have come from 3.2% of his 63 balls.

Right, then. The players are back out, Imran Khan is limbering up. Let’s play!

Cheer up, Ben. It’s not that bad.

An email before I leave you all for the lunch break, where you’ll be ably picked up by Simon Burnton– and it comes from Tom Gucht:

“When Buttler got out, I had a brief, sleepy feeling of security knowing that Moeen was about to stride out and steady the ship, only for my memories to be stirred as I remembered that he’s already been and gone. This new opening experiment is going well.”

86th over: England 183-6 (Stokes 9, Rashid 8)

The over before lunch and Pakistan have taken the new ball. However, they have given it to Babar, who immediately uses the harder ball and more pronounced seam to get some bigger bounce. The next ball, Rashid is back and edges the ball onto his pad. There’s an appeal and then a review for LBW, but the edge is clear. Not out. A bit of flight and width and Rashid cracks a good cover drive for four. And that’s lunch.

85th over: England 182-6 (Stokes 9, Rashid 4)

Shah trying to tempt Rashid into playing a short reminiscent of the naff one he played in the first innings. But Rashid’s not biting, meeting flight with nothing but a dead bat. He’s reading everything outside off stump well, too.

84th over: England 182-6 (Stokes 9, Rashid 4)

Rashid starting OK so far, though he does skew an edge off Babar into the off side. Nowhere near a fielder though, so he can scamper through for a single to pass defending duties on to Stokes.

Yasir's ball to dismiss Buttler deviated 3 degrees to leg in the air and 8.9 degrees to off from the pitch. #PAKvENG#CricViz

83rd over: England 179-6 (Stokes 9, Rashid 0)

Rashid gets off the mark to his third ball (and third of the over) as Shah goes short and he works his wrists to find the gap at midwicket. Over ends with another appeal, as Stokes comes forward to a ball that turns into his front pad, but it’s outside the line.

82nd over: England 178-6 (Stokes 9, Rashid 0)

A couple of appeals against Stokes, for bat pad and LBW, are abandoned. Then a ball doesn’t bounce at all and Stokes walks past it. But Ahmed behind the stumps cannot collect the ball – impossible to, really – and Stokes survives.

81st over: England 178-6 (Stokes 9)

Pakistan decide against the new ball as Stokes plays Shah well, here – only committing to the ball late as he hits the ball down, on the top of its bounce, to get a single to short fine leg. Buttler’s reading the leggies well and leaving outside off. Googly, anyone? Nope, just an outrageous leggie that drifts and leaves Buttler for dead, taking his edge along the way. Beauty.

Ball of the day so far – Shah flights one beautifully, which drifts into middle and leg and then spins sharply as it lands, catching Buttler’s outside edge (he had to play at it) through to Khan for his second catch of the morning.

80th over: England 176-5 (Stokes 8, Buttler 6)

Shoaib Malik on for a bit of conventional off spin. He’s bowling around the wicket to the left-handed Stokes and is bowling a fairly tame line. Stokes, having grafted against Babar and Shah, plays this over out with ease. New ball available with 20 minutes left till lunch...

79th over: England 175-5 (Stokes 8, Buttler 5)

Stokes takes a single to midwicket. Buttler does well to play a soft-handed defensive shot that just dies into the ground as it squirts off the outside half of his bat. He, too, takes a single to midwicket.

78th over: England 173-5 (Stokes 7, Buttler 4)

Pace now for Pakistan as Riaz is brought back into the attack. He starts over the wicket and Buttler pushes a few into the leg side, before Riaz moves around – he got him out in the first innings from this angle – and Buttler defends into the off side.

77th over: England 173-5 (Stokes 7, Buttler 4)

Stokes seems to be settling down, which is nice. Plays Babar comfortably off both feet, though would have liked a run from a hard back foot punch, which clatters off the close cover.

76th over: England 173-5 (Stokes 7, Buttler 4)

Shah over-pitches and Stokes walks into it, driving it for four nicely. He’s reading the leg spinner better, allowing it to pass him down the leg side and then taking a single to mid on.

75th over: England 168-5 (Stokes 2, Buttler 4)

Stokes nearly undoes himself, eyes lighting up at a full ball which he greets with a furious swing of the bat. He brings himself out of his crease but completely misses the ball, which bounces of Ahmed and just wide of his stumps. He’s battling here but gets a single by riding one well behind square on the leg side.

74th over: England 167-5 (Buttler 4, Stokes 1)

Buttler playing straight as Shah rattles through his over. Not enough dragging Buttler forward but no doubt that will come in due time...

73rd over: England 167-5 (Buttler 4, Stokes 1)

Stokes gets caught on the crease and edges onto his pad as he goes back to Babar – the edge comes off his pad and bounces out of the hand of short leg.

72nd over: England 167-5 (Stokes 1, Buttler 4)

Big turns leads to byes as Shah spins one sharply down the leg side which Sarfraz Ahmed can only palm past leg slip. But Bairstow goes, undone by a googly. Jos Buttler, under pressure, comes out and gets off the mark with a streaky four to third man. Off the mark though...

More convinced than ever that England should have picked Eoin Morgan for this series. Why die wondering about a talent like that?

Shah bowls a nice googly but Bairstow invites it through him by leaving a gap between bat and pad as he attempts to work it to midwicket.

71st over: England 161-4 (Bairstow 21, Stokes 1)

Kevin Wilson emails in and is an advocate of tough love: “Isn’t Root getting out, to some extent, a good thing? Hear me out. Now we’ll see whether this middle order has balls.” You’ve got a point, Kevin. It’s about time this middle order pulled their weight. Stokes looking better against the orthodox spin of Babar, though this over is not without an appeal as Babar turns one into the pads (sliding down leg).

70th over: England 161-4 (Bairstow 21, Stokes 1)

Extravagant bounce first up and Stokes does well to get his hands out of the play. I say “does well”, he did follow it. He then skips forward and is nearly nutmegged as the ball comes off the inside part of his right pad. Shorter ball allows him to get onto the back foot and play with a bit more conviction before he follows a googly and plays him into point to get off the mark.

69th over: England 160-4 (Bairstow 21, Stokes 0)

Bairstow takes the entirety of the next over to give Ben Stokes some time to think about a better strategy than thrusting forward.

68th over: England 160-4 (Bairstow 21, Stokes 0)

A bitter blow for England. But Ben Stokes is out there and he’s showed at Lord’s earlier this year that he can bat time, though even then he had to get some runs for his own peace of mind. First ball, he presses forward to Yasir Shah, around the wicket to the left hander, and balloons an inside edge just past bat-pad. Two balls later, the ball balloons off his pad – just his pad – to leg slip. Uses his feet to get into the rough and dead bat the ball to finish the over. Better. He’s getting a bit of chat, too...

Pakistani fielders around Ben Stokes "he's a very angry man. Let's make him more angry" #Cricket#PakvEng

67th over: England 157-4 (Bairstow 18)

Root plays out the first three balls from Babar easily before getting a thick inside edge behind square on the leg side for one. Bairstow, who has looked competent so far and makes use of a mid-off pushed back on the circle to push a loopy full ball for a single. Root then goes, edging Babar to first slip. Didn’t quite get to the pitch of the ball, bat slightly angled, but it’s a fine piece of bowling and a good low catch by Younis Khan.

Is that the game? Probably. Root doesn’t quite get to the ball and edges to Khan...

Root edges Babar behind to first slip but is standing his ground to see if the catch was claimed (it was)...

66th over: England 155-3 (Root 70, Bairstow 17)

Shah starting around the wicket again and Bairstow using his front pad again. The balls missing the rough is being played with the bat – anything in the bitty stuff is being half-volleyed, hands whipped behind the body ASAP to avoid a similar dismissal to Bell yesterday, who gloves through to first slip.

65th over: England 155-3 (Root 70, Bairstow 17)

Root gives Bairstow back the strike with another single to midwicket. Bairstow defends the next few before Babar changes to go over the wicket and into the rough. What he does is provide Bairstow with a good angle to work into the leg side as the ball turns into him. Which he does for a single.

64th over: England 153-3 (Root 69, Bairstow 16)

Well watch, Jonny B – gets a good stride out to a leg spinner that he reads well enough to leave. Two balls later he ends the over with a nice extra cover drive for four. Very well controlled, hands going with the ball as it turned and then kicking through powerfully. I’m on the cusp of jinxing him.

63rd over: England 149-3 (Root 69, Bairstow 12)

Good from Bairstow. Would have been easy to cling to his crease like Rose and that raft – there was enough space, end of! – but he skips down to Babar and puts the ball wide of mid on so that he can take a single. Proactive, I believe that’s called.

62nd over: England 147-3 (Root 68, Bairstow 11)

Yasir Shah into the attack now. Good over: around and over the wicket, into both bits of rough. Root’s happy to pad most away from around and gets a single to give Bairstow an early sighter, too.

61st over: England 146-3 (Root 67, Bairstow 11)

Probably goes down as a drop, I think: Bairstow is a bit too hard coming forward and skews an edge to bat-pad – fresh to the position this over – which passes through the hands of Shan Masood. Bairstow beginning to look a bit uncomfortable, attempting to work a ball late off his pad but being undone by a bit more zip. Inside edge curtails the LBW shout. Maiden.

60th over: England 145-3 (Root 67, Bairstow 11)

Ooooooo what might have been if there were a short leg... Riaz digs one in and Bairstow splices it in front of square on the leg side. There’s no man at bat-pad, so he takes the single on offer. Root then gets some, too, working a 90mph ball coming into his pads through midwicket for a brace. The penultimate ball is caressed through extra cover for four. Well, it should have been the penultimate ball only Riaz oversteps. He finishes the over from over the wicket. Root plays the ball back to him and Riaz does a few kick-ups and asks him to complain about it. Banter.

59th over: England 138-3 (Root 61, Bairstow 10)

First sign of turn, and it’s big. Babar, left-arm orthodox spin around the wicket to Root, catches the edge of the rough. Root comes forward to play the line and finds nothing as the ball spins past his outside edge.

58th over: England138-3 (Root 61, Bairstow 10)

Riaz now coming around the wicket to Bairstow and starts with a bouncer. Bairstow keeps his eyes fixed forward and ducks well. A full ball and he’s striding into it. Good feet from JB so far.

62 innings for Joe Root's 3,000 Test runs ... one quicker than Kevin Pietersen, 7th fastest Englishman overall https://t.co/Kz8rRiRMde

.@joeroot05 becomes the second youngest batsman to 3,000 Test runs. More here: https://t.co/HcVJUs4Dxn#PAKvENGpic.twitter.com/ehjgYVUQ0w

57th over: England 138-3 (Root 61, Bairstow 10)

Bit of excitement from the field as Root goes forward to Babar and the ball chips up, well short of mid on, mind. There’s a short-leg in now, along with the slip and gully. The rest of the over is played with softer hands to both sides of the wicket. More of this, Joe. FYI – it took Root 62 innings to get 3,000 Test runs, pipping Kevin Pietersen by one innings.

56th over: England 138-3 (Root 61, Bairstow 10)

Riaz from the other end – will be fascinating to see what he does when he gets Joe Root on strike. If you missed it, the two clashes yesterday after Root appeared to claim the bowler had trodden on the ball. Having seen the video, I can’t see what the issue is. Sounds like nothing will come of it, either. Anyway, it’s still Bairstow for now and he’s driven Riaz down the ground nicely for three, after two leg byes earlier. Root is on strike for the final ball as Root tucks one around the corner.

55th over: England 132-3 (Root 60, Bairstow 7)

Zulfiqar Babar begins the day around the wicket to the right-handers. The second ball is a bit short and allows Root to get onto the back foot and work into the leg side. Not totally convincing, but it’ll do. Bairstow finishes the over with a single into the same area.

Ian Ward, with the help of Rob Key and Marcus Trescothick, is currently mapping out the task at hand for England. They’ve been excellent in the Sky studio.

Now the players are out there to do it proper...

Going into the final day 3 down to save match, 8 teams out of 32 have saved game in Test history. England twice. @AWSStats

Morning all – pitch black and a bit chilly outside. The perfect day for another modern English rearguard masterclass to add to a list that includes Cardiff 2009, Centurion 2009, Cape Town 2010 and Auckland 2013.

England are 361 runs behind and have to bat out the day, which amounts to 90 overs minus any lost to the inevitable bad light. As for Pakistan, they need seven wickets to win a match they have controlled for the most part.

Vish will be here soon enough. While you wait, here is Mike Selvey’s match report from day four. Enjoy.

This day was called the Feast of Crispian. Six hundred years ago to the day, England fought and won a battle against what, as Shakespeare had it, the Earl of Salisbury called “a fearful odds”. Those odds facing the England cricket team on the fourth day of the second Test could scarcely be described as fearful but they were mighty long for all that. Pakistan were in the driving seat and it would have required more than Alastair Cook’s version of the greatest team talk in the English language, delivered before Agincourt (and embellished by the Bard, of course) to lift his side into staving off what appeared to be an inevitable defeat, band of brothers or not.

By the end of the day, there was still a vague chance that they could avoid defeat and go into the third Test on level terms, but it will now require an effort of monumental concentration and skill of a kind shown by Alastair Cook in the first Test if they are to survive a full day’s play.

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Pakistan v England: third Test, day one – as it happened

November 1, 2015, 5:20 am
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Stuart Broad and James Anderson were outstanding as England took the upper hand on a turning pitch in Sharjah

Right, that it from us today. Be sure to stick around on theguardian.com/sport for all the reports and reaction from Sharjah. Thanks as ever for all your emails. Cheerio!

In injury news, Ben Stokes is to be taken to hospital for scans on Monday.

England 4-0. A very fine day for England, then. But with this pitch turning the way it is, this game is very much up for grabs.

2nd over: England 4-0 (Cook 0, Moeen 4) Yasir Shah takes the new ball at the other end. There’s turn there, of course, but Moeen blocks, blocks, blocks and … SMASHES TO COW CORNER FOR FOUR! That was quite a shot. And he blocks out the final two balls of the over and the day.

1st over: England 0-0 (Cook 0, Moeen 0) The left-arm Rahat Ali kicks things off with the ball for Pakistan. Cook is unflappable outside off.

Up on the England balcony, Johnny Bairstow has got himself a nice cup of tea.

The players are back out on the field. Off we go again.

On Sky, Robert Key has just used the phrase “MAN ALIVE!” As if you needed another reason to love him.

That’s a fine effort from England. Anderson and Broad finish with combined figures of 28.1-15-30-6. But it’s not quite job done for the day – they’ll have three or four overs to survive before the close.

The last England seamer to bowler 13 or more overs at 1.00 RPO or less before Broad today was Ian Botham 14-9-11-5 v Aus Birmingham 1981

The No11 pokes an edge to fourth slip, where Moeen Ali holds the ball in the crook of his arm.

85th over: Pakistan 234-9 (Rahat Ali 4, Babar 6) The first boundary Stuart Broad has conceded today, Zulfiqar Babar flicking off the hip to destroy the bowler’s economy rate. A single means Babar has scored as many runs off Broad in three balls as his team mates managed in 12 overs. And Rahat Ali gets in on the act too, driving (well, poking) for a couple down the ground then driving (well, poking) into the covers for a single.

84th over: Pakistan 226-9 (Rahat Ali 1, Babar 1) Perhaps that’s why Misbah barely plays a shot to the seamers. Or perhaps it was just a bit of fatigue, Anyway, that leaves Nos 10 and 11 to fend off the final six overs of the day. And they don’t really give much impression that they can do it. A couple of scrappy singles from the Anderson over.

Misbah goes! And in a fashion so ugly that on first glance I assumed it was Babar who had dangled his bat at a wide one from Anderson. No, it was the Pakistan captain who had perhaps grown frazzled by the clatter of wickets at the other end. It was a tired, tired shot and it ends a hugely important innings for Pakistan, one that will surely prove crucial to the outcome of the match.

83rd over: Pakistan 224-8 (Misbah 71, Babar 0) So Broad’s figures are 12-8-5-2 … and with the chance to get even better.

Broad returns. He and Anderson have combined figures of 25-15-19-3 so far today, with Broad boasting 11-8-4-1. A leg bye and a run are added to the total, then there’s a huge appeal as Yasir Shah is struck high on the pad. It looked a little high and a little leg-side, so England opt not to review once the umpire has delivered his verdict.

From the last ball, though, Broad has his man. Shah pulls top-edgishly and picks out Patel in the deep.

82nd over: Pakistan 222-7 (Misbah 70, Yasir Shah 7) That battering has persuaded Alastair Cook to call for the new ball. With seven wickets down, will Misbah stick to his previous approach against the seamers and shut up his shot shop. Um, yes, in short. A shotless maiden.

81st over: Pakistan 222-7 (Misbah 70, Yasir Shah 7) The new ball is available but England will continue with their spin attack for now. Misbah twice reverse-sweeps and twice finds the boundary, twice taking advantage of big juicy full tosses. As Michael Atherton points out on Sky, England have bowled a shocking number of full bungers today, a particular crime when the pitch is doing so much.

Misbah has changed gears here. Another sweep brings him two more then a huge six straight down the ground. Seventeen – 17! – from the over.

80th over: Pakistan 203-7 (Misbah 53, Yasir Shah 7) Moeen continues and Misbah looks to sweep and sweep often.

79th over: Pakistan 201-7 (Misbah 52, Yasir Shah 5) Yasir Shah will certainly enjoy bowling on this pitch a little later, and he’ll enjoy batting on it too if Patel sends down the sort of rubbish that he offers the new batsman with the final two balls of the over. The first is smacked through the covers for four, the second pulled hard for a single.

This tells you how tricky it might be for the tail. Patel opens Wahab up a touch with a ball pitching on or just outside leg that turns to hit middle, and the batsman is left groping at thin air.

78th over: Pakistan 196-6 (Misbah 52, Wahab 0) England are into the tail then. But first they’re into Misbah, Moeen finding the back pad and yelping an appeal. The umpire says no, England review, and it’s immediately clear that Misbah has gloved the ball into his pad. (The best bit of the slow-motion replays at this ground is the slow-motion audio – we get a collage of noises that sound exactly like a shootout on a Spectrum ZX computer game).

Just as this partnership threatened to turn into a matchwinning effort, Moeen Ali makes the breakthrough. Or, more accurately, Sarfraz makes the breakthrough for him. He skips down the track and looks to heave the ball into the stands at cow corner but he doesn’t get enough on it and sends a steepling catch straight into the hands of Joe Root, who was loitering on the boundary.

77th over: Pakistan 196-5 (Misbah 52, Sarfraz 39) Patel continues, and continues to probe Sarfraz’s defences, the wicketkeeper scurrying a single off the last to pinch the strike.

“Re: 33rd over - had anyone attempted this hiccup remedy on me rest assured he would find himself swiftly murdered,” writes the festival-going hiccuping train-catching Ildikó Connell. “Thanks to Matt for not heeding this advice and also getting me on the Metro in good time!”

76th over: Pakistan 195-5 (Misbah 52, Sarfraz 38) That delay scuppers any chances of an on-time finish to the day’s play, which would’ve been nice if just for novelty value. Misbah brings up his 50 with a little paddle sweep off the returning Moeen Ali. It’s been something of an epic knock – 139 balls for his 52 so far.

75th over: Pakistan 189-5 (Misbah 48, Sarfraz 36) A very painful moment for Ben Stokes and one that, you would assume, is likely to rule him out for the remainder of the Test. Youch. He trudges off with his arm in a makeshift sling made from his shirt. Patel finishes off his over with little fuss.

After the drinks break, we nearly have a sensational catch from Stokes at backward square leg … but the ball pops out and it’s not the only thing. Stokes landed very awkwardly and it looks like his shoulder might have popped out of the joint. He’s writhing in pain on the turf.

74th over: Pakistan 188-5 (Misbah 47, Sarfraz 36) Stokes and Sarfraz continue their dance. The batsman punches through the covers for two. The next stays a little low. The next is a bumper under which Sarfraz ducks. The last is an attempted yorker, dug out by the batsman (although the umpires have a quick look at a half-hearted appeal for a catch; it was a pretty clear bump-ball). Another enjoyable little set-to between batsman and bowler

73rd over: Pakistan 186-5 (Misbah 47, Sarfraz 34) Samit Patel returns to the attack – interesting that Cook has gone to him (this is his 19th over) almost more often that Moeen and Rashid combined (they’ve bowled 10 apiece). Patel drags down a rank half-tracker and Misbah treats it with the disdain it deserves, clumping to cow corner for four.

72nd over: Pakistan 182-5 (Misbah 43, Sarfraz 34) Ben Stokes, who bowled nicely without reward in the afternoon, returns. He tests Sarfraz with a mixture of lengths and speeds, with the batsman clearly desperate to get after him. A maiden that buzzed with anticipation.

71st over: Pakistan 182-5 (Misbah 43, Sarfraz 34) Anderson to Misbah. Block, block, blockblockblock. You have to admire the way the Pakistan captain’s mind works. In many ways he has the perfect Test match temperament, that terrifyingly mix of organisation and patience. You imagine that there’d never be a spoon in the fork section of his cutlery draw. A tickle from the last brings him four to the finest of fine legs.

70th over: Pakistan 178-5 (Misbah 39, Sarfraz 34) Rashid continues.

Misbah chancing arm against Rashid, twice going inside out over offside. Bowler needs to hold his nerve, he is doing OK

69th over: Pakistan 174-5 (Misbah 38, Sarfraz 31) The 50 partnership came up in that last over. These two are beginning to drag the game away from England. Anderson charges in once more, with the wicketkeeper up to the stumps, fielders in a few funky positions and variations on his mind. He sends the last whistling down the leg side, giving Bairstow no chance and the batsmen pick up a bye, the first of the day.

68th over: Pakistan 171-5 (Misbah 38, Sarfraz 30) Rashid continues and Misbah looks to go over the top straight down the ground once more. He gets plenty of elevation but not quite the distance, though the ball lands perfectly safe a yard or two short of the boundary and plops onwards for four. He repeats the trick a few balls later, hitting against the spin and again picking up four rather than six.

67th over: Pakistan 163-5 (Misbah 30, Sarfraz 30) Bairstow stands up to the stumps so here comes the offcutter …

66th over: Pakistan 161-5 (Misbah 29, Sarfraz 29) Sarfraz just gets a top edge onto an attempted sweep – had he missed that he would’ve been gone. Misbah then turns down a second run from the shot with a effortlessly cool you-must-be-joking gesture from one end of the pitch. Tidy enough from Rashid but there’s not the sense of an imminent wicket wicket that there was earlier in the day.

65th over: Pakistan 159-5 (Misbah 28, Sarfraz 28) Misbah drives Broad down the ground for two, in one shot doubling the number of runs the England bowler has conceded in 10 previous overs.

“Standing up in your kitchen will help you less than you think,” writes Robert Wilson MD. “You should either do the Tai Chi Upright Defecation pose or lie on your stomach doing radical Supermans every three minutes. Both are better cricket-watching postures than you might imagine. Trust me, I’m Mr Gym. I’m 176 years old and I’ve never had a moment’s back trouble (though everything else hurts like buggery)“

64th over: Pakistan 156-5 (Misbah 26, Sarfraz 27) A thick outside edge from Sarfraz whistles low past Stokes at slip. It was barely even a half-chance – maybe a fifth-chance at best – but a slip wizard might have grabbed it.

63rd over: Pakistan 152-5 (Misbah 26, Sarfraz 23) Broad once more. And more dots – 47, 48 on the bounce, and then a run at last, Safraz cutting away for a single, the second run has conceded in 9.3 overs today. There’s a red-faced howl of an appeal from the last as an inside-edge cannons into Misbah’s pads.

62nd over: Pakistan 151-5 (Misbah 26, Sarfraz 22) Rashid drops a touch short and is cut away to the point boundary for a couple by Sarfraz. That takes Pakistan to the 150 mark.

Thinking 250 could be a winning score here.

61st over: Pakistan 148-5 (Misbah 26, Sarfraz 19) Stuart Broad, with remarkable figures of 8-7-1-1, gets the ball in his hand after the break. Five more dots at Misbah, that’s 45 consecutive dot balls for Broad … aaaaannd make that 46. So make Broad’s figures 9-8-1-1.

In other news, because we like to keep you up to date with a bit of background colour, due to a bad back this OBO is currently being written while standing up in a kitchen, which might be a first.

Out come the players. This day is still on a knife-edge but England have the opportunity to press home their advantage in this final session.

The winner is 'No'. Thanks to everyone who voted.

For the tea break, apropos of nothing, here’s an ever-so-slightly confused poll that my old local tweeted the other day:

Is it better drinking Kronenbourg from a can or in the pub or not?

Pakistan 148-5. Another intriguing session. England are right in the game. And they’ve have got through 30 overs for the second session in succession. When was the last time that happened?

60th over: Pakistan 148-5 (Misbah 26, Sarfraz 19) Another miscue – this time Sarfraz top-edges a pull wide of mid on – as Rashid continues to find 90 degree-turn. And that’s tea.

59th over: Pakistan 146-5 (Misbah 25, Sarfraz 18) Moeen Ali returns to the fray for a quick twirl before tea. He tempts Misbah into a sweep and a top edge flies … just over the man at short fine leg. Stuart Broad might have been able to grab that but lil’ Joe Root had no chance. Misbah picks up a flaky four as a result.

58th over: Pakistan 140-5 (Misbah 20, Sarfraz 17) Rashid is finding some serious turn out there – he just needs to control it. Three from the over.

57th over: Pakistan 137-5 (Misbah 19, Sarfraz 15) Sarfraz is playing a different game to everyone else – he guides Stokes neatly through backward point for four to move on to 15 from 16 balls.

56th over: Pakistan 133-5 (Misbah 19, Sarfraz 11) Adil Rashid replaces Samit Patel. Misbah, who had played eight scoring shots from his first 69 balls faced, plants his foot down the track from the 70th and heaves Rashid into the stands at long on. Rashid responds with a beauty, ripping a legspinner past the outside edge then turning one prodigiously from outside leg stump.

55th over: Pakistan 126-5 (Misbah 13, Sarfraz 10) Stokes sends down a maiden at Sarfraz. His figures in this spell: 4-3-1-0.

“Yes, Samit Patel did have fitness issues, but he’s played very well for Nottinghamshire for many years now, especially after he learnt to tear himself away from his mum’s cooking,” writes John Starbuck. “That’s probably responsible for more young players’ difficulties than we know.”

54th over: Pakistan 126-5 (Misbah 13, Sarfraz 10) Patel offers Sarfraz a full toss so juicy it could be squeezed into a carton and sold as one of your five-a-day. He thrashes a sweep to the fence. And a slog-sweep two balls later also crashes to the square leg boundary. The eight runs from that over equals the tally from the previous seven.

53rd over: Pakistan 118-5 (Misbah 13, Sarfraz 2) Stokes continues to keep things tight, just one from the over.

“A shout out to Jonny Bairstow for his excellent wicketkeeping in some of the most challenging conditions of world cricket,” writes Krishnan Patel. “Why is Bairstow not regarded a ‘proper’ keeper?” He’s keeping beautifully. I suppose the chief reasons is that he has not always kept for Yorkshire, but I think the days of ‘proper’ keepers might be over. Competence with gloves + oodles of runs will always trump a technically perfect keeper who’s merely half-decent with the bat.

52nd over: Pakistan 117-5 (Misbah 13, Sarfraz 1) Terrific bowling from Samit Patel. The fact that despite his fitness issues – which for some reason always sounds like a euphemism whenever applied to Samit, like you should be using quote marks, “fitness issues” – he’s managed to play cricket for England in all three formats, tells you something about what a superb cricketer he must be.

Sarfraz gets off the mark immediately but Pakistan are becalmed here and in a bit of trouble.

Patel gets his reward for an excellent afternoon spell. A bit of extra bounce is enough to catch the outside edge as Shafiq props forward in defence.

51st over: Pakistan 116-4 (Misbah 13, Shafiq 5) Two maidens in a row from Stokes.

50th over: Pakistan 116-4 (Misbah 13, Shafiq 5) Shafiq sweeps Patel fine for a couple. And the quality of the over is underlined by Shafiq’s ineffectual charge down the track to the last.

Much better from Samit. Making it difficult for batsmen who will get frustrated.

49th over: Pakistan 114-4 (Misbah 13, Shafiq 3) A bowling change then – Ben Stokes (4-0-16-0) returns. His first ball celebrates Dia de Muertos by dying off the pitch. It reaches Bairstow on the umpteenth bounce. He does beat Misbah with one angled in from wide on the crease, the ball this time fizzing past the outside edge. Stokes joins the Maiden Gang.

48th over: Pakistan 114-4 (Misbah 13, Shafiq 3) Shafiq dances down the pitch at Patel but can only drive straight to mid off but the next is a floated full toss that the batsman pummels away for a couple. The problem for England with three spinning all-rounders remains the continual (and regular) risk of a four-ball being thrown in to the mix, though Patel has been better since lunch.

47th over: Pakistan 112-4 (Misbah 13, Shafiq 1) Pakistan score a run off James Anderson! He and Broad had combined for figures of 8-8-0-2 in this session, but Misbah, warming to his task now, tickles to the leg side to end the string of dots. And from the final ball of the over, Shafiq’s 22nd, he finally gets off the mark with a clip to deep square leg.

46th over: Pakistan 110-4 (Misbah 12, Shafiq 0) Hello all and cheers Rob. This OBO lycra is all well and good for the youngsters but a little tight in the gusset for an old stager. And speaking of tight, England have conceded just six runs in the past nine overs. In part that is due to bowling brilliance, in part Pakistan’s slightly obsessive determination not to play a shot against the seamers.

Patel continues to Misbah, who gets out a little paddle sweep and jogs through for two runs. He repeats the shot from the last and three more take the Pakistan captain screaming on to 12 from 46 balls.

45th over: Pakistan 105-4 (Misbah 7, Shafiq 0) Anderson and Broad have bowled eight overs in this session; they have all been maidens. It’s like the last days of Ambrose and Walsh! They have kept England in the game, and the rest of the day’s play should be fascinating. John Ashdown is waiting to be tagged in for that, sporting just an enthuastic grin and sponsored OBO lycra. See you later, bye!

44th over: Pakistan 105-4 (Misbah 7, Shafiq 0) Samit has been more accurate since lunch, though he is not turning it much. Misbah must be itching to go after him, but the match situation is a bit too precarious for that. That means another maiden, the 18th of the day.

43rd over: Pakistan 105-4 (Misbah 7, Shafiq 0) Anderson has a man on the drive for Shafiq, at daft mid off. He slips in the yorker, which Shafiq digs out. It’s not always easy to combine variety and control, but Anderson and Broad have done that exceptionally today and that’s yet another maiden.

Apparently the England players have been telling the Pakistani batsmen what they are doing to do to them with the moving ball in the UK next summer. Misbah just smiled and said: “I may retire.” He is a laconic joy, a regular reminder that the truly cool people have no idea they are cool.

42nd over: Pakistan 105-4 (Misbah 7, Shafiq 0) It’s a golden rule for seamers and spinners: the more helpful the pitch, the less fancy stuff you need to do. But it can be hard to stick to that if you haven’t taken a wicket for a while, and this has been the problem for England’s spinners. Either that or they are simply not capable of bowling accurately. Misbah is still playing carefully, with wickets falling at the other end, and is content to work a poor delivery from Patel for two. He has seven from 35 balls. I’d get Samit off here; he isn’t remotely threatening.

41st over: Pakistan 103-4 (Misbah 5, Shafiq 0) This has been an odd day’s play, with a mixture of excellence and rubbish from batsmen and bowlers, and the contradiction of the seamers taking most of the wickets on a dustbowl. All’s well that begins well for England, though: those two wickets after lunch have brought them right back into the game.

Anderson and Broad now have combined figures of 15-11-7-3. They really are class acts, and they have bowled so well in their two Test tours of the UAE.

A bonus wicket for England, and a big one as well. Jimmy Anderson’s first ball is an accidental full toss, and Younis gets in a tangle as he tries to work it to leg. He plays around his front pad and is pinned in front of middle and leg. He reviewed the decision, probably out of confusion at what had happened as anything, but it was hitting the base of leg stump.

40th over: Pakistan 103-3 (Younis 31, Misbah 5) Patel gets away with another short delivery that Younis can only cut for a single. Misbah flicks a poor delivery to fine leg for two more. Patel has now bowled 11 overs, as many as Moeen and Rashid between them.

39th over: Pakistan 100-3 (Younis 30, Misbah 3) Broad has a strangled shout for LBW against Misbah, who inside-edged another cutter onto the pad. Broad is in Variations Mode, constantly changing his position on the crease and the position of the seam in his hand. Misbah has no ambition beyond survival, knowing this will probably be the last over of Broad’s outstanding spell: 5-5-0-1.

“Guess he was at Pitchfork Paris, a festival I managed to miss despite spending all last week in Paris,” says the OBO’s own Dan Lucas. “Were Beach House and Thom Yorke no good?” Ah I didn’t realise the Thom Yorke Art Project was playing.

38th over: Pakistan 100-3 (Younis 30, Misbah 3) Samit Patel replaces Moeen Ali. This next half hour feels so important. Misbah probably hasn’t faced Patel before, so decides to have a look for a little while before smashing sixes. Just a single from the over.

Outstanding bowling from Broad. Variety, creating pressure. Spinners dont need variety. Just bowl.

37th over: Pakistan 99-3 (Younis 30, Misbah 2) Younis is late deciding to leave a lovely delivery from Broad that moves back and just misses the off stump. Younis could easily have dragged that on as well. Excellent stuff from Broad, who has bowled a spell of 4-4-0-1.

Here’s Tom Van der Gucht: “Sadly, If I followed John Starbuck’s hiccup advice regarding kissing a lady, it would probably only result in giving her a fright, which Matt Bliss said he’s already tried and didn’t work...” Not if you do it slowly, sensually, masterfully.

36th over: Pakistan 99-3 (Younis 30, Misbah 2) Younis is dealing almost exclusively in the sweep when it comes to attacking strokes, and he nails one through square leg for four. Moeen’s response is to come back over the wicket; I’m not sure that’s the best idea.

35th over: Pakistan 92-3 (Younis 24, Misbah 1) Misbah’s tactics in this series have not needed a zoom lens and a piece of A4: he blocks the seamers and biffs the spinners. He’s doing the same here, with Broad looking dangerous and getting a bit of reverse. The result is a maiden; Broad’s figures are 6-5-1-1.

34th over: Pakistan 92-3 (Younis 24, Misbah 1) Younis flicks Moeen onto the boot of Taylor at short leg, but the ball lands safely. Moeen goes back over the wicket for Misbah, who pushes one not too far wide of Stokes at leg slip. This is really interesting stuff. If England get one here they will feel they could be batting by the close; if they don’t, Younis and Misbah might still be batting at the close. A full toss from Moeen is pulled for a couple by Younis. “Catc- shit!” says one of the England players, possibly Moeen, upon realising it’s a full toss.

33rd over: Pakistan 88-3 (Younis 21, Misbah 0) This, it goes without typing, is the big partnership: Younis and Misbah, with 88 Test runs and 13,000 years between them. Broad’s figures are 5-4-1-1. On a turning pitch, the seamers have 2/23 and the spinners 1/63. It’s a risk because it’s a long day, but I would go with Anderson and Broad for half an hour before Misbah gets his eye in.

In other news, good morning John Starbuck! “Re: 16th over,” he says, “the best cure for a lady’s hiccups is to kiss her, slowly, sensually, masterfully – benefit of personal experience.”

Broad could do with improving on a modest Test record overseas: 103 wickets at 36 as against 207 at 27 in England. Make that 104 wickets overseas – he’s got Shoaib Malik caught behind! It was another good delivery, with just a little bit of seam movement. Malik fiddled indecisively outside off stump, his feet in cement, and gave a simple catch to Bairstow.

32nd over: Pakistan 87-2 (Malik 37, Younis 21) In this part of the world Tests are often decided on days four and five. That means you can ease into the game a bit on the first couple of days, certainly as a bowler. Not here: every run is vital in what will be a medium-to-low-scoring game, and England’s spinners need to improve on a poor morning’s work. If Pakistan are, say, 270 for four at the close, this match is over. Moeen Ali starts at the other end, and after five balls he finally moves to around the wicket. That brings both LBW and slip into play. A maiden.

31st over: Pakistan 87-2 (Malik 37, Younis 21) Younis Khan survives a referral from the second ball after lunch. He inside edged a good delivery from Broad – one of the three in a hundred that move off the seam – to the left of Bairstow, who thought he had taken a clean tumbling catch. The umpire gave the ‘soft signal’ of not out, thinking it hadn’t quite carried, and replays confirmed that was the case.

Spinners expecting too much of themselves. By Test standards they are modest. Can do well tho' if don't strain to make things happen.

England need to bowl Pakistan out for Under 300 to have any chance in this game IMO.... Pitc... #PAKvENGhttps://t.co/m1qurKIx9l

England would probably have taken that score when they lost the toss. But having seen how much it is spinning, it already feels like Pakistan are in control – especially as England’s spin triplets are bowling far too many four-balls. But if they tighten up, there are wickets to be had. See you in half an hour for the start of the afternoon session.

30th over: Pakistan 87-2 (Malik 37, Younis 21) A miserable leg-side full toss from Rashid is whapped through midwicket for another boundary by Malik. Are England trying too hard because of the pitch, like fast bowlers who bang it in at Perth? It’s possible, although bad balls are an issue for all these spinners at the best of times. That’s lunch!

29th over: Pakistan 80-2 (Malik 32, Younis 19) More garbage from Samit, I’m afraid, a long hop that Malik savages through midwicket for four. The spinners have conceded seven boundaries in 15 overs; the seamers went for two in 13, and one of those was an edge.

“I’ve just turned on the TV and the first thing I saw was Patel being swept to the fence with troubling ease,” says Dave Adams. “Abandoning the TV now in favour of the OBO. Why does an objectively promising scorecard feel like an inevitable crushing defeat already? Is it just me?” Of course not, it’s the English. But in case there’s a fair bit of logic in the misery – it’s turning a worrying amount already.

28th over: Pakistan 75-2 (Malik 28, Younis 18) Three years ago, England thrashed India on a not dissimilar pitch, but they had Graeme Swann and Monty Panesar (not to mention Kevin Pietersen) then. Anyway, Adil Rashid is coming on to replace Moeen (6-2-22-1). What mysterious magic has Shane Warne taught him? How to bowl a maiden, apparently, because that’s what he starts with.

27th over: Pakistan 75-2 (Malik 28, Younis 18) That’s a beautiful shot from Younis, who flashes a wide half-volley from Patel through extra cover for four. The next ball is a beauty that spits past the outside edge, and the ball after that is a piece of filth that Younis cuts for four more. England’s spinners have bowled too much rubbish so far.

26th over: Pakistan 66-2 (Malik 27, Younis 10) Did I say you could Contactless?

25th over: Pakistan 66-2 (Malik 27, Younis 10) Younis plonks his front foot and sweeps Patel flat and hard for four. This has been fascinating stuff since the spinners came on.

ball is ragging square. work cut out for england already.

24th over: Pakistan 61-2 (Malik 27, Younis 5) The Sky commentators, Beefy and Bumble, think Moeen should go around the wicket to the right-handers, such is the extravagant turn. England’s decision to play three spinners looks the right one so far. On that note, you shouldn’t worry about tomorrow today, right? In that case, whatever you do, don’t bloody think about what Yasir Shah might do on this pitch on days two to five.

23rd over: Pakistan 58-2 (Malik 26, Younis 3) Pakistan have been a bit skittish against the spinners, and Younis plays an unconvincing sweep round the corner for a single off Patel. He almost missed that, and had he done so he would have been plumb. The thing is that there will always be bad balls from these England spinners, so you can just wait for those; Patel shows that with a half-tracker that Malik hustles through midwicket for four.

22nd over: Pakistan 51-2 (Malik 22, Younis 0) Malik scoots down the track to Moeen later in the over, almost trips himself up and ends up allowing the ball to hit his thigh and loop up in the air. The ball is turning abnormally for a day one, session one pitch.

Yes, it was missing leg stump – and by quite a way. Malik took a long time to decide to review it, and almost missed the count, but it was a good decision.

England only need it to be shaving leg stump, as it was given out on the field. I think this might be missing.

Shoaib Malik has been given out LBW, pushing defensively around a full delivery from Moeen Ali that turned sharply. Would it have turned past leg stump? Shoaib thinks so and wants to review it.

21st over: Pakistan 51-2 (Malik 22, Younis 0) A beauty from Samit Patel drifts onto off stump and turns past Younis Khan’s outside edge. The next ball is a carbon copy. Those are authentic jaffas. What England would give to dismiss either Younis or Misbah in single figures today.

20th over: Pakistan 51-2 (Malik 22, Younis 0) Here comes Younis Khan.

Hafeez throws his wicket away. He dismissed Moeen Ali back over his head for four, a shot of almost absent-minded contempt, and then tried to make it consecutive boundaries when Moeen dropped short. Instead the ball was a bit slow to get to him, and he clunked a pull high in the air. Stuart Broad ran in from deep backward square to take a comfortable catch. It was a complacent shot from Hafeez, and that’s a useful bonus wicket for England.

19th over: Pakistan 43-1 (Hafeez 23, Malik 20) The introduction of spin, as expected, has completely changed the mood and the scoring rate. The seamers have conceded 23 from 13 overs; the spinners 20 from six.

18th over: Pakistan 39-1 (Hafeez 22, Malik 17) Hafeez drives Moeen for three more. Runs are coming easily – six from that over – though there is enough turn for Moeen to suggest that such an attacking approach is not without risk.

“Rob, on the subject of best festival bands I’d say Pavement at Minehead Butlins,” says Tom Wellman. “Cricket fans you know...” I imagine that last sentence being spoken in a Major-from-Fawlty-Towers voice.

17th over: Pakistan 33-1 (Hafeez 17, Malik 16) Pakistan are playing Patel respectfully, for the time being, and there’s just a single from the over.

“Morning Rob, morning everybody,” says Guy Hornsby. “Up with the larks today at the folks as I’m off to Welford Road to see the mighty Tigers (thrash) Wasps. I dreampt we won the toss and were 120-0 at lunch. My dreams are just here to torment me, but such is the lot of an England cricket fan. It feels somehow apt to have you back on the OBO for a Test match as potentially stultifying as this.” That’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever said about me.

Last time an offie, leggie and SLA bowled in a Test inns for England. Lahore 2000 (Giles, Hick, Salisbury) https://t.co/lw0QTFdJ1F

16th over: Pakistan 32-1 (Hafeez 16, Malik 16) Moeen Ali replaces Ben Stokes. I’d have been tempted to get Rashid into the game Before Misbah, though I suppose that applies to all three spinners. And Hafeez is not going to just them bowl, as he demonstrates by sweeping Moeen’s first ball hard for four. He premeditates a lap-sweep later in the over, and Taylor at short leg hares towards leg slip as a result. In fact he runs too far and can only get a fingertip on the ball as he reaches back to his left. Technically that’s a dropped catch, though in reality it was a fine effort.

“Pal safely on the Metro, but her debilitating hiccups have returned,” says Matt Biss. “Does the OBO readership have any suggestions on how to get rid of them, seeing as the stock fright (impossible, as she’s now out of scaring distance) and inverted glass of water (‘a myth’, she insists) methods haven’t worked?” A fifth of vinegar?

15th over: Pakistan 25-1 (Hafeez 10, Malik 15) Malik works Patel through midwicket for two before being beaten by one that turns sharply, if slowly, off the pitch. Jonathan Trott is talking about the unique demands of selection when you need to win the final Test to square the series. It’s so true, and that situation has led to some weird and wonderful England selections down the years – think 1991 and 1994 in particular.

“Can’t the match ref have a look at that coin for the toss? says Jonathan Salisbury. I think they used a new one today. It’s the unique magic of Misbah.

14th over: Pakistan 23-1 (Hafeez 10, Malik 13) I can’t lie to you, there’s nothing happening.

13th over: Pakistan 20-1 (Hafeez 10, Malik 10) Samit Patel comes to replace Jimmy Anderson – and dislocates a finger after two deliveries! That is staggeringly dumb luck. He went down to his left to field a push down the ground, and it caught the little finger on his bowling hand. He is having it taped up, and looks like he’ll be okay to carry on bowling.

With the spinner on, Hafeez immediately looks busier and more purposeful, though the result is the same for now: a maiden. Pakistan have been batting dry, but you would expect the run-rate to increase in the next hour.

12th over: Pakistan 20-1 (Hafeez 10, Malik 10) Malik edges Stokes all along the floor to the third-man boundary. You wouldn’t expect too many slip catches in this game. Now, this is a good stat, which demonstrates Pakistan’s approach in this series: the combined economy rate of England’s seamers is 2.48 runs per over, and for the spinners it’s 4.32.

11th over: Pakistan 16-1 (Hafeez 10, Malik 6) This is a really Pakistan interesting side – not quite atypical, because they have legspin, paint-stripping pace and reverse swing, but certainly more controlled and clinical than those I grew up with in the 1990s. Unusually for a Pakistan team, they are greater than the same of their parts.

Anderson, admirably fit for a 33-year-old fast bowler, carries on into a sixth over. Pakistan are happy to kill time and balls, with Hafeez barely playing a shot during yet another maiden. Anderson’s figures are 6-3-6-1.

10th over: Pakistan 16-1 (Hafeez 10, Malik 6) Pakistan are in no hurry, partly because of the series situation, partly because of the balance of England’s side. They will aim to do the bulk of their run-scoring off England’s spinners. Stokes throws his entire being into an effort bouncer to Malik; it dies off the pitch and loops gently through to Bairstow.

9th over: Pakistan 14-1 (Hafeez 10, Malik 4) Anderson gets one to lift from a length just enough to jam Hafeez’s bottom hand against the bat handle. He is bowling really well, probably as much as anything because he has embraced the hard yakka rather than lamented it. Another maiden/

“Health were particularly good,” says Matt Biss of his festival weekend. “Also enjoyed Battles, John Talabot & Roman Flugel, Ratatat and Laurent ‘Laboratoires’ Garnier. The hiccups have abated.” I’m pleasantly appalled to say I’ve actually heard of a few of those.

8th over: Pakistan 14-1 (Hafeez 10, Malik 4) Ben Stokes replaces Stuart Broad, who has Ted Rogersish figures of 3-2-1-0. Hafeez drives him pleasantly through mid-on for three, and then Malik drives him even more pleasantly through extra cover for the first boundary of the game. The ball has done the cube root of bugger all so far. In fact, that three-out-of-100 estimate might have been optimistic.

“England seamers all bowled very well,” says Mike Selvey of the first two Tests. “Put the brakes on Pakistan who have clambered into the spinners instead.” Which makes this team selection really interesting. I’d probably have gone with Plunkett though it’s hard to foam with outrage when you are on the other side of the world, know nothing about the pitch and haven’t seen the first two Tests.

7th over: Pakistan 7-1 (Hafeez 7, Malik 0) Malik, driven back by all those short balls, pushes indecisively at a good fuller delivery from Anderson and is beaten. Another maiden, the third of the morning.

“Any idea of the number of people in the crowd?” asks Julian Birkby. 54? “I was wondering if there is a conspiracy to deliberately undermine attendance figures by scheduling a Test match for the five working days of the week in a Muslim country?”

6th over: Pakistan 7-1 (Hafeez 7, Malik 0) Broad has only taken two wickets in this series, though he he has at least been economical. That’s another maiden, to Hafeez. Pakistan seem happy to see off the new ball, a sensible approach especially as England only have three seamers today.

5th over: Pakistan 7-1 (Hafeez 7, Malik 0) On Sky, Mike Atherton points out that Ian Bell has been taken out of the slip cordon, which is now Cook, Root and Stokes. Bell is at gully. England clearly fancy Malik with the short ball, after Anderson bounced him out in the second innings of the first Test, and that is the default length at the moment. Malik looks comfortable thus far, though he is still on nought.

4th over: Pakistan 6-1 (Hafeez 6, Malik 0) I missed the first two Tests due to being on holiday. How has Broad bowled? Has he been pitching it up as much as in the summer or bowling more cautiously in view of the flat surfaces? He looks in decent rhythm here and drives Shoaib Malik back into his crease with some decent back-of-a-length deliveries. The full ball is coming, but when it does it’s too wide and Malik ignores it.

3rd over: Pakistan 5-1 (Hafeez 5, Malik 0) England would love to get Misbah in against the new ball. One more wicket is all they need. The new batsman is Shoaib Malik, who has been all feast and famine in this series: 245, 0, 2, 7.

“...The OBO (and Neu! 2, as I can’t get TMS) are my sole companions for the next three hours, aside from my mate who is lying on the sofa hiccupping while asleep unless she snores in a really bizarre fashion,” says Matt Biss. “I have to get said mate on a Eurostar at 9 and have volunteered to ensure her reawakening and safe enshovelment onto a Metro. We’ve just spent the weekend at music festival and you can imagine what that has entailed. I have no point, but it’s nice to feel that someone’s listening.”

Azhar Ali replaced Shan Masood at the top of the order, and he has taken on his role as James Anderson’s walking wicket. That was a good delivery from Anderson, an excellent line and length outside off with a snifter of movement; Azhar felt for it and edged it through to Jonny Bairstow.

2nd over: Pakistan 2-0 (Hafeez 2, Ali 0) Stuart Broad, whose series figures aren’t quite so wonderful (56-18-134-2), will bowl to the returning Azhar Ali. Azhar is usually a No3, a fine one too, but we have seen many times that a move from No3 to No2 isn’t always as comfortable as armchair batsmen think. An outstanding temperament is in Azhar’s favour, and he starts by playing out a maiden from Broad. Decent start from both sides.

@100ashesquotes morning Rob, woken by a lizard scratching my carpet and thought I would tune in. Great to have you on the OBO, bad toss mind

1st over: Pakistan 2-0 (Hafeez 2, Ali 0) James Anderson, whose series figures are pretty wonderful (67-22-134-7), will open the bowling to Mohammad Hafeez. There’s a packed house slip cordon, and a delay after just one ball because of a hole in the sightscreen. It is eventually filled with – and you’ll like this – emergency toilet roll, and the match can resume.

Hafeez leans pleasantly into the third delivery from Anderson, driving it for a couple, and is then beaten by a nice fifth-stump line. No real swing or seam for Anderson in that over, though.

The key for England is surely to stay in the game for as long as possible, match Pakistan’s first-innings total – be it 550 or 300 – and then hope the pressure of the third innings, which can be so asphyxiating to modern batsmen, will tell.

Sixth toss in a row goes Misbah's way and Pakistan have now won 17 of their last 21 in all formats #flippinggenius

Lose toss does not mean lose game. Too much of it in the mind rather than the pitch .

Pakistan have brought Rahat Ali in for the injured Imran Khan, while Azhar Ali replaces Shan Masood, Jimmy Anderson’s bunny. Misbah, cricket’s answer to Jeffrey Lebowski, says he doesn’t think the pitch will turn enough to play three spinners.

Alastair Cook disagrees, though he says it was a tough decision between Samit Patel and Liam Plunkett, particularly in view of how well the seamers have done in the first two Tests. It’s a brave decision, because it invites criticism should it go wrong. It would have been a more than useful toss to win.

Ach! The rueful look on Alastair Cook’s coupon as the coin landed was priceless. He has an admirably humorous outlook on captaincy these days.

Urgent message Dear higher power, if you have any influence over these things, please let England win the toss.

A video to pass the time Lose yourself in the genius of Pakistan’s first great spinner.

Samit Patel has been preferred to Liam Plunkett, which suggests a bowl of dust in Sharjah. So England will go into the side with spin triplets: Patel, Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid. I wonder how Zafir Ansari feels right now.

Samit eng best player of spin in India Odis couple of years back

Match day morning. Weather as usual. Pitch? Who knows but doesn't sound too special. Teams? Bit of a quandary with the bowling therefore.

Morning. Thereis a compelling argument that I’m far too old to be getting up at 4am on a Sunday if England draw this series, it would be a greater achievement than winning the Ashes in the summer. It has rarely been harder to succeed away from home in Test cricket, and a par score for this series would probably have been Pakistan 2-0 England.

That is still the likeliest scenario, because that wonderful quadragenarian Misbah-ul-Haq and his motley crew are such formidable opposition in the UAE. But this young England side can be justly pleased with how they have played for 29/30ths of the series (the 30th being that morning session on day three of the second Test) – especially as they lost both tosses and have been over-reliant of a few players. If they can address both of those issues, a feelgood victory is a possibility.

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Pakistan v England: third Test, day two – as it happened

November 2, 2015, 5:42 am
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England’s James Taylor wrestled back the initiative from Pakistan with a maiden Test half-century on day two of the final Test

Bye then!

Right, that’s all from me. An excellent day for England, a more than excellent day for James Taylor. If the tourists, with their five wickets in hand, can turn a 12-run deficit into decent lead, they’ll be superlatively positioned - the avoidance of daunting fourth-innings targets is imperative. We’ll be back for more in the morning.

Excellent from Taylor and Bairstow and happy to be proved wrong on prognosis of day . good lead required though . batting last tricky

Related: England’s James Taylor wrestles back initiative from Pakistan

A session that looked key, and brought Pakistan no joy whatsoever. England, with (presumably) five wickets remaining - the results of Stokes’ scan are not yet public - are at more or less parity, and if tomorrow is as good for them as the day just completed, they’ll be well on their way to winning this match with (presumably) 10 men. There are several presumptions too many there, but still.

92nd over: England 222-4 (Taylor 74, Bairstow 37)

Zulfiqar’s first ball is slammed through the covers by Taylor, close enough to the fielder to force him to sprint all the way after it, and far enough for him to dive in vain. There’s also a leg bye, and Taylor ends the day standing tall, whatever his height.

91st over: England 217-4 (Taylor 70, Bairstow 37)

Yasir bowls and Taylor pushes wide of mid-on again, only this time instead of fielding it Wahab clumsily misses it and England run three, at the end of which Wahab calls the physio on to massage his damaged ego. One over to go.

90th over: England 212-4 (Taylor 66, Bairstow 36)

Pakistan go back to the double helping of spin, with Zulfiqar returning to the fray. Taylor pushes wide of mid-on, who does well to run around and fall on the ball, restricting England to a single.

89th over: England 211-4 (Taylor 65, Bairstow 36)

Another Yasir over, another Taylor single, England trail by 24 with three overs of the day (probably) remaining. “I’d say Taylor is more R2D2 than Skywalker - the plucky small robot that surprises everyone with its feisty character, ingenuity and courage in the face of adversity,” writes Tom van der Gucht. “Meanwhile, Stokes is Chewy, the powerful muscle of the group; Moeen Ali is Han Solo, the swaggering gunslinger who tries to defy the odds; Bell is C3PO, the camp robot that wilts under pressure; Baylis is Yoda, the Wise old sage; Farbrace is Obi Wan, slightly more of a personal touch than the overall jedi master; Root is Skywalker, the young man carrying all of our hopes on his sprightly shoulders and Cook is Princess Leia, the majestic, graceful one seemingly destined for greatness... I may have to dig into the prequels for Anderson and Broad, there’s only Lando and that strange lobster general from return of the Jedi left.”

88th over: England 210-4 (Taylor 64, Bairstow 36)

Rahat bowls full and a bit wide, and Bairstow thwacks it through the covers for four. As lovely as that shot is, the next is extremely tentative, and the ball slides just past his nervous forward push. “You need to make sure you define what it is you’re surprised about if your hypothesis test is to be robust,” writes Stephen Holt of Jonathan’s 83rd-over coin-toss-related musings. “Probably you need to assess the probability that Pakistan won 17 *or more* of 21 tosses, and also include the equally surprising possibility of them losing 17 or more in those 21, for a proper double tailed hypothesis test. On a related note, I have long had a theory that there should only be a toss in the first match of a series, and you alternate toss winner thereafter. The possibility of a team winning all five tosses in a five match series can really skew things.” I’ve got nothing against statisticians, but there’s something about the phrase “double tailed hypothesis” that puts my brain into immediate emergency shutdown. Sorry.

87th over: England 206-4 (Taylor 64, Bairstow 32)

Yasir replaces Zulfiqar, and Taylor is back to looking fairly serene. The last two balls go for singles.

Four innings in Test cricket for James Taylor, but 216 in County cricket. Who says you can't learn how to bat vs spin there? @Simon_Burnton

86th over: England 204-4 (Taylor 63, Bairstow 31)

If England’s selectors are squirming awkwardly at the moment, as a Taylor single tickles their score to 200, Kevin Pietersen is probably feeling a little sheepish too (if he is capable of sheepishness, obviously). Bairstow pulls for four, and England trail by 30.

@barneyronay From KP's book pic.twitter.com/WMez7gXGhR

85th over: England 199-4 (Taylor 62, Bairstow 27)

Bairstow snaffles a single, and Taylor drives handsomely wide of cover for four. “I’ve just finished reading the OBO from bottom to top,” writes Robert Wilson. Rather you than me, etc and so forth.. “It’s remarkable how it reads like a unified narrative today. Kind of Lord-of-the-Ringsy at the start, all portents of dread, incremental progress and absent heroes with sore shoulders. But as soon as Taylor arrives it’s pure original-trilogy Star Wars, can-do, indomitable and strike-rotating. Strangely, Taylor is much more Skywalkerish than Hobbity.

84th over: England 193-4 (Taylor 57, Bairstow 26)

Good running gets a third run from Bairstow’s deflection to third man, though that’s as much as they get from Rahat’s over. Shadows start to lengthen and thoughts start to turn to stumps. England are 41 runs behind with five wickets remaining, about eight wicket-free overs from feeling quite happy with themselves.

83rd over: England 190-4 (Taylor 57, Bairstow 23)

Zulfiqar gives the new ball a spin, and Taylor sweeps his final delivery for a couple to bring up the 50 paartnership (51 now, to be precise). “Given winning the toss can have such a bearing on the outcome of the game, I’m surprised people haven’t been commenting more on Pakistan having won so many tosses recently,” writes Jonathan. “The chances of winning 17 out of 21 (as they have done in their last 21 matches) are 0.36%; the chances of winning 17 out of 22 (we can assume they lost the toss in the match before this sequence began) are also less than 1%. These are such small odds, I can’t help suspecting the odds of some kind of malpractice may be higher.” I’m not sure, double-sided coins apart, I can conceive of a way of fixing coin tosses, and many of them will not have been won by Pakistan but lost by the opposing captain, but it certainly is quite a run.

82nd over: England 188-4 (Taylor 55, Bairstow 23)

Rahat Ali returns, new ball in hand, and Taylor immediately sends it spinning and looping into the air. He has two problems: one, it might land on the stumps; two, he has no idea where it’s gone. So he stands in front of the stumps protectively, back to the bowler, and is relieved to eventually see it rolling gently to his right. Then he gets three through cover, and Bairstow inside-edges just past his off stump for a fluky four.

81st over: England 181-4 (Taylor 52, Bairstow 19)

“What score does Taylor need to get to really embarrass the selectors?” wonders Kevin Wilson, as Pakistan turn down the new ball in order to give Azhar Ali the chance to bowl a succession of googlies. Surely they’re already a little bit red-faced, but if he scores another 48 they may have to go into hiding.

80th over: England 177-4 (Taylor 50, Bairstow 17)

James Taylor has his first ever Test half-century, scored at the fourth attempt, three years after the first, and completed with a single off his 100th delivery, just before the second new ball becomes available.

That's been a fantastic half century by Taylor. Busy at the crease, good footwork, solid defence.

79th over: England 175-4 (Taylor 49, Bairstow 17)

More spin, but from a new source: Azhar Ali bowls the second over against England of his Test career, the first having come over five years ago in Nottingham, yielding five runs. This one brings three singles, and carries Taylor to the very verge of a half-century.

78th over: England 172-4 (Taylor 47, Bairstow 16)

A maiden from Wahab, featuring a very decent yorker that Bairstow pushes to safety, and a slow final delivery that dribbles through to the keeper without doing much by way of bouncing.

77th over: England 172-4 (Taylor 47, Bairstow 16)

Yasir continues after a drinks break, and Taylor ends his run of ones with another super sweep. “The answer to Russell J Turner’s question (74th over) seems to be 315 by England vs West Indies in 1986,” writes Ben Lomas. “David Gower top-scored (I presume, elegantly) with 47. The more intriguing one is the second: 304 - again by England, against South Africa in 2004 - Steve Harmison top-scoring with 42.”

76th over: England 167-4 (Taylor 43, Bairstow 15)

Taylor edges into his pads, saving himself from a decent lbw appeal (Pakistan launch a half-hearted appeal anyway, and have no reviews at the moment, though they’re only a few overs from getting a couple), and takes another single.

75th over: England 165-4 (Taylor 42, Bairstow 14)

Taylor, who has now faced 26 deliveries since he last scored any quantity of runs that isn’t none or one, gets a single to mid-off. Rob Smyth, tweet-contributor below, will be my (and your) companion on the OBO tomorrow, incidentally.

In the context of all the slights he has suffered during his England career, this is such an impressive performance from Taylor.

It would be so easy to think that Test cricket wasn't meant to be, and allow himself the relief of failure before concentrating on ODIs.

74th over: England 164-4 (Taylor 41, Bairstow 14)

A break from the two-headed spin monster, as Wahab returns, and there’s another Bairstow boundary, boshed very handsomely through midwicket. As for this question, I don’t know the answer - if everything goes well for Taylor, we only have a few minutes to find out before it becomes immaterial.

@Simon_Burnton Cook out for 49, Bell for 40. Just idly wondering what the highest Test innings score is without a fifty. Any ideas?

73rd over: England 159-4 (Taylor 40, Bairstow 10)

Yasir bowls, Bairstow drives, and he makes no contact whatsoever. Then he heaves, and this time makes perfectly good contact, thrashes through midwicket and gets four runs.

72nd over: England 154-4 (Taylor 39, Bairstow 6)

Zulfiqar’s latest over starts with a brace of singles, and then Taylor sweeps for another, before it ends with a Bairstow defensive push that may well have involved an edge. It isn’t caught, so ain’t no thing.

71st over: England 151-4 (Taylor 37, Bairstow 5)

These are the times when the lack of an audience probably makes a big difference. A loud Pakistan-supporting crowd would be howling and baying, ramping up the pressure and building up the tension. Instead they play in a bubble. Another maiden.

70th over: England 151-4 (Taylor 37, Bairstow 5)

That’s a Zulfi maiden, Taylor blocking and prodding with minimal ambition beyond survival.

69th over: England 151-4 (Taylor 37, Bairstow 5)

Another Bairstow single, and England do indeed have a round number! Taylor gets one too, but Pakistan’s spinners continue to pin them down a bit.

68th over: England 149-4 (Taylor 36, Bairstow 4)

Bairstow gets a single to mid-off, and England very nearly have a round number, excitingly.

Yasir v good. Knows Taylor and bairstow use bottom.hand to leg side so dipping the ball into middle and leg. Bowled or leading edge risk

67th over: England 148-4 (Taylor 36, Bairstow 3)

Bairstow, also working against the spin, gets a leading edge but the ball lands safe. Tought times.

Taylor trying to work Yasir against the spin and I don't like that.

66th over: England 145-4 (Taylor 35, Bairstow 1)

This afternoon every other over was a maiden but the batsmen often looked pretty comfortable. We now haven’t had a maiden for nine overs, but they’re anything but. Even the run that came from Zulfi’s latest over is an uncomfortable one, with the fielder at mid on hitting the stumps moments after Bairstow grounded his bat.

Bell gone. I'm looking at you, @Simon_Burnton#jinxed

64th over: England 142-4 (Taylor 33, Bairstow 0)

Zulfi’s getting the ball to turn pretty wildly too, and he gets one to turn massively past Taylor’s bat. The calm of England’s pre-tea period seems a long way away now.

2 - Ian Bell has been stumped for only the 2nd time in his Test career; the 1st instance also coming against Pakistan, in the UAE. Dizzy.

63rd over: England 139-4 (Taylor 30, Bairstow 0)

Well, it is all going on. Lovely is perhaps not the word I’d have chosen, but it was a fine bit of bowling, sure enough, with also some very rapid bail-removal.

Bell may not agree, but it's always lovely when a leg-spinner lures a batsman to his doom, especially playing defensively

Yasir bowls, Bell advances, misses by a distance and is promptly stumped.

62nd over: England 138-3 (Bell 40, Taylor 29)

Zulfiqar bowls and Taylor sweeps very fine, and by the time any fielder catches up with it - and two do at about the same time, approximately one more than needed to bother - the batsmen had run three. Then an lbw appeal, and finally a pretty hilarious missed chance, as Bell drives the ball into the thigh of the man at silly point and it flies into the air. It could and should have been caught, but nobody quite realised where it was and the poor guy at silly point, Azhar Ali, ludicrously flails around, hands in catching position, hoping the ball might fall into them. It doesn’t. Comedy gold.

The bat, pushed forwards, hits the pad at the same time as the ball passes the other side. The ball might have brushed the bat, it’s really impossible to tell by replays alone, and the noise of bat hitting pad makes microphones irrelevant. So the on-field decision must stand.

Oooh, but it’s ever so close.

Pakistan again think so. The umpire again does not. What will the replays show?

Back come the players. Another big session awaits. Will this partnership continue serenely, or is it jinxed? We’re about to find out.

@Simon_Burnton Why??!! Why say "this partnership has looked settled from the start"?! Guaranteed wicket now, very soon... Oh Simon...

Two hours, two wickets, 27 overs, 48 runs. It’s a slow-burner, this, but extremely watchable all the same. I’ll be back in 10 minutes.

60th over: England 130-3 (Bell 40, Taylor 21)

Zulfiqar bowls to Bell, the ball spins past the edge and into the gloves of Sarfraz, bringing a loud appeal but no actual edge, and thus no decision.

59th over: England 129-3 (Bell 40, Taylor 20)

Rahat bowls, and Taylor drives square for a couple, and then fends a shortish delivery into the leg side and gets a run for his troubles. He’s now got precisely half as many runs as Bell, from almost precisely a third of the deliveries.

58th over: England 126-3 (Bell 40, Taylor 17)

Talking of partnerships, this one has looked pretty settled from the start. They get a couple of singles from Zulfiquar’s latest over.

57th over: England 124-3 (Bell 39, Taylor 16)

“To say we are ‘one strong partnership from parity at the very least’ seems a bit pessimistic,” moans Tom Adam. “Pakistan’s highest partnership was 80 and it took to the sixth wicket to get it; we’ve already had a partnership of 71. Pakistan’s partnerships were 5, 44, 39, 15, 13, 80, 0, 28, 0 and 10. So far we are 19, 71, 7 and 27*. Another ‘strong’ partnership would probably nudge us ahead. Come on Tom, have another look at that glass, it’s half full I tell you!” Excellent optimism there, but you fail to factor in England’s one missing batsman, or the long-term England-watcher’s conviction that they’ll always find a way to stuff it up if there is one available.

56th over: England 124-3 (Bell 39, Taylor 16)

Blammo! Taylor sweeps, low and hard, for four. Super shot, the best of the session by a distance.

55th over: England 118-3 (Bell 38, Taylor 11)

Rahat returns, leading to some review-based excitement. “Re big stares don’t work on some people (Over 51), it is a shame really because I remember being scared of Merv Hughes from the other side of the telly when he played,” notes Ian Palmer. “Those big-stare resilience training sessions have really got a lot to answer for! I wonder how people are going to intimidate moving forward.” There’s always the option of intimidating through the excellence of one’s bowling/fielding/batsmanship, though that could be considered a little old-fashioned.

A terrible review, that. The ball was barely in the same postcode as the bat there.

Pakistan think he edged it! The umpire thinks he didn’t!

54th over: England 118-3 (Bell 38, Taylor 11)

Zulfiqar continues and England scurry their way to a couple of pretty sharp runs, before Bell spears through the covers for a couple, carrying England past the half-way point on their trek towards Pakistan’s first-innings total.

53rd over: England 113-3 (Bell 35, Taylor 9)

Bell diverts the ball wide of midwicket for a couple. “What are the laws on subs?” wonders Harvey Lock. “Chris Jordan is a useful bat and not a bad bowler but is he allowed to do either as a sub? And what about close catching, is he allowed in the circle?” A substitute may not bat, bowl or keep wicket, but they are welcome to field anywhere else they like - indeed Cook was caught at slip by a substitute fielder during the second Test.

52nd over: England 111-3 (Bell 33, Taylor 9)

Bell gets a single to take England to Nelson, and then Zulfi convinces the ball to turn wildly and bounce exhuberantly, and it flies past Taylor’s bat.

51st over: England 110-3 (Bell 32, Taylor 9)

“Pakistan haven’t done their homework if they think that big stares are going to get to James Taylor (over 48). Great player and very, very tough,” writes Jonathan Wood, as the batsman sees out a Wahab maiden. “It feels like this is England’s present and future No4’s batting here.” Survival of big stares is a pretty basic test of a potential international batsman, but he’s passed with flying colours.

50th over: England 110-3 (Bell 32, Taylor 9)

Yasir’s first delivery is smashed past midwicket by Taylor for four, England’s first boundary for 16 overs.

49th over: England 105-3 (Bell 32, Taylor 4)

Hello! Well, this is teetering on a knife-edge. England are 129 runs behind, one strong partnership from parity at the very least, a couple of rapid wickets away from parity being quite distant. One fears that the whole one-batsman-less thing might become an issue at some point soonish. At the current scoring rate - the last 15 overs have brought 18 runs, with a no-ball swelling England’s score by one this over - it’ll take another 108 overs for England to draw level.

Ben Stokes heads off for scan on injured right shoulder (pic copyright: me) pic.twitter.com/nIs1al7Mue

48th over: England 104-3 (Bell 32, Taylor 4) Yasir Shah has found a little drift to go with his turn and Taylor, who was playing the spinner reasonably aggressively in the last over, has to be more cautious now. He prods a ball back at the bowler, and Yasir threatens to throw down the stumps, following it up with some Big Staring. Taylor has a chuckle. Another maiden. And that’d drinks - on which note, I’ll bid you farewell and hand over to Simon Burnton - email him on simon.burnton@theguardian.com

47th over: England 104-3 (Bell 32, Taylor 4) Wahab will replace Rahat for a blast at the other end. Bell is watchful before unfurling a drive through the covers for two. Wahab won’t be worried about that - he’s trying to entice Bell into a drive to bring those slips into play.

Ben Stokes has just left the Sharjah Cricket Stadium with the team doctor, next stop hospital and scan

46th over: England 102-3 (Bell 30, Taylor 4) Taylor gets off the mark and brings up the England 100 with a sharp cut through point. He’s all action in the crease, feet scampering all over the place.There’s a little excitement in the stands as Taylor thumps a ball into the ground, which is caught by Yasir and looked like a catch to those sitting several hundred feet away. Yasir ups the excitement levels by hurling the ball at the stumps. Taylor is attempting to be positive, using his feet, swishing his bat, and he drives the bowler uppishly for two off the outside edge.

45th over: England 98-3 (Bell 30, Taylor 0) Bell is quite happy to step on the brakes for a bit, steadying the ship. Ian Bell. Steadying the ship. Gulp. England are 11-2 since lunch.

44th over: England 98-3 (Bell 30, Taylor 0) Yasir Shah changes line to Bell, coming round the wicket and looping the ball up, attempting to turn the ball around the batsman’s legs. Bell nurdles him down to mid off for one. Tricky period this for England, with Pakistan in the ascendancy and Taylor playing his first Test in three years.

43rd over: England 97-3 (Bell 29, Taylor 0) England may as well be 97-4, given Stokes has yet to have his scan and certainly won’t bat. It was a terrific catch from the keeper, but Root was out of sorts throughout that short knock and unsure which way Rahat was going to swing the ball. A wicket maiden. Pakistan have turned this game around after lunch.

James Taylor begins his first Test innings in three years ... chat with him here from last week https://t.co/GWHBQereXs

It did carry. And Root, who has looked uncertain throughout his short innings, has fallen into the trap that Rahat has been trying to set all day, nicking a ball pushed across his bows behind. James Taylor the new man in.

43rd over: England 97-2 (Bell 29, Root 4) Root edges Rahat behind to the keeper - the umpires are not sure it carried. They’ve reffered it upstairs but think it is out …

42nd over: England 97-2 (Bell 29, Root 4) Again Root gets himself down the other end as quickly as he can, taking a single from the first ball of the over. It allows Bell to steer an elegant drive through the covers but, for once, Shoaib doesn’t misfield and instead dives to prevent four. Next ball, Bell toe ends an attempted sweep from a full toss. The ball loops up past short leg and falls safely to the ground.

41st over: England 94-2 (Bell 28, Root 2) Root is relieved to get off strike first ball of the over, clumping Rahat for a single to leg. The bowler continues to angle the ball across the right handed Bell but drops a touch short, and Bell clips him neatly through point for two. Rahat drops another one just short of a length, and the ball barely gets up above stump height. Bell is briefly tempted into a shot before withdrawing his bat at the last minute and giving the bowler a nod of approval. It’s an odd thing to do that, isn’t it? Why encourage a bloke throwing a hard thing at you at 85mph?

40th over: England 91-2 (Bell 26, Root 1) Yasir Shah is bowling very well indeed, his confidence up after getting Cook. He gets one delivery to nip sharply from middle to outside off, then follows it up with a rare googly. Bell is equal to it for now, playing straight and with soft hands.

39th over: England 91-2 (Bell 26, Root 1): Rahat finds an absolute jaffa from somewhere. The left armer is bowling over the wicket, slanting the ball across Root, but he manages to find a little reverse swing and jags the ball back from just outside off to within a fraction of the off stump. Root is cut in half by the delivery, then wafts slightly at a ball that Rahat sends across his bows. The bowler sticks with the line, and Root hangs a bat out at another one as he dithers, unsure if Rahat is going to reverse the ball into him again. Dicey days for the batsman. Good over.

“I’m going to assume that it’s a safe bet that Stokes is reading this OBO,” writes Michael Hunt. “If he’s off to Healthcare City, where a lot of the hospitals are what with them not being very original in their naming of locations in this part of the world (Sport City, Internet City, Knowledge Village etc), so just to let him know they do a very good chicken shwarma wrap in the food hall, but the olives are a bit weird so probably avoid those.”

38th over: England 91-2 (Bell 26, Root 1): Thats the third time Yasir Shah has got Cook in three innings, and it brings Root to the crease to face a bowler with his tail up. He sends a beautiful ball just past Root’s outside edge, before the batsman gets off the mark with a push and a scamper down the other end.

This is Alastair Cook's runningest year in Test cricket - previous best was 1,287 in 2010. Currently on 1,293 for 2015.

That has been coming for ages. Yasir Shah turns one from outside off, Cook plays back and edges it straight up to short leg. There was a little bit of pad involved and Cook thinks about reviewing but then trudges off.

37th over: England 90-1 (Cook 49, Bell 26) Cook inches nearer his 50 with a single clipped off his pads. Rahat is attempting the same trick that Wahab attempted - he is trying to slide the ball across Bell, hoping for a nick to the two slips and a gully who wait. Bell has not shown the slightest inclination that he will fall into this trap yet today.

36th over: England 89-1 (Cook 48, Bell 26) Less head-scratchingly, Yasir will trundle in from the other end. Not that he really trundles, he springs in at quite a lick, really whizzing his arm over. Bell is cautious before, increasingly comfortable, he cuts him to third man for two … but then, having said that, he does a Bell but is saved from a certain lbw by a faint nick of inside edge.

35th over: England 87-1 (Cook 48, Bell 24) Rahat bounds in after lunch, which is a little bit of a head scratcher. He looked gloriously inoffensive earlier this morning. Still, he’s straight enough and fullish, prompting Cook to play him carefully for a maiden.

Here’s the latest on Ben Stokes, from the Guardian’s man with his ear to the ground in Sharjah, Ali Martin:“Stokes’ hospital appointment not for another two hours (circa 2.30pm local time) - possible we will get an update later today as to his availability for remainder of the Test (can’t see anything other than ruled out, sadly) but the scans will then be sent to a specialist back in UK who will give a longer prognosis (ie rehab time, chances for South Africa etc). This latter update could well be tomorrow.”

An email from Robin Hazlehurst, which more or less sums up Bell’s career:“Not sure about these Bell predictions. Haven’t we got to the stage where the criticism of him is loud enough that he actually pulls out a classy and stylish but ultimately meaningless century in a lost cause to remind everyone of why he is in the team and secure his place for the next tour. Where he will proceed to get out regularly in the twenties to idiotic shots.”

Afternoon session ahoy!

Well, a good morning for England then who have recovered very well from Mooen Ali throwing his wicket away with an appalling attempted slog. Cook has given up a few chances but is still steering the ship, Bell has scratched around a bit but improved as he got his eye in, and England’s score is very respectable.

Still Pakistan will have been encouraged from the two chances Cook nearly gave to the leg slip, and the two he gave to short leg. However, the pitch has not spun as much as it did yesterday, which has helped England. Should be an interesting afternoon. See you in half an hour.

@tombry Phew! Some hefty counter-jinxing on Bell there. At least he's still there at lunch. Take a bow OBO Collective.

34th over: England 87-1 (Cook 48, Bell 24) Cook smiles ruefully at Bell as he realises he has to face another six balls of Yasir Shah, but he plays him better this over and flicks him through midwicket for a single early on. Bell then confounds the OBO collective and thumps a full tos to the mid on boundary to take his score past 23. And that’s lunch.

33rd over: England 82-1 (Cook 47, Bell 20) Zulfiqar returns with the lunch bell imminent. Suspect Pakistan want a quick over so Yasir Shah can have another quick go at Cook. The England captain’s not having it, and is slowing things down, keeping strike so that he is off strike next over. Then he sweeps for a single from the last ball of the over, thus putting himself in the firing line for Yasir.

32nd over: England 81-1 (Cook 46, Bell 20) Cook is very lucky again! He inside edges onto his pad as Shah turns one into him from outside off. The ball pops up tantalisingly and drops to the ground wide of short leg’s right hand. He appears to be playing the spinner down the wrong line, trying to push him to extra cover and getting it wrong. He is better a couple of balls later, rolling his wrists and playing the spin more effectively for a single.

31st over: England 80-1 (Cook 45, Bell 20) Wahab;s back having changed his boots and had a good breather for an over. Hmmm. His first ball back is rank filth down the leg side and Bell misses out on the four that would take him past OBO consensus’ 23 as his attempted clip connects with only air.

Some news on Ben Stokes - apparently his scan is this afternoon, which explains why there will not be any results until later today.

@tombry it's great to see that the OBO collective think that England's number 3 is going to make a right Ian Bell of this innings.

30th over: England 80-1 (Cook 45, Bell 20) Wahab trots off the field following his three-over stint, takes a seat in the stands and takes his shoes off. Wish I was on his shift pattern. Cook, more used to the long shift, clubs Yasir Shah to the square leg boundary - again picking out Shoaib who, again, fumbles the ball and this time concedes four. Cook is less happy a few balls later and edges onto his pad, breathing a sigh of relief as the ball drops wide of short leg.

29th over: England 76-1 (Cook 41, Bell 20) A rare thing this: an umpire has called a no ball. Remember where you are, this could be your JFK moment. Well done Bruce Oxenford. Cook takes a single off it to allow Wahab to attempt to slide the ball across Bell once more. There are two slips and a gully waiting for a nick but Wahab only gives it three balls before coming around the wicket and changing his line. Bell blocks and leaves solidly enough.

@TomBry as the OBO collective play the Bell Lottery, Cook is playing Leg Slip Roulette

28th over: England 74-1 (Cook 40, Bell 20) Cook sweeps again, and Cook gives that leg slip something to get excited about once more, the ball somehow evading his bat before hitting his pad, then again evading the bat as Cook follows through. He’s very lucky Yasir Shah doesn’t get him a third time there. Still, he makes amends, getting to the pitch of ball a few minutes later to drive the bowler to the cover boundary. The umpire has a little word with the bowler at the end of the over to remind him that it would be preferable if he didn’t run down the middle of the pitch.

27th over: England 69-1 (Cook 35, Bell 20) Cook benefits from a misfield by Shoaib Malik as he pushes down the ground for two. That will really irritate Wahab, who spent four balls tucking Cook up with full, fast and straight bowling, only for him to release the pressure thanks to some iffy fielding. Meanwhile, an exercise in comparing and contrasting follows:

26th over: England 66-1 (Cook 32, Bell 20) Yasir Shah has changed ends and is now bowling into the wind at Bell. He has a man back on the rope at mid off, preventing Bell from hitting him over the top. Bell pushes him for a single down to that man, remorselessly marching onto to what the OBO consensus has agreed will be a disappointing 23ish. Cook survives a loud appeal as he attempts to glance the ball fine. The ball came off his pad, rather than bat though, before being caught by the leg slip.

25th over: England 64-1 (Cook 31, Bell 19) There’s a change of tactic to Bell. Wahab returns, bowling left arm over, and is attempting to slide the ball across the batsman and into the waiting hands of the slip cordon. That’s the plan though, but plans are funny little things. He’s too straight and Bell gets off strike immediately with a single. Wahab bowls on or just outside off to Cook on a good length and in the mid 80s. Cook blocks and leaves him diligently.

24th over: England 63-1 (Cook 31, Bell 18) Again Cook sweeps and again he looks uncertain doing so. This time he does so along the ground, but it’s not a confident shot. Better comes later in the over when Cook clips Zulfiqar through the covers off the back foot for four. Lovely shot.

Dear @tombry , Please tell @GuyHornsby (over 20) that I already have 23 in the Bell score sweepstakes. He can have any other number...

23rd over: England 57-1 (Cook 25, Bell 18) Ben Stokes is on the England balcony, fast asleep and no doubt rattling with painkillers. In fact, he’s probably had so many of the things his helmet will come with a childproof cap on it. There should be some news of the results of those scans on his shoulder this afternoon. Bell clips a couple of runs through midwicket.

A textbook reverse jinx attempt here from Gary Weightman:

@TomBry Bell is looking far far too comfortable now and using his feet well - 26 and out via a horrible mow #inevitable

22nd over: England 55-1 (Cook 25, Bell 16) Zulfiqar continues to Cook, and the England captain plays a slightly iffy sweep to his fourth delivery and top edges the ball a touch. The ball flies through the vacant midwicket area in the air and Cook is a little fortunate there is no-one there to catch him.

21st over: England 53-1 (Cook 23, Bell 16) Cook works a single, before Bell suddenly springs into life. He takes two half steps down the wicket and drives Yasir Shah fluently through the covers for four. Lovely shot - and a sign Bell is casting off the scratchy form he arrived at the crease with? A flick off the back foot very nearly travels to the boundary (and would have done on a pitch with a regular outfield) and is, again, a lovely stroke. Bell will be out next over, won’t he?

20th over: England 46-1 (Cook 22, Bell 10) Cook pushes Zulfiqar (0-12 off seven) through the covers for one.

“Has any Test felt more alien to follow than this one this morning? Yes, I’ve woken up to snow many times with us toiling in India, but it’s been a proper pea souper this weekend, and listening to us nurdling around in Sharjah while I reluctantly trundle to the Olympic pool to try and not drown it feels like I’m in a rubbish remake of Blade Runner,” emails Rebecca Adlington Guy Hornsby. “Perhaps it’s contributing to the sense of impending batting doom. Perhaps I’m just expecting Bell to get a brisk 23 before holing out.”

19th over: England 45-1 (Cook 21, Bell 10) Here comes Yasir Shah, a man who got Cook out twice in the last Test. Cook’s taking no chances and takes one off the leg spinner’s first delivery. Bell nods his appreciation to Yasir’s final ball of the over, a delivery that pitches on middle and off and turns six inches past the off stump. And that’s drinks.

18th over: England 44-1 (Cook 20, Bell 10) A single to Cook. It’s 7am where I’m sat, there’s thick fog outside and a brilliant, intense green on my TV screen, the heat almost visible in the Sharjah ground. Anyone else got a more contrasting view at this time on a Monday morning?

17th over: England 43-1 (Cook 19, Bell 10) Cook clips a single, bringing Bell back into the firing line. Shoaib comes around the wicket, flighting the ball. Bell drives for one, ignoring the two men who have been brought in short on the leg side and who await with gleaming eyes and bucket-like hands. Cook, who is looking assured, sweeps Shoaib twice, first for two and then for one. Cook of course was out sweeping in the last Test.

16th over: England 38-1 (Cook 15, Bell 9) The spinners are on top but there does not appear to be as much turn as there was yesterday. Cook turns Zulfiqar off his pads for a single, leaving Bell to scratch and scrape his way to the end of the over.

15th over: England 37-1 (Cook 14, Bell 9) England are in danger of falling into the trap Pakistan stumbled into yesterday afternoon. Instead of working the singles, rotating the strike and keeping the scoreboard ticking, they are either blocking or slogging as if it’s either boundary or nothing. Cook is doing a better job of things, admittedly, but Bell is in all sorts of pain. Ball tracking, by the way, showed that Pakistan were correct not to review that lbw shout - the ball hit the batsman fractionally outside the line and it would have been umpire’s call.

14th over: England 34-1 (Cook 13, Bell 7) Oh Belly. Zulfiqar sends down a delivery that straightens on Bell, who has decided that the best form of defence is attack. He is caught on the back leg attempting a wild sweep, getting nowhere near the ball. There’s a huge lbw shout, but then Pakistan elect not to review it when perhaps they should have done.

13th over: England 34-1 (Cook 13, Bell 7) Cook sets off for a quick single. Bell tells him to do one. So Cook has to scamper back in to the crease in the harum scarum style. A maiden.

Here’s John Starbuck: “We expect it to be hot in Sharjah, but I found myself wearing short sleeves and a sun hat yesterday - in November! In Yorkshire! At this rate, we can adapt to global warming by having Pakistan tour England in winter.” Sun in Yorkshire? It’s the end of days.

12th over: England 34-1 (Cook 13, Bell 7) With men all around the bat and the outfield slow, Bell elects to take both factors out of the equation and lofts Zulfiqar back over his head for six. A lovely shot and all, but still enough to make you wonder if we’re going to get another lovely 16 runs from Bell today before he’s back in the hutch in six overs’ time. He props forward to Zulfiqar’s third delivery and watches with heart in mouth as the ball turns half an inch past the edge of his bat.

11th over: England 28-1 (Cook 13, Bell 1) Given the fact that Stokes is unlikely to bat, England are essentially two wickets down. Which makes Moeen’s mow an even worse choice. Clearly his brief is to play his natural game and get bat on ball - but not so early in the innings surely, and not with such a long day ahead. His series average is 12. Cook and Bell trade singles, before the captain carves Shoaib through point for what should have been a four but, on this slow outfield, is a two. Frustrated, he smacks the next ball harder and just about manages to pull it to the boundary.

10th over: England 20-1 (Cook 6, Bell 0) Earlier I typed that Moeen was looking in exactly the sort of elegant and classy form that usually means he rattles up 20 and gets out. Then I deleted it because it seemed harsh and unfair. Ah. That really was an ugly shot from the opener, his eyes lighting up and his brain saying: slog, slog, slog. Cook works Zulfiqar for one before Bell survives a (very optimistic) lbw shout to his first ball facing the bowler. He’s got two slips, a silly point and a short leg to contend with but just about navigates a course to the end of the over.

Moeen has an ugly swipe acros the line, an attempted sweep/mow and top edges high in the air to slip. Pretty average that.

9th over: England 19-0 (Cook 5, Moeen 14): Wahab can join Rahat out there, and will possibly rue the fact he didn’t try Moeen out with a couple of short balls before being told to stand down. Shoaib Malik comes around the wicket to Moeen, attempting to turn the ball away from the left handed batsmen and …

8th over: England 19-0 (Cook 5, Moeen 14): Turns out that, if you’re a seamer who goes for nine in your second over of the day on a turning wicket, you’re going to get the hook. Hence Rahat can spend some time in the deep thinking about things and Zulfiqar Babar is invited to spin a few left-arm orthodoxes. There’s a brief moment of alarm when Cook sends Moeen back when there was a clear run, before both batsmen work a couple of singles.

7th over: England 17-0 (Cook 4, Moeen 13) Moeen drives Wahab for two, as easy on the eye as a couple of slices of cucumber. He’s elegant and classy, but though he’s timing the ball, there’s so little pace in the outfield that where he should have four he is getting only two.

6th over: England 15-0 (Cook 4, Moeen 11) And that’s a lovely shot. Moeen barely moves his feet, simply shifting his weight onto his back foot, and drives Rahat elegantly through the covers for four. Next, he uses his wrists to whip the bowler through midwicket for another couple, before Rahat remembers that line outside the off stump that troubled Moeen in the previous over. Moeen, determined as ever to put bat to ball, swishes at it to much oohing and aahing in the slips, before driving for one from the next delivery. Cook gets in on the act, carving a couple of runs through point too.

5th over: England 6-0 (Cook 2, Moeen 4) Cook gets off the mark with a solid push to wide mid off, scampering a couple of runs much to Wahab Riaz’s irritation given the look of thunder on his face.

4th over: England 4-0 (Cook 0, Moeen 4) Pakistan revert to tradition and throw the ball to Rahat Ali, rather than a spinner. Moeen will face the novel experience of opening the batting having had a night’s kip rather than having bowled 30-odd overs in blistering heat. Will be interesting to see if he makes the most of it or whether it’s given him too long to think. He blocks his first five balls, his bat scything down to the perpendicular from an angle that always makes you suspect there might be a chance of an edge if his timing is off. And it’s not an easy pitch to get your timing right on. And it nearly comes on Rahat’s final delivery, Moeen propping forward to a ball that left him slightly and whizzed past the edge.

3rd over: England 4-0 (Cook 0, Moeen 4) Play! Cook is facing the left arm seam of Wahab Riaz in the first over of the day and he plays as watchfully as you might expect: straight bat, on the front foot and leaving anything he can. A maiden.

Mike Selvey is less certain that England can score on this wicket.

Huge challenge for Eng batsmen today. Pak spinners will apply much more consistent pressure than Eng counterparts could.

Suspect Pak will be on top by close of play. Even at moment.

Pak score worth a heap more by the way. V v slow outfield and pitch. Not a driving pitch .

Bumble is on the pitch and he thinks it has dried out a touch, but believes it will not offer as much spin as on day one. He reckons today will be the best day for batting, with the pitch relatively tame and set to break up on day three. Or, in other words, fill your boots England if you want to win this Test, because today’s the day to build a platform. It also looks hot, really hot, already. Not that appears to bother Cook in the slightest.

A tweet! In fact, three:

@tombry Morning Tom. Option 1 (optimistic): England struggle to match Pakistan score, then fail, chasing over 400 in the 4th innings.

@tombry Option 2 (realistic): England do patented collapse, 6 wickets down by lunch. Fail chasing over 500 in 4th innings.

@tombry Option 3 (pessimistic): England collectively fall down steps from pavilion; all get dislocated shoulders. Concede Test...

Another thing that also did not go to plan on Sunday was the injury to Ben Stokes. The all rounder has damaged his shoulder attempting to take a spectacular one-handed catch at backwards square leg. He landed hard on his right shoulder and will find out how badly he has damaged it today when he goes to hospital for a scan. As England’s best outfielder, a potentially damaging batsman and very useful seam option, he will be a very big loss if, as feared, he is out for the remainder of this series and potentially the winter tour to South Africa as well.

Related: England’s Ben Stokes set for scan after injuring right shoulder

“Those funny little plans,”as Mercury Rev once sang, “that never work quite right.” It’s tempting to think it’s going round the heads of the England cricketers. You pick three spinners, four if Joe Root is to be counted, on a turning wicket and so your seamers take six of the wickets. Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad were outstanding on day one of this Test match, while Samit Patel, Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid - in conditions that favoured them - were less impressive, struggling until the afternoon session to really find much control.

England bowlers this series so far: Seam: Wkts 26, Avg 25.73, RPO 2.00 Spin: Wkts 17, Avg 55.82, RPO 4.22.

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Pakistan v England: third Test, day three – as it happened

November 3, 2015, 5:37 am
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Pakistan lead by 74 with seven second-innings wickets in hand and Mohammad Hafeez on the verge of a century as they look to bat England out of the final Test

“It’s in the balance at the minute. If we can get a couple of quick ones we’re right in there,” says James Taylor, who’s pretty much spot on - a couple of quick wickets in the morning are surely essential if England are to draw this series. We’ll be back for more tomorrow. Bye!

An excellent day for Pakistan, with Hafeez’s near-century hauling them into a position of uncertain superiority. He batted brilliantly, and though some might criticise the way he pretty deliberately decided to run out Azhar Ali rather than risk his own wicket he was the one who looked most worth saving. Some fine bowling from England’s seamers, with minimal reward, and the tourists will need to start tomorrow in style.

53rd over: Pakistan 146-3 (Hafeez 97, Rahat Ali 0)

There’s a big lbw appeal here, and Moeen wants his captain to review it, but he’s turned down, England perhaps thinking that it wasn’t worth risking a review on a nightwatchman (HawkEye says umpire’s call on impact, so it’s just as well). Then the last ball flicks off bat and pad into the air, but wide of the man at silly mid-off. Pakistan end the day with a lead of 74.

52nd over: Pakistan 146-3 (Hafeez 97, Rahat Ali 0)

The day’s penultimate over. Hafeez, whose first innings of the series ended on 98, sees it out without scoring, and is troubled by a couple of googlies. At the end, with one over to play, the umpires call for the light meter, but will allow one more over so long as it’s slow. Moeen Ali will bowl it.

51st over: Pakistan 146-3 (Hafeez 97, Rahat Ali 0)

Younis flicks the first delivery off his ankle and very fine for four, his final scoring stroke. Rahat Ali comes in after the wicket, and pops his first ball into the air, but just wide of short leg.

The ball would have knocked the top of off stump pretty hard, so though HawkEye marks it yellow for umpire’s call, it suggests the umpire made the right one.

Epic celebrappeal from Stuart Broad there

The umpire, after quite a bit of thought, decides it is. The batsmen, after quite a bit of discussion, decide to review.

50th over: Pakistan 142-2 (Hafeez 97, Younis Khan 10)

Anderson’s spell ends at nine overs, with Rashid replacing him. Hafeez adds another few runs to his tally and is single-handedly taking this match by the neck and dragging it away from England. After 50 overs of their first innings, Pakistan were 116-4. England were 110-3.

49th over: Pakistan 138-2 (Hafeez 94, Younis Khan 9)

Broad’s first ball is sent through the covers by Hafeez, and the batsmen run three before it’s chased down. Younis remains in clinging-on-gamely mode, and slams his bat down onto a yorker, before finally slashing at a delivery that isn’t as wide as he wanted it to be, and clearly was a bit more bouncy, and missing it completely.

48th over: Pakistan 135-2 (Hafeez 91, Younis Khan 9)

A ninth over from Anderson, and it’s a long one, featuring as it does a couple of singles, a four clobbered past point by an increasingly regal-looking Hafeez, a run-up aborted because Younis isn’t ready, and another run-up aborted because Younis still isn’t ready. There are, in theory, five overs remaining - can Anderson be expected to bowl any more of them?

We're in the 48th over of Pakistan's innings, and only Mohammed Hafeez has hit a boundary, The problem for England is that he's hit a few

47th over: Pakistan 129-2 (Hafeez 86, Younis Khan 8)

Nice bowling from Broad, but time and fatigue is catching up with England’s seamers now, and the wickets aren’t falling. Still, a bit of inswing, a bit of away swing, and two singles.

46th over: Pakistan 127-2 (Hafeez 85, Younis Khan 7)

Anderson, encouraged by a bit of swing and a squirming Younis, keeps going, the eighth over of this spell. And he gets another edge, the ball flying low and wide of first slip, where Cook gets a hand to it but can’t stop it. They take a single, and Hafeez smacks the next past point for four.

45th over: Pakistan 121-2 (Hafeez 80, Younis Khan 6)

Another edge from Hafeez, and another boundary. This time Broad’s the bowler. Every other over is being followed by drinks at the moment, nobody in any hurry.

Highest % of series runs in one inns (min 6 inns, 250 runs): 84.48% A Cook (294/348) E v I 2011 83.90% Shoaib Malik (245/292) P v E 2015

44th over: Pakistan 117-2 (Hafeez 76, Younis Khan 6)

Ooof! Anderson bowls wide of off stump to Younis, who’s clearly expecting an inswinger but wary of an outswinger and pushes his bat at it in extraordinarily awkward style. Inevitably it goes perfectly straight, and misses everything. Then it happens again. Pig-ugly batsmanship from the 9071-run man.

Anderson is turning Younis inside out, who is trying to play in as ungainly a manner as any top flight batsman ever.

43rd over: Pakistan 116-2 (Hafeez 75, Younis Khan 6)

Broad bowls, and Younis nudges it down the leg side. Anderson runs from slip, reaches the ball and fires it immediately towards the bowler - who is looking the other way, and turns round just in time to realise it’s about to hit him in the leg, and not quite in time to get out of the way. It’s a single for Younis, and a bit of a giggle for the rest of us. Ten overs remain.

42nd over: Pakistan 114-2 (Hafeez 74, Younis Khan 5)

A little away swing from Anderson, Hafeez drives and gets a thick edge, well past the slips and away for four. In answer to Billy Mills, incidentally, Pakistan already lead by 42 and though England’s eventual target may be achievable - and it may even be achieved - there’s no way now that it won’t be enough to induce considerable anxiety.

41st over: Pakistan 110-2 (Hafeez 70, Younis Khan 5)

Younis reads Rashid like a comic, and pushes wide of mid off for a couple, and then gets a couple more through third man.

@Simon_Burnton How big a chase can England manage? Anything over 50 and I'm nervous.

40th over: Pakistan 106-2 (Hafeez 70, Younis Khan 1)

Anderson welcomes Younis Khan with a tasty inswinging yorker. I don’t know what happened to the ball when Hafeez deposited it into the stands a few minutes ago, but it’s suddenly started to hoop around a bit. At the moment it looks like as good a six as England have ever conceded.

Proper wicket follows for the magnificent Anderson,who has Shoaib lbw first ball. Double hundred in first Test and bog all since.

That’s utter cluelessness from Shoaib Malik who simply watched Anderson’s inswinger - and there’s quite serious swing here - as it careered into his pad, his bat nowhere.

39th over: Pakistan 105-1 (Hafeez 70, Malik 0)

England had a fair old go at messing up that run-out, throwing the ball around the field for a bit before finally returning it to Rashid at the bowler’s end, but the batsmen were so emphatically muddled it didn’t matter. Hafeez carts the next ball through midwicket for four.

Ali drives to mid off, calls for a run, changes his mind, stops, starts to go back, sees Hafeez arrive at his end, and is helpless as the bails come off at the other end. A beautiful opening partnership ends in chaos.

38th over: Pakistan 101-0 (Hafeez 66, Ali 34)

The camera finds Stokes on the balcony, fast asnooze. Jordan is sitting in front of him, still unaccountably unused. Anderson, who conceded eight runs from his first 52 deliveries of the innings, concedes 10 from his next two, with Mohammad Hafeez lashing No53 over midwicket and into the stands, and working No54 off his pads to the long leg boundary.

Breaking news: Pakistan have beaten England 2-0 in their three-match Test series.

37th over: Pakistan 90-0 (Hafeez 56, Ali 33)

I’m not sure this really is the bunsen that it appeared at times this morning. It looks pretty flat at the moment, although one suspects it won’t when Yasir Shah’s bowling.

36th over: Pakistan 88-0 (Hafeez 55, Ali 32)

Anderson’s getting some movement, but there has been little by way of even near-things, but for that very early successful Pakistan review that gave Hafeez a reprieve.

Anderson and Broad combined match figures 43.1-24-41-6

35th over: Pakistan 86-0 (Hafeez 53, Ali 30)

Rashid replaces Patel, and almost immediately troubles Hafeez with a googly that the batsman only just manages to divert from its stump-bound trajectory. Four runs from the over, all singles.

34th over: Pakistan 82-0 (Hafeez 52, Ali 29)

Ali plays out another maiden from Anderson (his fifth in seven overs) - he’s now faced 101 balls, just two fewer than his opening partner, though he’s 23 behind in run-scoring terms.

33rd over: Pakistan 82-0 (Hafeez 52, Ali 29)

32nd over: Pakistan 76-0 (Hafeez 46, Ali 29)

Anderson returns, and Azhar Ali leaves everything that looks to be passing outside off and defends anything that looks to be hitting the stumps - against seamers Pakistan are concentrating entirely on circumspection.

31st over: Pakistan 76-0 (Hafeez 46, Ali 29)

In the final session yesterday England put themselves in a position to go on and win this match. In the final session today it could be whisked away from them. It’s been two-thirds-and-also-another-bit of a fine day for Pakistan, in short.

30th over: Pakistan 75-0 (Hafeez 46, Ali 28)

A bit of reverse action here from Broad, who bowls another maiden. Pakistan continue to make hay against spin (10 runs off the last three overs) before applying brakes against seam (one run off the last three overs).

29th over: Pakistan 75-0 (Hafeez 46, Ali 28)

Patel bowls, and his first delivery is powered past extra cover by Hafeez, bringing the scores level, before a sweep flies in the air, but safely past the fielder at square leg, for three. Here’s Selve’s summary of the match situation, though he omits the fact that England have one batsman who can’t swing a bat.

Pakistan reach parity without loss so now we have a one innings a side match with England having to bat last on a bunsen.

28th over: Pakistan 68-0 (Hafeez 39, Ali 28)

Broad’s fourth maiden in six overs. If you’d like a little extra reading, this week’s Spin is out. Sign up for it here, or read a bit of it here:

Related: The death of devilry: how outright villainy has disappeared from cricket | The Spin

27th over: Pakistan 68-0 (Hafeez 39, Ali 28)

Patel continues, and the batsmen snaffle a single each. Pakistan are just the four runs behind now, a single stroke from parity.

26th over: Pakistan 66-0 (Hafeez 38, Ali 27)

Another disciplined over from Broad, one run from it. “When you’re playing Pakistan on a turning track, is it better to play one, two, or three spinners who are not up to it?” asks Jim Lambourn. “Surely we need Broad and Anderson bowling: perhaps they could have a go at spinners?” Stokes’ injury has left England a spinner heavy, but then they weren’t to know that.

25th over: Pakistan 65-0 (Hafeez 37, Ali 27)

Hafeez has 37, Ali has 27, Pakistan trail by 7.

All 5 wickets by Pakistan spinners today: 51mph+ Balls by Adil Rashid at 51mph+ today: 1 out of 24 #PAKvENG#CricViz

24th over: Pakistan 61-0 (Hafeez 36, Ali 24)

Stuart Broad bowls, and Mohammad Hafeez scores a couple through cover, that’s more runs off one delivery than off his other 23 this innings put together. This would have made me well narked. It’s Mohammad Rizwan, delivering some drinks and, while he’s at it, asking for a slap.

Just the 12th man (M Rizwan) trolling Root and Anderson. #sledging#PAKvENG#cricingifpic.twitter.com/ykpXct0xN2

23rd over: Pakistan 59-0 (Hafeez 34, Ali 24)

As the session gets under way, Mike Atherton on Sky wonders why Liam Plunkett is on the field as England’s 12th man, when Chris Jordan is a notably brilliant close fielder, especially to spin. Other than the fact that Jordan is having some food, which presumably he might have had sooner, there seems no logical explanation. Anyway, Patel bowls, one run is scored.

Hello! Well, it’s been two-thirds of an excellent day for Pakistan, who now trail by 14 with all second-innings wickets in hand. Moeen’s going at five an over, Samit Patel at 3.8 - this in a match where the average run rate has been around 2.5. To keep the pressure on, England need to make a breakthrough in the first half-hour or so of this session, you’d have thought. Action imminent. All emails to me here from now on, please.

22nd over: Pakistan 58-0 (Hafeez 33, Ali 24) Rashid bowls the last over of the tea. Bairstow goes up for LBW when Hafeez pushes around the googly. It was pitched too straight and was missing leg stump, though it was nicely bowled by Rashid.

Next ball there’s an appeal for the stumping next ball. Did Azhar Ali lift his back leg? Bairstow was waiting for Azhar to move his back foot before removing the bails, but he just kept his toe on the ground. That was not unlike Alec Stewart’s stumping of Brian Lara on this ground in 1997 (below).

21st over: Pakistan 56-0 (Hafeez 33, Ali 23) Samit Patel comes on for Moeen Ali (5-0-25-0), who looks low on confidence with the ball. Moeen averaged 28 in his first year of Test cricket, but in 2015 that has risen to 45. Patel is milked absent-mindedly for a couple, taking Pakistan to within 16 of Peter Drury’s favourite word.

20th over: Pakistan 54-0 (Hafeez 32, Ali 22) Rashid beats Hafeez with a gorgeous legspinner. England thought there might have been an outside edge; the umpire Chris Gaffaney disagreed. That’s not a great name for an umpire, is it? Cheap headlines if he makes a howler and all that. I suppose it would be worse if he was called Daley Blind.

“If Lord Selvey is right – and who are we to disagree? – that Dan Vettori was the best no.8 in world cricket, then surely it follows that he must also have been the best no.11, which is where he batted in his first Test,” says Matt Hill. “Case closed.”

19th over: Pakistan 50-0 (Hafeez 29, Ali 21) Moeen Ali decides to try his luck round the wicket. For all of two balls. Hafeez charges his second delivery and humps it straight down the ground for another emphatic six, whereupon Moeen switches back over the wicket. Lovely batting, and it brings up an intimidatingly authoritative fifty partnership.

@100ashesquotes I've no recollection of ever seeing Bob Willis put bat on ball, but he must've done. England were always all out in the 80s

18th over: Pakistan 44-0 (Hafeez 23, Ali 21) The first Rashid full toss goes unpunished, with Azhar clunking it to mid off. It’s important England keep their nerve and don’t get desperate – although it hasn’t really happened in this game so far, there is always scope for wickets to fall in clusters on a pitch like this.

17th over: Pakistan 44-0 (Hafeez 23, Ali 21) It’s just not happening for England’s spinners at the moment. The turn is far less menacing in the absence of its partners in crime, pace and bounce, so Pakistan are able to work the ball around pretty easily.

“Sobers started at No9 I think,” says Mike Selvey. “In summer, when mo was batting at No8, had discussion about best number eight and it was Dan Vettori by a distance.” What about the best ever tail? This South African side has to be right up there, though I reckon England trump them here.

16th over: Pakistan 41-0 (Hafeez 22, Ali 19) Adil Rashid is going to replace Samit Patel. England really, really, really need him to bowl well – before, during and hopefully after Misbah’s inevitable assault on him. His fifth ball is too short and is pulled for a single by Hafeez; England have a deep midwicket as protection for just that delivery. Three singles from the over. England lead by 31.

15th over: Pakistan 38-0 (Hafeez 21, Ali 17) This is starting to look a little ominous for England. The spinners are not being taken apart but they are being milked with minimal risk. And when the first really bad ball comes it is put away by Hafeez, who skips back in his crease to late cut a short one from Moeen for the first four of the innings. The spinners are going at four an over; Broad and Anderson went at less than one an over.

14th over: Pakistan 31-0 (Hafeez 15, Ali 16) Pakistan’s batsmen are putting pressure on England’s spinners with ones and twos rather than big shots, for the time being at least. It’s accomplished, calm batting. And although England’s spinners have done little wrong, Pakistan have eaten up almost half the first-innings deficit of 72.

“Not sure if he ever batted 11 in Tests,” says Sean Clayton, “but I think Imran Khan started his Worcs career as a specialist bowler batting at 11. Not quite a Mullally/Martin-esque bunny...” Yes, not quite. I think the lowest he batted in Tests was No9. He didn’t stay there for long. In fact in his last 10 years of Test cricket – 10 years, man! – he averaged 50 with the bat and 19 with the ball.

13th over: Pakistan 28-0 (Hafeez 15, Ali 13) Azhar is beaten as he gropes awkwardly at a kicking delivery from Moeen. England’s spinners have done pretty well so far; the key is to keep their nerve and not try too hard if wickets do not come straight away.

12th over: Pakistan 23-0 (Hafeez 12, Ali 11) Azhar dances down the track to Patel and is struck on the pads. England go up for LBW but those appeals are never given, not when a batsman is that far down – even though Hawkeye shows it was hitting middle halfway up. As Beefy says on Sky, if you trust ball-tracking, who cares how far down the pitch they are? I suspect that umpiring norm will change over time, in the same way that getting a big stride no longer grants immunity against LBW.

11th over: Pakistan 20-0 (Hafeez 12, Ali 6) Moeen replaces Anderson (5-3-5-0) – and Hafeez is dropped second ball by Bairstow. Well, sort of. It was a very thick edge off the back foot, and as such Bairstow had pretty much no chance; the ball him him on the thigh and dropped safely to the ground. Alan Knott might have taken it, but I’m not sure about any other keepers.

Three from Moeen’s over, and the tempo has changed as we expected – the seamers went for six runs from eight overs, the spinners have conceded 14 from three so far.

10th over: Pakistan 17-0 (Hafeez 11, Ali 6) After 9.5 overs boundaryless overs, Hafeez saunters down the track to lift Patel gently, almost effortlessly over long off for six. That’s a pretty decisive statement of intent, and things should liven up from here. Pakistan are going to try to score some runs and everything!

“Wilfred began as a number 11 and ended up opening” says Selve. “He averaged 44 at No11.” Apparently only three players have batted in all 11 positions in Tests: Sid Gregory, Rhodes and Vinoo Mankad.

9th over: Pakistan 8-0 (Hafeez 5, Ali 3) Groundhog over from Anderson, a maiden. Pakistan seem content to block their way through Anderson and Broad’s spells, which is fair enough given the inaccurate nature of England’s spinners. If England had Swann and Monty it might be different.

Rizwan being cheeky/funny and @englandcricket players being an ass always. Staring at him! Especially Root! #pakvengpic.twitter.com/in87s6ACfa

8th over: Pakistan 8-0 (Hafeez 5, Ali 3) Broad (3-2-1-0) is replaced by Samit Rohit Patel. He goes around the wicket to Azhar – with Anderson, not Jordan, at slip rather surprisingly – and is driven for a quick single to mid off. Hafeez skips down to drive another through the covers. A decent start from Patel.

Jimmy and Broad bowling so dry its ridiculous. Which spinner will release the pressure? I'm with Adil. @palfreyman1414@100ashesquotes

7th over: Pakistan 6-0 (Hafeez 4, Ali 2) Hafeez breaks the sequence of dot balls with a punch through mid off for a couple.

@100ashesquotes Surely if hotspot and/or real time snicko isn't available you shouldn't be allowed to review caught behinds.

6th over: Pakistan 4-0 (Hafeez 2, Ali 2) Broad goes wide on the crease to slide one past Azhar Ali’s outside edge. This has been another excellent start from Anderson and Broad. They are not so much bowling dry as bowling Sahara: in this match they have conceded 34 runs from 34.1 overs.

“Phil Edmonds has got to be a shout for the best Test No11, Rob,” says Darren Beach. “Batted at 11 against India in 1986 at Lord’s– three first-class hundreds, Test average of 17-odd against only the tough countries, and generally regarded as a posh-dilettante, wasted all-rounder and batting talent.”

5th over: Pakistan 4-0 (Hafeez 2, Ali 2) While England were waiting for the decision, there was some immaculate trolling from the Pakistan 12th man, Mohammad Rizwan I think. He came on with a drink for the batsmen, and starting signalling an overturned review to the England fielders, all the while wearing the jauntiest of smiles. Great stuff, though I’m not sure Joe Root in particular was impressed.

Yes, Hafeez is given not out. I’m not sure about that. I suspect it’s the right and wrong decision – right because on balance I reckon he missed it, wrong because the evidence might not have been clear enough. There was one angle, from short mid on, that suggested a possible deviation. That said, the general consensus in the Sky box is that it was clearly not out. Anyway, it’s done. Look, let’s just move on, okay? Just leave it.

I’m pretty sure Hafeez missed that, but can you be certain enough to overturn the decision? That said, there was some kind of noise. This is a really tricky decision. A different replay suggests a possible deviation, but the camera behind the wicket suggests he missed it. Hmm. I don’t think there’s enough evidence to overturn it, but I think it will be overturned.

REVIEW! Hafeez c Bairstow b Anderson 2 Hafeez is given out caught behind but reviews the decision instantly.

4th over: Pakistan 4-0 (Hafeez 2, Ali 2) Bumble is discussing whether Ian Bell might bowl some medium pace in the absence of Ben Stokes. He took his only Test wicket against Pakistan – Mohammad Yousuf – but has not bowled in a Test since the 2006-07 Ashes. A quiet over from Broad, with Hafeez flicking the last ball for a single. The new ball is behaving impeccably, as it has all series.

“Re. the best no. 11s, this brings back fond memories of the last few Ashes series,” says David Hopkins. “Monty Panesar at Cardiff anyone? Not to mention Glenn McGrath at Old Trafford. And Michael Kasprowicz was only denied by a well placed outfielder (and arguably the lack of a third umpire) from topping the lot.” Er, Shaun Tait at Trent Bridge?

3rd over: Pakistan 3-0 (Hafeez 1, Ali 2) Azhar Ali leaves a ball from Anderson that just bounces over the stumps. I think he left it on line, but he got away with it only on length. He does the same again next ball; this time it hits the pad and England go up in vain for LBW. Too high, I suspect, and Alastair Cook has little interest in a review. Yes, Hawkeye shows it was missing.

“If Moeen and Rashid serve up the same stuff as they did in the first innings I don’t think Cook should be afraid to turn to Root for a few overs,” says Sam Martin. “He seems to have that wicket taking knack some part-time bowlers possess.” Yep, agreed.

2nd over: Pakistan 3-0 (Hafeez 1, Ali 2) Stuart Broad’s first ball is a gorgeous off-cutter that beats Hafeez’s inside edge. That’s about all.

“Fairly sure Sydney Barnes batted at 11 too,” says Christopher Dale, “as well as opening.” I think you’ve merged two Sid Barneses into one. Here’s the people-loving English bowler, and here’s the Aussie batsman.

1st over: Pakistan 3-0 (Hafeez 1, Ali 2) The one advantage of Ben Stokes’ injury is that England can use Chris Jordan as a substitute fielder, and he will surely be at slip for the spinners. He’s at third slip for Jimmy Anderson, who has beautiful series figures of 82-29-151-11 and will bowl the first over. Hafeez takes a quick single to get off the mark; Azhar Ali, on a pair, does likewise with a drive through extra-cover for two.

As Selve said below, England’s spinners need to bowl far better in the second innings. There is a chance for one of them to be a hero – but to achieve that they must not try to be a hero. Don’t attempt to bowl magic balls, just let the pitch do the work.

Pakistan spinners average 2.5 runs per over, Eng 3.8. That needs to change from Eng , esp as a seamer down.

Join the debate! “There is always a lot of talk about the worst ever No11 batsman in Test cricket – Martin, McGrath, Tufnell, Morrison, Walsh etc – but I wonder who is the best ever?” says Steven Pye. “I know Ashton Agar enjoyed himself at Trent Bridge, yet he probably needs a longer qualification period than that one innings. Any ideas?”

Graeme Smith batted No11, but that was with a broken hand so doesn’t really count. Do you count players demoted on a sticky dog? I think Warwick Armstrong batted No11 once. But if you’re talking about someone who batted there a few times, I’d go for Wilfred Rhodes.

A pessimist is never disappointed So, England lead by 72. They led by 70 at Abu Dhabi in 2011-12, and look how that turned out!

Eng all out 306, lead of 72. Batting last, Im not sure that will be enough. Spinners need to earn corn and back up seamers.

That would probably have done for a fit Ben Stokes. It was another fine delivery, turning from middle stump to the hit the top of off as Stokes fiddled defensively. Malik ends with four for 33 from 9.5 overs, and England lead by 72.

@100ashesquotes"But if Paul Terry can bat with one arm...' Some might say that he couldn't bat with two arms...

126th over: England 305-9 (Broad 12, Stokes 0) In fact Stokes will have to face Wahab Riaz, which is a sensible bowling change from Misbah-ul-Haq. Wahab will surely pepper Stokes with short stuff here. Stokes defends a couple of length balls; then the bouncer comes; Stokes can’t get his hands up high enough so wears it on his chest and then glares at Wahab. “He’ll have a long memory, Ben Stokes,” chuckles Mike Atherton on Sky. Stokes’s pitch map to Wahab when the sides meet again next summer will be interesting. That was the only really short ball in a surprisingly polite over from Wahab. Stokes turns down a run to fine leg off the final delivery, so it’s a maiden.

“Batting with a dodgy shoulder is no fun at all,” says Harvey Lock. “I bowled against a guy who had a suspect shoulder and I was kind enough to serve up a very medium-pace half-volley. His instinct got the better of him and his eyes lit up and he lofted me back over my head for six and immediately retired hurt having popped his shoulder out in the process.”

125th over: England 305-9 (Broad 12, Stokes 0) Broad drags Malik round the corner for four to bring up the 300, and then clatters the final delivery through the covers for two. No idea why they took a second, as it means Stokes will have to face Yasir Shah.

“There may be the only comment ever worth reading on the YouTubes below that Malcolm Marshall link,” says Adam Hirst. “‘Batting with one hand is like playing tennis isn’t it?’ Whoever said that the internet was rubbish…”

124th over: England 297-9 (Broad 4, Stokes 0) Broad will have a swing here, as he should. He sweeps Yasir straight onto the body of Azhar at short leg, with the ball landing safely. Broad pushes a single off the fifth ball, so Stokes has one delivery to survive. Which he does, with a comfortable-looking defensive stroke. England lead by 63.

123rd over: England 296-9 (Broad 3, Stokes 0) That was the last ball of the over, so Stokes won’t have to face for now.

“If Stokes does have an AC joint injury they shouldn’t let him bat,” says Niall Mullen. “It would really really knack or they’d have to inject it and risk making it much worse. Unless, of course, he Malcolm Marshalls it.” And then takes seven-for in the second innings like Marshall.

Anderson muscles a sweep for four off Shoaib Malik but is bowled two balls later, pushing defensively down the wrong line. Malik now has three for 24, and here comes Ben Stokes at No11.

122nd over: England 290-8 (Broad 2, Anderson 2) Jimmy Anderson is the new batsman, though Ben Stokes is padded up. Here’s Ali Martin’s update on Stokes’s condition.

“This song just came on and, well, it suggests Ben Stokes should probably get a new pair of shoes,” says David Green. “Which is not particularly relevant. But it might also go on to suggest that his problems may extend further around his body if he is not careful. So the universe says – don’t let Stokes bat.”

Samit Patel has gone to an unplayable delivery from Yasir Shah. It dipped onto leg stump and turned sharply to hit the off bail. That was gorgeous legspin bowling, and it probably needed something like that to get rid of Samit Patel. He played masterfully for his 42, but his departure leaves England in a bit of bother. They lead by 53.

121st over: England 285-7 (Patel 41, Broad 0) There are two balls of the 121st over remaining, with Malik bowling to the new batsman Broad. He ignores the first and defends the second. Next!


“We may need every run we can scratch out here, so I wonder if Stokes will come out to bat, especially if we get into a situation where Patel is the last man in,” says Steven Pye. “I can definitely see a scenario where Stokes is needed in the fourth innings. Probably with three wickets left, 27 runs to win, and me with no finger nails yet again. But if Paul Terry can bat with one arm, then I’m sure Stokes will if needed.” Yeah, I think he’ll bat in both innings, even if it means just blocking and wincing.

Stokes has had a gentle hit on the outfield during the lunch interval. Not sure he'll be able to swing much #pakveng

Enough is enough is enough But what is enough? You’d imagine England would like a lead of 100, human nature being what it is, though even that might not be sufficient. Test cricket is at its best when nobody has a clue who is winning, and that’s the case here.

Some lunchtime plugs

Benaud in Wisden, edited by some eejit, is published tomorrow and contains great writing from Tim de Lisle, Gideon Haigh, Jack Fingleton, Jonathan Agnew and others.

The fall of the wicket means that lunch will be taken straight away. England’s lead is 51 – useful, though not necessarily adequate. See you in half an hour for the afternoon session.

This is a brilliant catch at short leg. Rashid pushed defensively in front of his pads with stiff wrists at a nothing delivery from Malik, bowling around the wicket. It flew off the inside edge to the right of short leg, where Azhar Ali swooped to take an outstanding catch. That is so good.

120th over: England 285-6 (Patel 41, Rashid 8) England are 63 for two from 28 overs this morning. Most of those runs have come from the bat of Samit Rohit Patel, who has played extremely well. Nearly time for lunch or, in the case of those of us who were up at 4am, a zesty power shower in the Guardian basement.

119th over: England 284-6 (Patel 41, Rashid 7) Misbah turns to the part-time offspin of Shoaib Malik in an attempt to make something happen. He goes around the wicket, with a leg slip and short leg... and I’m boring myself. Two from a quiet over.

“Morning Rob, morning everyone,” hics Guy Hornsby. “So, I’m learning why no one ever goes drinking on a Monday. It must have been the euphoria of England’s fightback that caught me out yesterday, but now my head feels like it’s full of sawdust and old socks. Samit Patel is my only hope. Oh God, I’ve just jinxed the bloody shooting match haven’t I?” That’s the least of your worries. Hungover Self Loathing and Existential Anxiety is on the London Express and will be with you around midday.

118th over: England 282-6 (Patel 40, Rashid 6) Yasir Shah replaces Zulfiqar Babar, who gets a break after 105 minutes of finger-flicking. Rashid offers no stroke to a ball that pitches on middle and off and turns just past the off stump. Same again next ball. It’s immaculate judgement, probably. England lead by 48, and there are 12 minutes to lunch.

117th over: England 280-6 (Patel 38, Rashid 6) Rashid hasn’t got many runs – six from 40 balls after a maiden from Wahab – but he has looked comfortable at the crease. It’s just not easy to find runs, which shows how well Samit is playing.

England scripting a feelgood teen drama this innings where those bullied for being too short or too fat eventually become prom kings.

116th over: England 280-6 (Patel 38, Rashid 6)

I'm not a doctor but I would take an educated guess that a 'Collar bone joint injury' as described by Eng is this https://t.co/T9oM6pfTrb

115th over: England 279-6 (Patel 37, Rashid 6) A bit of width from Wahab allows Patel to time a couple more through extra cover. The lead is 45 now.

114th over: England 276-6 (Patel 34, Rashid 6) Zulfiqar is bowler a jaffa per over at the moment. This one curves seductively onto middle and leg and then growls past Rashid’s forward defensive. A maiden.

113th over: England 276-6 (Patel 34, Rashid 6) A harmless leg-side short ball from Wahab is helped on its way for four by Patel, which makes this the highest Test score of his five-match career. It has been a terrific counter-attack. It might turn out to be match-winning, or even career-changing: after South Africa, England play against all four Asian countries in 2016, so accomplished players of spin – and useful second or third spinners – will be in demand. He is beaten trying to hook the final delivery, a clever bouncer from Wahab that is both quicker and higher.

“Wahab is bowling way slower than he bowled in Abu Dhabi and Dubai,” says Krishnan Patel. “Has all the workload finally caught up to him or is he carrying some sort of injury? Or is it a strategic slowing down of pace? Whatever it is, he doesn’t look as menacing as before.”

112th over: England 271-6 (Patel 30, Rashid 6) If you’re just waking up, there’s good news and bad news. The bad news is you’re going to die some day; the good news is that England have recovered well after losing James Taylor and Jonny Bairstow in the first hour. Samit Patel is playing splendidly, and the lead is currently a handy 37. If they can sexdecuple that lead, they will be in a fine position. Doubling it would be a start: they almost lose Rashid, beaten by another undeniable jaffa from Zulfiqar. There was an appeal for caught behind but it beat the bat comfortably.

111th over: England 268-6 (Patel 28, Rashid 5) Misbah-ul-Haq takes off Yasir Shah and invites Wahab Riaz to raise hell with the ageing ball. That’s a good move given how well Patel in particular has been playing the spinners. Nothing of even vague interest happens in his first over. England have played with calm authority since losing the two overnight batsmen.

110th over: England 267-6 (Patel 27, Rashid 5) That is a wonderful shot from Patel, who skips down the track and drives Zulfiqar inside-out over extra cover for four. He has raced to 27 from 41 balls, which is almost a breakneck speed on this surface.

109th over: England 262-6 (Patel 22, Rashid 5) A full toss from Yasir is whipped impatiently for four by Rashid, his first boundary. England’s lead is now 28. <Banter>Declare!</Banter>

MI6 speaks

.@benstokes38 has collar bone joint injury. He will not bowl/field but may bat if circumstances dictate #PAKvENGpic.twitter.com/Ojio4bWepc

108th over: England 257-6 (Patel 21, Rashid 1) Too short from Zulfiqar, and Patel cuts him crisply for four more. He is playing beautifully, and his current strike rate of 55 is the fastest of any batsman in the match.

Samit showing why he was our best player of spin in ODi in India a few years back.

107th over: England 252-6 (Patel 16, Rashid 1) Yasir continues to Patel, who is looking for runs at every opportunity. There aren’t actually that many opportunities, but his intent is impressive and selfless. One from the over, and time for drinks.

Meanwhile, it seems Ben Stokes has shoulder-ligament-damage-like symptoms.

No Stokes news yet. Boycott on TMS: "Have they told us what Stokes's injury is? We've got more chance of getting information out of MI6."

106th over: England 251-6 (Patel 15, Rashid 1) “Come to think of it,” says John Starbuck, “a batting pair is more threatening if they’re both verbs – Barber and Boycott: the sinister command.” Who could forget that famous New Zealand pair, Cease and Desist?

105th over: England 251-6 (Patel 15, Rashid 1) Misbah kicks England while they’re down, introducing Yasir Shah for Rahat Ali. Rashid works him into the leg side to get off the mark, and then Patel is beaten by another absolute jaffa. It pitched outside leg and beat both the outside edge and the off stump. What are you supposed to do about that? Wait for the bad ball, I suppose: the next one is too full and Patel crashed a lovely drive to the extra-cover boundary. He has started really well.

@100ashesquotes Introducing: Special collapsible England - for portability and ease of storage.

104th over: England 245-6 (Patel 10, Rashid 0) Who’s winning? Pakistan, I’d say. Actually, we’re all winning, because this is a brilliant Test match. Adil Rashid is the new batsman.

Wonderful bowling from Zulfiqar Babar! He beat Bairstow with a vicious delivery that roared off the pitch and then, two balls later, slipped in an arm ball that skidded through to hit the stumps. Bairstow was totally duped by that. It was classical left-arm spin bowling, and the end of a determined innings of 43 from 117 balls.

103rd over: England 243-5 (Bairstow 43, Patel 10) A big inside edge saves Patel from being plumb LBW to Rahat, who has moved around the wicket. The next ball is short, wide and flashed sweetly through point for four by Patel. He looks in the mood to counter-attack.

102nd over: England 237-5 (Bairstow 42, Patel 6) On Sky, Bumble says there is a “whisper” that Ben Stokes will bat.YEAH NEIL WATERFIELD TALK NAH. In other news, Bairstow comes down the track to Zulfiqar, is beaten in the flight and has to abort his attacking stroke. This is a fascinating struggle, with every run a precious thing.

101st over: England 236-5 (Bairstow 41, Patel 6) Patel gets off the mark by pulling Rahat confidently for four, and then he drives through extra cover to put England in the lead. In real terms that was another boundary; on this outfield it was worth two.

100th over: England 229-5 (Bairstow 40, Patel 0) Zulfiqargets some sharp turn to Patel, ripping a jaffa past the outside edge. That beat the bat by a long way, and he does it again later in the over. As Mike Atherton says, this is the key to batting here – survive the first 20 balls and go from there. An excellent maiden from Zulfiqar. England have scored seven runs from eight overs this morning.

“Excellent match situation for England – Taylor-made (sorry) for Stokes and Buttler to take the game away from Pakistan,” says Dave Adams. “What?!? Oh...”

99th over: England 229-5 (Bairstow 40, Patel 0) With Taylor gone, the hopes, fears and naked terror of a nation are transferred to Jonny Bairstow. This has been one of his better Test innings, because he has been so far out of his comfort zone. You would think he would be in his comfort zone against Rahat, but he is beaten trying to flick-pull a short one that comes back through the gate. Rahat is bowling really well; the next ball takes the inside edge before thudding into the pad. Rahat’s figures are the sort Curtly Ambrose used to rustle up: 20-12-35-2.

@100ashesquotes Well this is it, isn't it? Taylor gone: Lo all our pomp of yesterday, is one with Nineveh and Tyre.

98th over: England 229-5 (Bairstow 40, Patel 0) Patel is a beautiful player of spin, though he never really got going in his first four Tests. His highest score is 33. This is a chance to play an innings of substance.

“Morning, Rob,” says John Starbuck. “Taylor and Bairstow – sounds like the old firm doesn’t it? It may not always work, but there’s something reassuring about a mellifluous batting pair, much more so than a bowling duo.” So what’s the most mellifluous batting pair of all? Have Messrs Cellar and Door ever batted together?

97th over: England 228-5 (Bairstow 39, Patel 0) The new batsman is Samit Patel, to the disgust of Neil Waterfield. “I am somewhat disappointed that we haven’t seen Ben Stokes padded up and ready for action given his hard-man reputation,” writes Neil. “A few years ago I wandered down to watch the midweek cricket team which I normally played for, but couldn’t having dislocated my shoulder the week before (a combination accident involving football and dancing on/falling off a bar in Strasbourg).

“As normal we were struggling for numbers and had only managed to pull together a team of nine players, so I duly took my place at first slip. Needless to say, before too long the ball sailed straight to me where I took a straightforward catch. I was so happy that, forgetting my injury, I hurled the ball skywards after completing the catch, virtually dislocating my shoulder again, eliciting howls of agony from myself and merriment from my team mates.”

There will be no maiden Test century for James Taylor – he has fallen to Rahat Ali. Rahat has bowled well this morning, trying to tempt Taylor outside off stump. He ignored a number of deliveries but was eventually drawn into a push away from his body, and Sarfraz took another fine catch to his right. That dismissal is a reminder that, for all Taylor’s brilliance against spin, South Africa away will be a major challenge. For now, however, we should celebrate a thoroughly admirable innings of 76. And when you’ve done that, get behind the sofa, because this is about to get hairy.

96th over: England 228-4 (Taylor 76, Bairstow 39) A messy sweep from Bairstow prompts a polite LBW appeal from Zulfiqar, though in fact it came off his glove before nutmegging the keeper Sarfraz. Then there’s a bigger appeal for LBW when Taylor plays outside the line of an arm ball; it also hit him outside the line.

95th over: England 226-4 (Taylor 75, Bairstow 38) Taylor mistimes a pull off Rahat and is hit on the thigh, prompting a strangled LBW shout. Taylor then picks a couple of leg-byes. His ability to collect and steal ones and twos is so impressive – he has hit only six fours in his 75, and against Australia in September he scored 101 from 114 balls despite hitting only five fours.

94th over: England 224-4 (Taylor 75, Bairstow 38) It’ll be Zulfiqar Babar from the other end. Anyone reading? If so, what are you doing you fool? Back to bed with you! Bairstow steals the first run of the day, and then Taylor sweeps another. This has been such an impressive innings, both technically and mentally.

93rd over: England 222-4 (Taylor 74, Bairstow 37) The left-arm seamer Rahat Ali opens the bowling to James Taylor, who is beaten as he stretches for a wide yorker. A maiden.

There are conflicting opinions over what this pitch is going to do – according to Bumble on Sky, many local journalists think it will flatten out to such an extent that the match will be a draw. When it comes to pitches, William Goldman was right: nobody knows anything.

Ben Stokes is at the ground, though there has been no confirmation whether he will bat or not. You would think it’s unlikely, though not impossible: if anyone in the England side is going to do a Graeme Smith and come out to bat in the face of all medical advice, it’s Stokes.

Morning. It’s the stock question of the non-sport fan: who’s winning? In most sports the answer is clear, usually in a dinky scorebox to the top left of the screen, but cricket is a bit more complicated than that. Due to a combination of the scoring system, changing pitch conditions and the your-turn-my-turn structure of the game, we often have no idea who is in control. Even Mark Corrigan doesn’t think he knows who’s winning.

It’s one of cricket’s greatest charms that you can watch a match for three days and still not be certain who is in the ascendancy. Like a great film or book, it makes you do some of the work yourself. You have to use your judgement; to gather all your experience of watching England batting collapses cricket and assessing pitches in order to make a decisive call as to who is on top. And if that doesn’t work, you can just listen to what Nasser says on Sky and pass his opinion off as your own in the pub.

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Pakistan v England: third Test, day four – as it happened

November 4, 2015, 5:25 am
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England are chasing 284 to win the final Test but with the ball spinning they have a mountain to climb on the final day

So England have a mountain to climb tomorrow. But they are armed with crampons, warm mittens and plenty of kendal mint cake. Be sure to join us again for the final day and stick around on theguardian.com/sport for all the reports and reaction from Sharjah today. But from me, cheerio!

Related: Mohammad Hafeez piles on runs to leave England tall task against Pakistan

Related: How WG Grace, my imaginary friend and mentor, helped me score my greatest run

England 46-2. So Cook and co will need a further 238 runs tomorrow if they are to win this match and share the series. It’s a long shot – Pakistan’s spinners have strangled the chase so far.

22nd over: England 46-2 (Root 6, Cook 17)

Cook is troubled by a couple from Yasir, but he manages to flick away the penultimate ball of the day, leaving Joe Root to face the last … which is overpitched by Yasir and blocked away by England’s No4.

21st over: England 44-2 (Root 5, Cook 16)

Two overs left then: one from Zulfiqar, one from Yasir. We have a half-hearted appeal for a catch at leg slip here as the ball flicks away off Cook’s pad but that’s the only drama.

20th over: England 43-2 (Root 4, Cook 16)

Time for Yasir Shah? Time for Yasir Shah! But it’s a bit hit-and-miss from the leg-spinner. A single apiece for Cook and Root.

19th over: England 41-2 (Root 3, Cook 15)

The entire Pakistan team go up in furious appeal as Root is whacked on the pad by Zulfiqar (who is down on one knee, waving his arms in the air like an ageing rock god belting out one final encore). The umpire says no and the fielding team use the one remaining appeal. The replay suggests it is definitely hitting leg stump … but how much? Clipping, and a meaty clip again. That’s a fairly poor decision from the umpire really but Root survives.

Bell's 9th Test dismissal for 0 or 1 this year. Only WI rabbit Merv Dillon has more (10, in 2002). Bell =2nd with Courtney Walsh (1997&2000)

18th over: England 40-2 (Root 3, Cook 14)

Root, looking livelier than any of his colleagues thus far, clips Malik to midwicket for one. And Cook punches into the off for similar.

17th over: England 38-2 (Root 2, Cook 13)

Root survives against Zulfiqar. Five overs are left in the day.

16th over: England 37-2 (Root 1, Cook 13)

Malik continues, and no wonder with figures of 5-3-4-2. Cook escapes to the non-striker’s end with a single. And then we get some fun and games as Root blocks, Malik picks up, looks to throw down the stumps, gets his throw so horribly wrong that the man at slip has to dive to save four overthrows. He manages it but is left hopping around the pitch in pain. Root does get off the mark in more orthodox fashion with a push to point.

15th over: England 35-2 (Root 0, Cook 12)

England’s batsmen have been almost completely unable to find the gaps against the spinners – not least because both Zulfiqar and Malik have bowled beautifully. Not a drag-down or a full bunger in sight. Cook does manage to squirt a single into the leg side here.

14th over: England 34-2 (Root 0, Cook 11)

This, it’s safe to say, is not going England’s way.

Misbah opts to continue with Malik rather than turn straight to Yasir Shah. Bell blocks resolutely for five balls … and is then beaten all ends up by an arm ball.

13th over: England 34-1 (Bell 0, Cook 11)

You already sense that this is looking bleak for England – Cook misses a sweep and is thunked on the pad by Zulfiqar. Pakistan don’t get the decision from the umpire on this occasion and they opt to review. I’m not sure it’s doing anything more than clipping off stump … and indeed that is the case. It’s a meaty clip but not enough to overturn the decision. Rosie Gaines might have something to say about that.

12th over: England 34-1 (Bell 0, Cook 11)

And that’s over.

With two left-handers at the crease, Malik continues into his fourth over. And he’s trapped Moeen Ali here, who misses a clip to leg on the back foot. The ball pitches on middle and straightens a touch, enough for the umpire to raise the finger. Moeen reviews … and it’s hitting leg stump. So it begins …

11th over: England 34-0 (Moeen 22, Cook 11)

Zulfiqar continues to test Cook’s defences.

10th over: England 32-0 (Moeen 21, Cook 10)

Malik gets one to straighten at Cook from round the wicket but not enough. The England captain is hit on the pad, there’s a big appeal and serious thoughts of a review once the umpire shakes his head. They opt against and Hawkeye shows the ball has not straightened enough. This has very quickly descended into a game of survival for England.

9th over: England 29-0 (Moeen 20, Cook 8)

Pakistan have cut off the singles here, reducing both batsmen to the Block and the Big Shot (which sounds rather pleasingly like a hard-boiled bit of film noir: Chad Block, the cop who gets results but doesn’t play by the rules; Scotty “Big Shot” McGrew, runs the whole east side with an iron fist). Another maiden from Zulfiqar.

8th over: England 29-0 (Moeen 20, Cook 8)

Malik once more. Cook pokes away a maiden.

7th over: England 29-0 (Moeen 20, Cook 8)

Huge appeal, from Zulfiqar at least, as Moeen is whacked on the pad by one that pitches on leg stump and then straightens into the batsman. Not a bad shout but Pakistan opt not to review: impact with both the pad and the stumps would’ve been umpire’s call.

6th over: England 25-0 (Moeen 18, Cook 6)

Shoaib Malik, rather than Yasir Shah, from the other end. Moeen keeps his powder bone dry for five balls … then skips down the track and attempts to launch him into the stands at long on. The ball loops off the leading edge and into the air towards point … and lands safely.

5th over: England 24-0 (Moeen 17, Cook 6)

Time for spin. Left-arm spin to be precise. Zulfiqar Babar enters the fray. And England-esque full toss allows Moeen an easy single, but Cook is beaten all ends up with the next – I’m not sure he picked the flight or the turn there. The last keeps a touch low outside off and Cook misses with a swipe. Nervy stuff for the England captain.

4th over: England 23-0 (Moeen 16, Cook 6)

Cook punches Wahab neatly, economically, down the ground for a single. And the bowler again bounces Moeen, with the batsman this time hooking confidently for another single.

If England play conventionally they'll lose this, so asking Moeen to pinch-hit, or pinch-stroke in his case, makes sense.

3rd over: England 21-0 (Moeen 15, Cook 5)

Moeen has responded well to that blow – Rahat tries to test him with another short one but the batsman pulls confidently for four. He blots his copybook from the next ball – swiping and missing at one outside off. Another thick edge – an inside edge this time – cannons away of Cook’s pads and off for a single.

Moeen to give it the full "Sehwag in Chennai" as the light fades please @John_Ashdown

2nd over: England 15-0 (Moeen 10, Cook 4)

Moeen is up on his feet and giving the back of his head a good old fashioned rub. He gets a new helmet with some added protection at the back. On resumption, Wahab offers another short one and Moeen is quick to pull to midwicket for a single. Cook thick-edges for four from the last.

Moeen Ali batting on, to applause from crowd. Genuine concern from Pakistan players

1.4 overs: England 9-0 (Moeen 8, Cook 0)

Wahab Riaz, fresh from his little cameo with the bat, charges in from the other end. Moeen, who has begun in typically positive fashion, punches through the covers for two more. A couple of balls later he ducks right into a bouncer, which crashes into the back of his neck, right under the lip of the helmet. That was a painful – and worrying – blow. Quite rightly, he takes a breather and the England physio takes his time in assessing him.

1st over: England 7-0 (Moeen 6, Cook 0)

Moeen takes strike to the first ball of the innings as Rahat Ali charges in. He gets off the mark with a clip to square leg. Rahat drops short and wide with his fourth ball of the over and Moeen drives – uppishly – through backward point for four. Seven from the over.

The players are back out. England have 22 overs to negotiate this evening.

England have never chased this many runs successfully in the fourth innings in Asia (the highest was 209 in Dhaka in 2010). But …

Teams chasing 270-299 in 4th inns in completed Tests since 2003: won 8 lost 9.

Pakistan 355 all out. So England will have to chase down 284 in order to win the match and level the series.

Wahab sweeps and takes on Ian Bell’s throw when coming back for a second run. He’s run out by a good yard. Neat fielding from Bell, pretty dismal running.

118th over: Pakistan 354-9 (Zulfiqar 0, Wahab 20)

Zulfiqar just about sees off the remainder of Broad’s over. The lead is 282 – too much for England, in all likelihood.

Cripes, what a balls this is! Broad gets one to jag bag prodigiously from outside off and Shafiq is castled.

117th over: Pakistan 353-8 (Shafiq 46, Wahab 19)

Huge turn for Moeen, who yelps an appeal as Wahab is whacked on the pad. It’s outside the line once more. The problem from over the wicket is that if it hits the batsman in line, it’s probably turning past leg stump. Wahab settles himself with a big, clubbing drive for four down the ground.

116th over: Pakistan 348-8 (Shafiq 46, Wahab 14)

Stuart Broad – with match figures of 34-13-56-4 – returns for what England hope will be one final blast. He bowls well wide of off stump, looking to tempt Shafiq into the drive, but the batsman leaves alone. A maiden.

115th over: Pakistan 348-8 (Shafiq 46, Wahab 14)

Moeen Ali returns once more. Three singles from the over.

114th over: Pakistan 345-8 (Shafiq 44, Wahab 13)

Wahab is enjoying himself – he cuts for a couple then sweeps for one more. Shafiq picks a Rashid googly then cuts for a single. To be fair to the spinners (who haven’t bowled well) Shafiq has been incredibly quick to latch onto anything even remotely short – he’s made average balls look like bad balls. from the last ball of the over Wahab fails to pick the googly and is hit on the pad; England go up in appeal. The umpire says no and England opt to review but more in hope than expectation – the ball is hitting outside the line.

113th over: Pakistan 341-8 (Shafiq 43, Wahab 10)

Shafiq takes a single off the first ball of the over so Patel has the potential for five balls at Wahab Riaz. He fends off the first three, then gently pokes wide of mid on for a single. From the last Shafiq dances down the track and launches over the top for six! The lead stretches out to 269.

112th over: Pakistan 333-8 (Shafiq 36, Wahab 9)

Rashid offers up a full toss and Wahab crunches through the covers for four. You begin to wonder when next we’ll see Adil Rashid in an England Test side after this.

111th over: Pakistan 327-8 (Shafiq 35, Wahab 5)

Samit Patel continues. Shafiq blocks out the first four balls then looks to find a spot for a single. Instead Patel drags one too short and Shafiq is able to rock back and pull to cow corner for four.

Hafeez showed that playing good balls and waiting for bad is a good way to bat.Problem is Eng will get fewer bad balls and more good ones.

110th over: Pakistan 323-8 (Shafiq 31, Wahab 4)

Rashid has to finish the over he started before tea. Wahab pokes into the off side for two, then sweeps for two more. There’s a strangled appeal from the last as Wahab fails to pick the googly but it’s going down by a good couple of inches.

So that wicket brings the tea break. Pakistan are 319-8. They lead is 247. Pakistan are favourites but England aren’t quite out of it yet.

Rashid returns for one final over before tea and he grabs his first wicket. It’s an awful shot from Yasir Shah – what I like to think of as a bit of an Ashdown special: the misjudged cut hit softly straight to point.

109th over: Pakistan 318-7 (Shafiq 30, Shah 4)

Patel rips another jaffa past the outside edge of Shah’s bat and just past the off stump. A single takes the lead up to 246.

108th over: Pakistan 317-7 (Shafiq 29, Shah 4)

Anderson, that drop still fresh in his mind, roars in fuelled by fury. But Shah survives, the only scare coming off the last when a forward defensive push skims off the face of the bat but bounces over the stumps. A maiden.

107th over: Pakistan 317-7 (Shafiq 29, Shah 4)

Oh my word – James Anderson has dropped a dolly. Shafiq skips down the track and looks to blast Patel over the top but the spin forces him to skew the ball pretty much straight to mid on. Anderson gets himself in a right tangle, though, and the ball goes down. “You’ve just dropped the UBL Bank Presents Haier Mobile Cup 2015,” chirps nobody ever.

106th over: Pakistan 317-7 (Shafiq 29, Shah 4)

Anderson strays onto Shafiq’s pads and the batsmen sweetly taps the ball into the leg side for a single. That gives the bowler three balls at Yasir Shah … he’s made to play at all three, but is pretty solid in defence.

@john_ashdown England are doing this deliberately, just to play on our hope-strings

105th over: Pakistan 316-7 (Shafiq 28, Shah 4)

It’s a bit of an understatement to say England needed that before tea. What they don’t need is the full toss that Patel offers Yasir Shah first up. The new batsman punches down the ground for the third boundary of the over.

Samit Patel returns for what I believe is just his fourth over of the day. Sarfraz immediately sweeps for four to bring up the 50 partnership. And he repeats the trick a couple of balls later. Eight runs off the first three balls of the over, and Sarfraz moves on to 36 from 34 deliveries. But two balls later he’s gone! A ripper from Patel turns past a tentative prod forward and clatters into middle and leg.

104th over: Pakistan 304-6 (Shafiq 28, Sarfraz 28)

@John_Ashdown So what's the OBO Collective's verdict on Rashid now that his six innings of bowling are nearly over? Snog, marry, avoid?

103rd over: Pakistan 304-6 (Shafiq 28, Sarfraz 28)

Two twos for Sarfraz off Moeen’s latest over.

102nd over: Pakistan 300-6 (Shafiq 28, Sarfraz 24)

This has been a pretty miserable spell from Rashid unfortunately. Another half-tracker disappears to the midwicket boundary, Sarfraz the delighted beneficiary this time. And the 300 comes up.

Gah ... more long hops than a triple jump final

101st over: Pakistan 293-6 (Shafiq 28, Sarfraz 17)

The only run of the over is an entertaining one. Moeen goes round the wicket to to Sarfraz, who clips the ball to Anderson at mid on and screams his partner through for a run. I’m pretty sure I counted eight “yeah”s. “Yeahyeahyeahyeahyeahyeahyeahyeah.” He’s almost still calling Shafiq through for a run when he arrives at the non-striker’s end. It’s a sharp single but a good one – Anderson throws down the stumps but Sarfraz is comfortably home.

100th over: Pakistan 292-6 (Shafiq 28, Sarfraz 16)

Rashid goes round the wicket to the right-handers, looking for something – anything – to discomfit the batsmen. Shafiq simply rocks back and carves a drive through the covers for four. This pair have added 25 runs in last six overs.

99th over: Pakistan 288-6 (Shafiq 24, Sarfraz 16)

CLONK! Shafiq skips down the track at Moeen and clubs him past mid on – at catchable height – for four. Anderson was too wide to have any chance. Thereafter the batsmen go all Dick van Dyke and sweep with happy abandon.

98th over: Pakistan 279-6 (Shafiq 18, Sarfraz 13)

This has all been a little too easy for Pakistan since the drinks break – they’ve had four utterly fuss-free overs. Again Rashid sends down a full bunger, though Sarfraz can’t find the boundary, and Shafiq reads the googly and picks up another single from the last.

97th over: Pakistan 276-6 (Shafiq 16, Sarfraz 12)

England have a short leg in now as Moeen twirls in once more, but this time the off-spinner can’t quite find his length. He’s a little too full and the batsmen are each able to nudge singles into the leg side.

96th over: Pakistan 273-6 (Shafiq 14, Sarfraz 11)

Rashid continues. Shafiq, who hasn’t settled in this innings, props forward a few times then latches on to a short one and thunks a pull to midwicket for a single. There’s been an off insistence from several of the usually spot-on voices in the Sky commentary box that Asad Shafiq is a “good young player” or is “going to be a really good player” is very odd. He’s certainly a cracking player but he’s 30 in January and already has eight Test centuries. This isn’t really a breakthrough series for him. Anyway Sarfraz, the more aggressive of the pair, cuts hard for four runs that take the Pakistan lead past 200.

95th over: Pakistan 267-6 (Shafiq 13, Sarfraz 6)

Cheers Tom. Hello all. Well this is on a bit of a knife-edge. One more wicket puts England in amongst the tail; the lead is 195. If the tourists can keep the chase below 250 they’re in the game I reckon. This pair are well capable of taking the match, and the series, away from them though. Moeen, continuing after the drinks break, is milked for a couple of singles.

And that’s drinks: John Ashdown will take you through to the close from here. Thanks for reading, writing and tweeting.

94th over: Pakistan 265-6 (Shafiq 12, Sarfraz 5)

Rashid begins the over with one of his occasional rank full tosses, which is punched down the ground on the onside for one by Sarfraz. A similar one is miscued out along the ground by Shafiq to deep midwicket for another single. In the way we once - though it’s scarcely credible now – used to talk about “good Jimmy” and “bad Jimmy” with regards to Anderson, there appears a similar “good Adil/bad Adil” game of contrasts going on with Rashid. Four singles from the over.

93rd over: Pakistan 261-6 (Shafiq 10, Sarfraz 3)

Sarfraz shuffles across his stumps to turn an in-drifter from Moeen – through the leg slip Taylor’s hands! – for one. Chance? Moeen finds a decent line here to go with some now-considerable turn, and they may rue the absence of a close short leg as an inside-edge from Shafiq loops into the air off his pad but thuds to the ground before Taylor can scurry to reach it.

92nd over: Pakistan 260-6 (Shafiq 10, Sarfraz 2)

Rashid, who’s deserved a wicket more than the other England spinners but not taken one, returns to the attack. Shafiq looks to be struggling a little with his shoulder, and decides to be watchful against the leg-spinner. A crack to point for no run induces some serious wincing from Shafiq. Painful, by the looks.

91st over: Pakistan 260-6 (Shafiq 10, Sarfraz 2)

Unlikely wicket-taker Moeen continues, and concedes a single to Shafiq’s legside pull when dropping a touch too short. Then, a review! Bairstow appeals for a stumping after Sarfraz sweeps and misses, but he’s got his foot back in in time. Not out.

90th over: Pakistan 259-6 (Shafiq 9, Sarfraz 2)

Cook might well have taken Broad out of the attack at this point, but with two new men now at the crease, he unsurprisingly opts not to. Broad goes short at Sarfraz, with two men in close on the legside and a sudden air of sprightlyness in the field in general, before bringing one in on him that the batsman inside-edges to safety. He looks rather more confident next ball, getting off the mark with a fluent back-foot drive through the covers that brings him two. Broad responds by going round the wicket at Sarfraz, who drives expansively but is cut off by mid-off.

89th over: Pakistan 257-6 (Shafiq 9, Sarfraz 0)

Anderson’s short sharp spell with the new nut is brought to a close and Moeen Ali returns in his stead. Pakistan, you sense, relax and Hafeez languidly pushes an on-drive down the ground for one. Shafiq, unfazed by his recently acquired shoulder-gah, effortlessly takes another flicked single through the on-side, before – zing! – Hafeez is out! He miscues Moeen high to the long-on boundary where Ian Bell takes the catch comfortably. A really high-calibre innings is brought to a close. Is there a way back for England here?

Well wouldn’t you know? Hafeez tosses his wicket away by holing out to Ian Bell at long-on

88th over: Pakistan 255-5 (Hafeez 150, Shafiq 8)

Broad follows Anderson in going short while the new-ball going is relatively good, this time at Shafiq, who, when presented with a fuller delivery outside off-stump, cracks a glorious cover drive to the ropes for four. Shot of the day, possibly. A similar effort, not struck quite as firmly, brings him two more. Then he’s struck on the shoulder by a short ball that loops up into the hands of Bell at short-leg, prompting some half-hearted and obviously in-vain appeals, and the appearance of the Pakistan trainer to administer some shoulder rubbing and examination. He’s Ok though.

87th over: Pakistan 249-5 (Hafeez 150, Shafiq 2)

Anderson finds some lift again, forcing Hafeez to duck beneath a straight one, but the opening batsman has played brilliantly and responds with a classy back-foot push through the offside for two to bring up his 150.

86th over: Pakistan 247-5 (Hafeez 148, Shafiq 2)

Broad begins his over by trapping Misbah plum in front, then greets the new man Shafiq with two of the short balls the Pakistan captain was doubtless expecting. Shafiq is a stylish player though, and he’s off the mark with a characteristically elegant straight drive for two. Pakistan lead by 175 – they’re still on top but England’s morale will be up now at least.

Broad has extra men on the legside to sucker Misbah into anticipating a short ball and then pins him in front with a full-ish straight delivery. Good cricket.

85th over: Pakistan 245-4 (Hafeez 148, Misbah 38)

This pair look comfortable enough against the new ball so far as Hafeez turns Anderson away on the legside again for one, and Misbah takes a single in the same area. Anderson finds some bounce from nowhere to end the over but Hafeez manages to duck beneath it.

84th over: Pakistan 243-4 (Hafeez 147, Misbah 37)

Broad arrows a short ball into Hafeez’s chest but he does well to fend it down to backward of square leg for a single before Misbah adds four more with the finest of flicks behind the wicketkeeper. Another luckless over – England’s seamers must feel like this guy:

83rd over: Pakistan 238-4 (Hafeez 146, Misbah 33)

Anderson returns at the other end, as expected, and concedes a single when Misbah nudges him round the corner on the legside. Another single follows. It’s a decent enough over but there’s not massive amounts of of new-ball zip and vigour out there.

82nd over: Pakistan 236-4 (Hafeez 145, Misbah 32)

England take the new ball, which is handed to Stuart Broad. He strays down the legside with his third ball, which Bairstow stretches and parries behind him to concede a couple of byes. Misbah then tucks Broad away off his pads for a single before Bairstow moves swiftly to take another one speared too wide down the legside. It’s not going for Broad in this over though, as a venomous short ball deflects off Hafeez’s helmet and loops over Bairstow’s head and down to the boundary for four more.

They’re back out. To what extent will Pakistan turn the screw now?

“It’s a shame Pakistan don’t need to force a result here,” rues Jon Taylor. “Since nothing much is happening in the real game, howsabout a hypothetical: if you had to win this from Pakistan’s position, what target would you set?” I’d smack it about for half an hour now, then declare, to be honest.

Lunchtime/breakfast email: Not much inbox action so far, but perhaps you’re all Movers and Shakers and doing every single one of the 14 things that people who are Better Than Everyone Else do, early doors. Anyway, here’s Zaph Mann on the match situation: Pakistan, he reckons, “have been fortunate so far (with a biased Umpire?), luck can change. All out for 294. That’s probably too much though.” Hmm, that makes even Botham’s pre-play optimism sound a little on the gloomy side.

This level of magical realism is more up our street:

Sooooo … Pakistan’s session, then, as a result of which it’s probably Pakistan’s match. England began well and had a good 15-20 minutes at the start – a couple of terrific Rashid overs plus the usual manful determination from Anderson and Broad, but Hafeez and Misbah so obviously have the measure of the spinners and have batted excellently since. England missed what opportunities they had – a stumping, a caught and bowled – but even the opportunities have dried up in the last hour. And having failed to do 14 impressive things before breakfast, I’m off to grab some. See you in half an hour.

81st over: Pakistan 229-4 (Hafeez 145, Misbah 31)

But the new ball is not yet taken – Moeen continues. Misbah isn’t going to do anything daft just before lunch, or at most other times to be honest, and he calmly plays out three balls before nudging a single behind square on the legside. That’s the over, and lunch.

80th over: Pakistan 228-4 (Hafeez 145, Misbah 30)

Rashid continues from round the wicket – and finds a probing line and length for five balls and forces Misbah to be watchful, but the Pakistan captain nudges a single off the last ball of the over. But that’s a decent over, helped by a more attacking field. The new ball is now available.

79th over: Pakistan 227-4 (Hafeez 145, Misbah 29)

A leg slip is brought in for Moeen against Misbah, not before time, but the Pakistan captain shows deft soft hands to flick through midwicket for a single, smothering spin and bounce. The only run of the over. England haven’t bowled a maiden for an hour.

78th over: Pakistan 226-4 (Hafeez 145, Misbah 28)

A change of angle from Rashid, who comes round the wicket and targets the rough outside the batsman’s leg stump. As a result his googly causes some mild discomfort for Misbah who fends away on the legside awkwardly, before a smart leg-break then beats him outside off. It’s better from Rashid, this, though Misbah takes a simple one down to deep square leg to keep the quaint old scoreboard ticking and creaking along.

77th over: Pakistan 225-4 (Hafeez 145, Misbah 27)

Will we get an over with the new ball before lunch? Will it make a difference at all? Moeen finds a bit of drift and pace to Hafeez, whose flick on the legside is well stopped by Taylor at short leg, denying the single. The opener gets one next ball though with a pull to square leg, as does Misbah with a controlled sweep.

76th over: Pakistan 223-4 (Hafeez 144, Misbah 26)

Rashid overpitches and Misbah takes a flicked single on the legside, and Hafeez takes a swept one in the same region, but there’s then some serious turn which makes Misbah sweep across the line and miss completely. It’s good at times from Rashid, but it’s not right.

75th over: Pakistan 221-4 (Hafeez 143, Misbah 25)

These Davos movers and shakers (see preamble) may be able to do 14 fiendishly tricky things before breakfast but could they dismiss these two in these conditions? England’s bowlers can’t. Hafeeez clouts Moeen with panache to the deep midwicket boundary for four and two easy singles follow. Too easy.

74th over: Pakistan 215-4 (Hafeez 138, Misbah 24)

Rashid has looked the spinner most likely to make things happen this morning, though Misbah can work him away for one on the legside easily enough. Hafeez then squirts the ball behind square on the offside for three, giving Broad a testing chase he could probably do without. The lead is now 143.

73rd over: Pakistan 211-4 (Hafeez 135, Misbah 23)

Moeen Ali gets to turn his arm over for the first time today, replacing Patel. Misbah sweeps for a single, before Hafeez slightly mistimes an on-drive but still scuffs one run from it. Swift strike rotation ensures five runs from the over. By the way, it’s pleasing to hear that Bairstow’s enthusiastic chirping from behind the stumps involves plenty of “pal” and “mate” rather than the horribly over-prevalent “buddy”.

72nd over: Pakistan 206-4 (Hafeez 134, Misbah 19)

Rashid overpitches but Hafeez almost bunts it straight at him but it drops short, though he times his next shot rather better, swiping it to deep square leg for one, though it turned out of the rough pleasingly. And then Aggressive Misbah comes out to play, thumping a glorious straight drive into the stands for SIX to take Pakistan beyond 200 and this stand beyond 50. Rashid pulls out a decent comeback delivery though, a leg-break that beats Misbah all ends up.

71st over: Pakistan 198-4 (Hafeez 133, Misbah 12)

Hafeez advances and pushes Patel to long-off for one, but Patel then flummoxes Misbah who lunges forward at a ball that turns swiftly past his outside edge. I wonder what sort of score Pakistan fancy declaring on? 350-4? 400?

70th over: Pakistan 197-4 (Hafeez 132, Misbah 12)

Rashid replaces Broad and Misbah greets him by mowing his first ball to long-on for one. The strike is rotated smartly for three more singles, and it’s all beginning to look rather comfortable for Pakistan.

69th over: Pakistan 193-4 (Hafeez 130, Misbah 10)

Hafeez takes Patel on by taking one stride forward and essaying a controlled high chip over mid-on for four – any stats gurus got any nuggets on the highest percentage of a team’s boundaries scored by one batsman in an innings? He adds a single, and this already has the feel of a holding spell from Patel, rather than one that will conjure a wicket.

68th over: Pakistan 187-4 (Hafeez 124, Misbah 10)

Misbah pulls at a shortish one from Broad and clumps James Taylor at short leg on the helmet. Ouch, but it saves the one. A clipped single to mid-on follows, and Hafeez adds another with a nudge through the legside. Pakistan’s lead is now 115 and this partnership, already an hour old, is beginning to look bedded in.

67th over: Pakistan 185-4 (Hafeez 123, Misbah 9)

Samit Patel gets his first bowl of the morning, replacing Anderson, and Misbah dab-sweeps his first ball to fine leg for a simple two. A short one is then milked for a single before Hafeez gets four from a short ball with a rather inelegant hack over Anderson at first slip. Not much turn or menace in that over, to be honest. There’s also much bafflement in the commentary box over why Chris Jordan isn’t deployed as England’s sub fielder, as the camera pans over him toddling off for, or back from, practice.

66th over: Pakistan 178-4 (Hafeez 119, Misbah 6)

Second slip has moved a little closer to first slip now for Broad, who finds a thick edge from Hafeez but there’s not enough pace or bounce for it to carry to first slip. Then – a loud appeal for lbw, but it’s straying well down the legside and a review is rightly not taken. And that’s drinks. Pakistan are probably the happier after the first hour, given their decidedly tentative start.

65th over: Pakistan 178-4 (Hafeez 119, Misbah 6)

Misbah takes a hurried dabbed single from Anderson which puts Hafeez in a spot of peril, and he has to dive to make his ground, though the throw misses the stumps anyway. Hafeez flicks another single away through the offside. Anderson then tests Misbah with a bouncer, would you believe, but there’s not enough pace on the pitch to make ducking under it too difficult. Hafeez is now joint-second on the list of most hundreds by Pakistan opening batsmen, fact fans, (on nine) with only Saeed Anwar in front of him now.

64th over: Pakistan 176-4 (Hafeez 118, Misbah 5)

England have decisions to make about how to use the seamers with the new ball looming. Anderson, in particular, and Broad are getting some useful reverse with the old one but they’ll need a decent break before the 80th over. Will this give Misbah licence to go after the spinners again? Misbah scores an actual run off an actual fast bowler by nudging Broad down to fine leg for one.

63rd over: Pakistan 175-4 (Hafeez 118, Misbah 4)

So we’ve had a missed stumping, a tricky caught-and-bowled drop, a four that could have been held by a second slip and a short one that dollied up for a missing short leg. Will England rue these? I suspect so. Anderson continues to find plenty of reverse-swing but is beginning to look a little tired. Hafeez takes Pakistan’s lead into three figures with a deflected cut past gully for four. Have Pakistan weathered the early storm?

62nd over: Pakistan 171-4 (Hafeez 114, Misbah 4)

A bowling change, Broad replacing the mostly impressive Rashid. His first ball is wide and hacked at by Hafeez and deflects through the slips for four. Indifferent cricket all round there and Botham harrumphs mightily in the commentary box at the too-wide placing of second slip. Broad almost takes a caught and bowled, diving forward at Hafeez’s inside-edge, but though he gets his left hand to it, he can’t hold on. Technically a drop. They take a single.

61st over: Pakistan 166-4 (Hafeez 109, Misbah 4)

Anderson hurries up Hafeez with some more well disguised reverse swing that thuds into his pads, possibly via an inside edge – Anderson offers an instinctive appeal but no one else joins in. A hurried single ensues before Misbah, you guessed it, blocks the final ball of the over. I’d love to see a wagon-wheel of Misbah-off-Anderson for this series. It would be somewhat spokeless.

60th over: Pakistan 165-4 (Hafeez 108, Misbah 4)

Rashid’s mixing his pace up agreeably this morning, and as a result Hafeez fails to get hold of an attempted swipe through midwicket, before sweeping rather more confidently to deep square leg for a single. Now will Misbah attack the spin as per? Not from the first two balls, which are well directed googlies, but the final one of the over is then cracked past mid-on for four.

59th over: Pakistan 160-4 (Hafeez 107, Misbah 0)

Misbah appears intent on resuming his tactic of simply blocking the seamers, playing defensively and correct to Anderson, who tries to push him onto his back foot with a couple of short-ish deliveries, one of which would have offered an absolute dolly of a catch for short leg were a short leg in place. Which it isn’t. Good bowling.

58th over: Pakistan 160-4 (Hafeez 107, Misbah 0)

After two really fine overs, this one is just a bit too loose from Rashid. He drops just a fraction short with his leg cutter and Hafeez thwacks it across the line to the midwicket boundary for four, and then adds two more through point. Hafeez is foxed a little more by the last ball of the over though, which is turned sharply past his outside edge.

57th over: Pakistan 154-4 (Hafeez 101, Misbah 0)

Hafeez pushes Anderson down to deep backward point for one. This partnership with the Pakistan captain now feels decisive, one way or t’other, and Misbah plays out the over with due care and attention.

56th over: Pakistan 153-4 (Hafeez 100, Misbah 0)

Hafeez fails to cash in from Rashid’s first bad ball of the day - an overcooked full toss – and then tries to take a risky single to bring up the ton, only to scuttle back when the absurdity of the proposition becomes apparent. Rashid then finds some extra bounce to beat him outside off stump. And then Hafeez does reach his hundred, with an emphatic sweep down to deep square leg for a single. He’s been shaky this morning but was excellent yesterday and this is well deserved.

55th over: Pakistan 152-4 (Hafeez 99)

Anderson opens up from the other end, and induces a play and miss in Hafeez’s corridor of uncertainty, before a push to extra cover brings him a single and takes him to 99. The nightwatchman Rahat digs out an attempted yorker but he’s foxed by the next delivery, which comes in at him sharply and flicks off the off-stump bails. A deserved early scalp for England.

Anderson finds some feisty reverse swing and knocks out Rahat’s off stump.

54th over: Pakistan 151-3 (Hafeez 98, Rahat 0)

Rashid starts us off, bowling to Hafeez, closing in on that hundred. And he almost gets him first ball, that is turned down but well worth the appeal that is eventually turned down. And Rashid almost gets him again – Hafeez going for the big hit against a perfectly pitched googly, and missing completely. Unfortunately, so does Bairstow, who fluffs a straightforward stumping chance and the ball rolls to the ropes. Will that be as big a reprieve for the Pakistan opener as his let-off yesterday? Another lbw appeal follows after a quicker ball hurries Hafeez up a tad but it’s drifting down leg. That was an absolutely magnificent over. One run and four byes from it.

They’re taking a long time over this. There appears to have been no nick, but the big debate appears to be whether it pitched outside leg or not. It was a terrific leg-break to start us off, but, alas for England, it did indeed pitch outside leg.

Rashid has a keen lbw shout against Hafeez first ball!

Out they come. A pivotal session looms.

Ian Botham’s morning pitch report tells us that there are fewer scuffs and demons than might be expected on day four here – “230 is gettable for England, Misbah’s due to fail,” he jinxes, spectacularly.

Scoreboard appreciation. As an aside, Sharjah looks the most characterful of the grounds used in this series, not least because of its magnificently ramshackle old-school scoreboard. Which almost brings to mind the old van Essex have traditionally towed to festival out-grounds (particularly in the days when they used more than one). So, a bit of early-morning nerdery for y’all. Favourite scoreboards anyone?

Morning. I’m now with you in the future. And here are a couple more pieces worthy of your perusal. First up, here’s a lovely tribute to Tom Graveney from Vic Marks. And back on this match, Ali Martin picks over some of the spikier aspects of yesterday’s play, such as England mithering over Hafeez’s early reprieve, and the 12th-man goading that went with.

Test cricket – proper, competitive Test cricket – is always about the small margins, the fractions of advantage gained in a session here or there. And, whatever else might be said about the sometimes sluggish nature of the cricket in this series and the often weightless atmosphere in the stands, this has been a series of small margins, and a compelling and competitive one for that. One rampant session on the final day almost brought England victory in Abu Dhabi, one similar one for Pakistan on day three of Test two certainly did in Dubai, and yesterday – over two sessions – you sensed the “home” side gradually taking firm control of this one.

A lead of 72 didn’t feel enough for England – not on this track, against this attack, and with these hindrances– and that feeling grew as Pakistan’s openers compiled an excellent largely untroubled opening partnership in their second innings, until a mad run-out and wickets for Stuart Broad and Jimmy Anderson – Stakhanovite seam-bowling heroes of this series for England – gave Alastair Cook’s side a little glimmer of hope. Some disciplined bowling and resilient batting will still be required but this match remains in the balance. For now. Ah, who am I kidding? Pakistan are overwhelming favourites to inflict another UAE series defeat on England, who might take some comfort from the fact that they’ve not been as hapless this time as in 2012.

Tom will be here shortly.

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Pakistan beat England by 127 runs: third Test, day five – as it happened

November 5, 2015, 2:20 am
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So, there you have it. Pakistan win the series 2-0.

England lost it on three mornings – seven for 96 on day three of the second Test, yesterday when they missed a few chances to snuff out Pakistan’s second innings early doors and today when they lost four for 11. Credit, though, to Pakistan who continue their exceptional run in the UAE. Hopefully it’s not too long till they play a Test at home because they’ve got one heck of a team to be proud of.

Pakistan in the UAE since 2010 (most recent last): DDDWDWWWWLDLWWWWDLDWW. #PakvEng

The best news so far...

No immediate retirement plans for Misbah. Next series not for a while, so he will take time and think about it #PakvEng

“There were runs to be had out there,” says Cook. “Then again, when you lose four wickets in the first 20 minutes and the middle order gets blown away, you’re not going to win the game.”

“We’ve played some good cricket out here – I’d say we’ve been resilient for most of it. But when the pressure came on, we didn’t perform. To win out here you need to take your chances and we just weren’t good enough to do it.”

Here, here

Not getting into the politics of it. Sorry, trolls. But from a cricketing perspective, it's a shame #Ind aren't playing this #Pak side.

Interesting discussion on Sky – they’ve been excellent in the studio this series.

Thoughts have turned to South Africa and the likelihood that England will revert to one spinner. With that in mind, England have to decide whether they stick with Moeen Ali or give Adil Rashid the responsibility of being the team’s sole spin threat.

Gareth Wilson wades in:

“Unfortunately, it looks like one of the positives to come out of this is that we now have two good number 8s….

There’s nothing in it, really, but England drop to sixth in the ICC Test rankings after this defeat.

Still, more power to Pakistan, who jump to second. Incredible considering what they have been up against.

England drop to sixth in the @ICC Test rankings. More on Sky Sports 2 HD or here: https://t.co/y3W3MCCUTOpic.twitter.com/Rsh96BTpU3

More glasses half full...

England still top of the European rankings... https://t.co/NJJKOUybTm

We’ve had one retirement this Test. Due for another?

Well that is that. Pakistan win the series 2-0 and are now No2 in the world. Chants of 'Misbah, Misbah' ring out here in Sharjah #PAKvENG

Nick Evans is the first to pick the bones out of that. And his glass is half full:

“Different format and all but I see KP’s timing is as immaculate as ever…

61st over: England 156 all out (Anderson 0)

Suppose I’ll give you what I had before it all ended. Stokes sweeps hard for four and then reverses for two. Then he’s stumped and Pakistan win.

Shah turns one down the legside as Stokes advances and is stumped.

Pakistan have won by 127 runs

60th over: England 150-9 (Stokes 6, Anderson 0)

Moving fairly well there, is Stokes, as he works Malik through midwicket for three. Single to Stokes as he sweeps against the ball turning away from him and top edges over slip. Just as three of you email in, imploring Cook to embrace his hidden T20 fetish, he skips down the wicket and gets stumped. Hope you’re happy with yourselves.

That was Cook's 950th ball of the series. Next for England is Joe Root, with 527.

Brilliant bowling from Malik who darts one in as Cook skips down. The ball turns past his outside edge and Sarfraz completes the stumping.

On Stokes injury, this parish’s own Mike Selvey emails in:

“England management know the nature of his injury better than we do. They would not allow anything that hindered recovery.”

59th over: England 145-8 (Cook 62, Stokes 2)

Cook gets the reverse sweep out and SMASHES IT (paddles) for four! Shah brings his length back for most of the over.

Woooooo we're half way there....woooooo, living on a prayer... #pakveng

Nicholas Clark emails in and makes a valid point:

“Views on Stokes batting? In a lost cause having the injured man batting surely risk a longer recovery...”

58th over: England 141-8 (Cook 58, Stokes 2)

Stokes gets on strike and leaves Wahab outside off stump. We’re awaiting some short stuff after Stokes wore one when he came out to bat in the first innings. He manages to get the pull out, but he had to use his whole body to manoeuvre the ball into the leg side. A quick wince is followed by a push into the leg side. A swing and a miss and that’s the over.

57th over: England 140-8 (Cook 57, Stokes 2)

Broad sweeps into Azhar Ali at short leg. Broad’s still trying to work him around the corner but he can’t quite keep tabs on the spin and bounce. As a result, he ends up almost lapping the ball into the hands of Shoaib Malik at square leg. Think we can blame Neil O’Sullivan, who emailed in to say Broad had got England above the required rate. For shame. Anyway, Ben Stokes is the new man and he defends past slip for two.

Broad gets on one knee and sweeps Shah square but aerially – caught by the man at square leg, who didn’t have to move.

56th over: England 138-7 (Cook 57, Broad 20)

Wahab goes short and Broad pulls high over midwicket. It comes back to earth and dents the outfield, about 5 yards out from the boundary and plugs. He takes two. Broad does well to repel the yorker when it comes and even finds a single to point to retain the strike. Because.

55th over: England 133-7 (Cook 56, Broad 17)

Yasir Shah is so good that even his worst ball of the series almost takes a wicket. Horrible drag down and Cook works it around the corner. He thinks he has four, but the man at fine leg is up and as Cook stutters in the middle of the pitch, the fielder gathers. However, by the time he throws, Cook is in at the nonstriker’s end. Broad gets a single into the leg side, as does Cook before the ball pops up off Broad’s lunging pad and perhaps onto his glove, just short of Azhar Ali at bat pad.

54th over: England 129-7 (Cook 54, Broad 15)

Morning all, Vish here. I’ve got Stuart Broad and Wahab Riaz with me, to get things started after lunch. Oh look, it’s a short ball. But it’s a touch wide and Broad follows it, edging into the gap between slip and gully. Then a better directed short ball which Broad thrashes at and an appeal goes up for caught behind off the glove. “Not out” is the call and Pakistan have no reviews yet. Cook gets himself in a bit of trouble, failing to retract the bat early enough for a leave and ends up playing the ball off the face. Luckily, it’s down low past Younis Khan and away for four.

Last time Pak went to no.2 in the rankings was under Inzi in 2006. Last all of a month, slid down again cuz of Eng tour. Repeat coming soon?

Summing up: Pakistan are going to win. Next. The first half-hour’s hideous collapse – a combination of high-pressure accurate spin bowling and some misjudged batting – has sealed this, though Cook and Rashid’s partnership was quietly impressive.

A couple more emails before the break: First, on the actual cricket, from David Brindle. “This will be controversial. Root hasn’t been ‘turning up’ when it matters. The first Test was the only time, frustrated by the slow over rate. But that was a relatively easy task. Faced with the job of single handedly winning a match, or saving a match, and given two classic opportunities to do so, he was nowhere to be found (this Test), or he did something, but not anywhere near enough (2nd test). His statistics are pretty. But what good is that if you don’t win the matches for your team? I keep thinking of Brian Lara, who did exactly that on so many occasions, with a much weaker team even than this pale and insipid version of England (the magnificent Broad, Anderson and Cook excepted) around him.”

53rd over: England 120-7 (Cook 50, Broad 10), target 284

Zulfiqar Babar is brought back into the attack just before lunch and keeps Cook on the back foot, but the England captain plays it late and well. A maiden. England have survived to lunch!

52nd over: England 120-7 (Cook 50, Broad 10), target 284

Cook reaches his 50 with a slightly unconvincing inside-edge that squirts out square on the legside. It’s been another astonishing feat of concentration and application from the England captain, albeit almost certainly in vain. Broad promptly celebrates it with a square drive for four, and another emphatic drive off the back foot, well cut out by Yasir Shah on the boundary, brings two more. A backfoot punch brings two more. Ten in three balls, suddenly.

51st over: England 111-7 (Cook 49, Broad 2), target 284

Cook nudges Shoaib square on the legside for a single to move closer to his half-century before Broad gets off the mark with a well timed sweep along the ground for two.

50th over: England 108-7 (Cook 48, Broad 0), target 284

Cook tucks Rahat away off his pads for a single. The right-hander Rashid is targeted with an extra slip and a short leg and is then castled by a terrific inswinger that shapes back in and the batsman can only push at tentatively. That’s the end of a decent partnership, and innings, in the circumstances.

And the partnership is broken, by a terrific inswinger.

49th over: England 107-6 (Cook 47, Rashid 22), target 284

The widest, wildest delivery of the morning, from Shoaib, is arrowed wide of Cook and wicketkeeper and runs to the ropes for four byes. Cook pushes a single to point, and Rashid, judging the length well consistently, gets onto the front foot to drive elegantly through the covers for two.

48th over: England 100-6 (Cook 46, Rashid 20), target 284

A change of bowling, and tempo: Rahat Ali comes on for Yasir, to bowl at Rashid, who one might uncharitably quip has been better at playing spin in this series than at bowling it (I like Rashid’s bowling a lot, mind, when he’s on song). Anyway, now the Yorkshireman must face pace, against which he’s watchful from the first three deliveries before trying to drive the fourth, which he cracks to point without fully timing it and there’s no run. Another maiden.

47th over: England 100-6 (Cook 46, Rashid 20), target 284

Shoaib continues at Cook, who’s not been totally comfortable against him, and he mistimes a sweep off his fifth ball but it pops up and lands safely past short leg. A maiden.

46th over: England 100-6 (Cook 46, Rashid 20), target 284

England bring up the hundred as Rashid works Yasir away for two. Never let it be said, meanwhile, that Guardian cricket correspondents aren’t all-rounders in every sense. Mike Selvey writes in to gently upbraid our sleep-deprived student Jack McCabe: “I’m sure Jack McCabe in over 25 knows that Westmoreland (‘Oh that we now had here but one ten thousand of those men in England who do no work today’) wasn’t at Agincourt . Of course he does. Just checking.” This could be all the difference, grade-wise Jack. In essay grades as in cricket, it’s all about the small margins.

45th over: England 98-6 (Cook 46, Rashid 18), target 284

Although it’s almost certainly in a losing cause, this is a decent ‘watch and learn’ tutorial from Cook and Rashid to the fallen English batsmen in the pavilion. But having said that, Cook slices Malik unconvincingly off a leading edge in the air on the offside, but it lands safely and they run one. Another legside nudge from Rashid brings a single.

44th over: England 96-6 (Cook 45, Rashid 17), target 284

Rashid works Yasir away for two and then does well to push out a dipping quicker delivery off his back foot. This is a good over from Yasir, his best for a while, and another quick one almost gets through Rashid’s defences but the batsmen manages to flick it away.

43rd over: England 94-6 (Cook 45, Rashid 15), target 284

Risky. Cook sweeps off Malik but it’s in the air and hazardously close to Zulfiqar at deep square leg but he’s not the most mobile, and doesn’t get there in time. They take a single, as does Rashid who nudges one round the corner off the back foot.

42nd over: England 92-6 (Cook 44, Rashid 14), target 284

Yasir bowls his 12th over in a row, to Cook, who pushes a single to extra cover from its fourth ball. Rashid then manages to push out a quicker googly from Yasir so England’s best two rearguard crease-occupiers of this series remain together, for the time b eing.

41st over: England 91-6 (Cook 43, Rashid 14), target 284

Cook clips Malik wide of mid-on for a single. The spinner, with leg-slip in place, comes round the wicket at Rashid, which takes lbw out of the equation, for which the batsman is grateful when one ball skids on into his pads.

40th over: England 90-6 (Cook 42, Rashid 14), target 284

I’m really looking forward to seeing this Pakistan side over in England next year – it’s been too long, and their 2010 visit was too horrible to contemplate. But this side has a fine blend of entertaining cricketers. One of them, Yasir, continues to Rashid, who gets two after tucking one away neatly off his pads. I would say something positive about this developing partnership at this point, but fear that would only jinx it. And in any case, the target is too far off.

39th over: England 88-6 (Cook 42, Rashid 12), target 284

We have our first bowling change of the morning, Shoaib Malik replacing Zulfiqar. Cook rocks back onto the back foot again and cracks his first ball past point for a single. Shoaib comes round the wicket at Rashid, who takes a flicked single to deep square leg. And that’s drinks.

38th over: England 86-6 (Cook 41, Rashid 11), target 284

Cook gets forward to smother any spin and clips Yasir to mid-on for a quick single – getting to 100 will seem like some form of moral triumph in these circumstances. Rashid adds another with a deflected dab down to backward of square leg. Cook then square cuts for two and clips another behind square on the legside. The funny thing is, these spinners are probably getting less obvious turn today than England’s did yesterday. But it’s amazing what a little accuracy can do against frightened batsmen.

37th over: England 81-6 (Cook 37, Rashid 10), target 284

Cook rocks onto the back foot and cracks Zulfiqar through the covers for two. The bounce remains a problem for England and Cook unconvincingly manages to work one away on the legside for a single. Rashid then decides to have a go, meeting the pitch of a ball outside off stump and chipping it forcefully to the long-off boundary for four. A decent piece of attacking batting. For what it’s worth.

36th over: England 74-6 (Cook 34, Rashid 6), target 284

Yasir, round the wicket at Cook, goes for another strident appeal against Cook but the turn and bounce is in the batsman’s favour and it’s nowhere near out. He bunts the next ball, a low full toss, into the air but just beyond a diving short midwicket and another single ensues. It’s a bump ball, replays confirm. Rashid plays out the over reasonably calmly.

35th over: England 73-6 (Cook 33, Rashid 6), “target” 284

Zulfiqar comes round the wicket at Cook, who lofts him over the top with some style for four. That’s coolness under pressure for you. A squirt on the legside brings another single.

34th over: England 68-6 (Cook 28, Rashid 6), “target” 284

Another one keeps low, from Yasir to Rashid, but the batsmen is equal to it and bunts it away on the legside, as he then does with a low full toss. Yasir tries an optimistic lbw shout to a ball that’s sliding down leg and, replays confirm, pitched outside it.

33rd over: England 68-6 (Cook 28, Rashid 6), “target” 284

Cook advances down the track off Zulfiqar and pushes a single to mid-off. Rashid tries to do likewise but the ball zings off his toes and away to safety. He struggles a bit more with one that turns sharply away from him and raps his back leg (Botham reckons it was worth an lbw shout) before pulling a shorter delivery away on the legside for one.

32nd over: England 66-6 (Cook 27, Rashid 5), “target” 284

Rashid nudges Yasir round the corner for two, and is duly watchful against a couple that do genuinely turn away from him. Another single follows. Cook is then foxed by one that turns swiftly into him and he deflects square behind him in the air but safely. He takes a single but didn’t look comfortable there.

31st over: England 62-6 (Cook 26, Rashid 2), target 284

Cook misses a sweep – thankfully for him so does his bat and it balloons off his pads into the hands of short leg. It’s been the variable bounce that has done for England so far this morning, that and fairly depressing failures of judgment. Remarkably though, a second over in a row passes without a wicket.

30th over: England 62-6 (Cook 26, Rashid 2), target 284

Cook, who looks well placed to carry his bat on this morning’s evidence, flicks a single round the corner off Yasir. Then – a right-hander scores a run! – Rashid off the mark by nudging a low full toss through midwicket for two.

29th over: England 59-6 (Cook 25, Rashid 0), target 284

Cook continues to hold fast to his sweep, which brings him another single off Zulfiqar. Patel holds fast to nothing in particular though, deceived by Zulfiqar’s arm ball, which he misses and then zoots onto his pads. There are no appeals left but he’s bang to rights anyway, another big blow after Samit had batted so well in the first innings.

An utter rout now. An arm ball pins Samit first ball.

28th over: England 58-5 (Cook 24, Bairstow 0), target 284

England don’t appear to have any answer to this. Cook’s trying his best though, and sweeps Yasir out to deep square leg for a single. Bairstow is the latest right-hander sent into the lions’ den and for whom Yasir has set two very close slips and a short leg. But he doesn’t last long, plum lbw to the last ball of the over. This is all so futile.

Carnage. Bairstow sweeps and misses, is rapped in front, but reviews anyway. It’s more in hope than expectation – this ball hadn’t spun away that much and it was knocking middle out.

27th over: England 57-4 (Cook 20, Bairstow 0), target 284

Zulfiqar continues, without a leg slip for Cook this time, so that’s one small triumph for the captain, before both batsman and the keeper Sarfraz are deceived by a ball that keeps horribly low and three byes ensue. Taylor has an assertive silly mid-off for company, but it’s not him he has to worry about, but Younis at first slip who takes a simple catch, after the batsman edges a dipping spinning ball straight to him. The end looks already nigh.

And another! Taylor is foxed by a dipping delivery from Zulfiqar which he can only edge to Younis.

26th over: England 54-3 (Cook 20, Taylor 2), target 284

Yasir gets his leg-slip in for Cook, who sweeps and misses across the line at one outside off-stump before meeting a fuller delivery with an agreeable cover drive for three.

25th over: England 51-3 (Cook 20, Taylor 2), target 284

Another big stadium-rock appeal from Zulfiqar as Cook sweeps and misses and is struck on the pad, but it’s outside the line and the appeal is turned down. Cook gets hold of his next attempted sweep and sends it out to deep square leg for a single. Taylor then gets off the mark with two from a similar shot.

24th over: England 48-3 (Cook 19, Taylor 0), target 284

The always watchable Yasir Shah opens from the other end. Root picks the length well from the first two deliveries but is undone next ball when he rocks onto his back foot and is powerless to prevent one that keeps low from scooting onto his pads. Cook advises against a review, and so it begins.

Here we go again though. Root goes onto his back foot and is pinned in front, deceived by the low bounce by the looks.

23rd over: England 48-2 (Cook 19, Root 6), target 284

Zulfiqar starts us off, and is accurate straight away, but Cook bottom-edge sweeps down to fine leg for two to get England off the mark for the day. Pakistan have two close fielders in on the legside in anticipation of just such a shot, but Zulfiqar’s variations force him onto the back foot a couple of times.

Out they come.

Bumble’s pitch report talks of it being a “day two” surface, with not as many bowler’s footmarks and rough as might be expected. But that didn’t make them look any more comfortable last night.

First email of the day: Michael Meagher has it, and it’s stat-gasmic: “So Jimmy Anderson will definitely get above Kapil Dev here but do you think that’s it? Will he even make 500? As to Alastair Cook, He’ll certainly be the first Englishman to 10000. How high do you think he can go? Sneaking into the top ten with 11000? Nip above Brian Lara at 12000?” You’d certainly fancy Cook to have a lot more still in the career-tank, and Anderson remains a marvel, though to peer through a half-empty glass as is my wont, all this also demonstrates a certain level of dependence on both. Who will be the sturdy rock of an opener or the new-ball magician when they’ve gone?

Scores on the doors elsewhere: Australia may have been the weaker of the two touring sides to visit England in the UK Summer, in those conditions, but they’re enjoying home comforts against New Zealand today, easing to 265-1 at The Gabba with David Warner having clumped a hundred. Follow it all here. In Mohali meanwhile, India are 63-1 against South Africa in the morning session, recovering well through Murali Vijay and Cheteshwar Pujara after the loss of Shikhar Dhawan for a duck.

Yesterday, we - or rather me - idled away some of the OBO hours by riffing on the aburdities of these “What successful people do before breakfast” lists. Well, one of the things a successful English cricket team need to do before most of England has had its breakfast is set themselves fair on a course for an improbable victory here.

Ain’t gonna happen is it? England need 238 more runs to win but have already lost two wickets, and looked becalmed at best, beffudled at worst, against Pakistan’s spinners in yesterday’s evening session. It could easily be all over before most people in Blighty have even got dressed. England have, after all, managed to chase down a fourth-innings target this big on only five previous occasions.

Tom will be here shortly.

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Pakistan v England: first ODI – as it happened

November 11, 2015, 10:28 am
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Anyway, that’s all from me. Stay on the site for our match report and reaction, and your crack OBO team will be back on Friday to see if England can make a better fist of the second match at Abu Dhabi. Thanks for your emails and tweets, and for your attention. Bye.

Related: Pakistan and Mohammad Hafeez ease past England despite Morgan and Taylor

Well, that was all a bit too easy. Pakistan’s ODI stock is not too high at present, whereas England came into this match having rejuvenated and retuned their one-day game in recent months after the World Cup debacle. But you’d never have really guessed it here – England managed only one partnership that caused Pakistan any bother in the field, and while Topley in particular bowled excellently early on in the hosts’ reply, Hafeez’s calm measured brilliance against fairly impotent opposition anchored a comfortable run chase. Younis Khan, who didn’t really contribute on his ODI swansong, is being embraced by emotional team-mates on the outfield – he leaves with his side having plenty of grounds for optimism.

43.4 overs: Pakistan 217-4 (Hafeez 102, Babar Azam 62), target 217

Woakes continues as nudged singles take Pakistan ever closer to the inevitable. Hafeez, appropriately, seals the win with a dab down towards wide third man for a single. It’s been an emphatic and impressive performance by Pakistan.

43rd over: Pakistan 214-4 (Hafeez 101, Babar Azam 60), target 217

Adil Rashid returns to the attack – this could go either way. Predictably, it goes Pakistan’s: Hafeez brings up his hundred with an uppish clipped two on the legside, thus avoiding the trap he fell into when dismissed for 98 on this ground in the Test series. What a season he’s having – this has been a flawless knock. The field is brought in for Babar after a single brings him on strike. They’re tempting him to go over the top and he duly accepts the invitation – and thumps a straight drive over the ropes for six. Another single follows. Pakistan are nearly there.

42nd over: Pakistan 202-4 (Hafeez 98, Babar Azam 51), target 217

Hafeez’s square cut is not quite cut off in the in-field, enabling him to add another single off Woakes. Babar Azam then brings up his 50 in style, getting right underneath a line and length slower ball and smacking it high, high and handsome straight into the stands for six. An agreeable on-drive for one follows. Hafeez declines the opportunity to bring up his hundred in the same over, playing it out defensively. As he does when he’s on these sorts of scores.

41st over: Pakistan 194-4 (Hafeez 97, Babar Azam 44), target 217

The final power play is signalled by the umpire Raza. “Whatever,” says everyone else, acknowledging that it will make little difference to the outcome now. Babar duly sends an emphatic straight drive past Willey for four first ball. His second delivery is delayed when a piece of cloth – which looks like a hankie – flies out of Willey’s trousers (there’s probably a crude cheap gag of the sort that marred the latter part of England’s innings on here earlier in that). A couple more singles ensue. Twenty-three are needed.

40th over: Pakistan 188-4 (Hafeez 96, Babar Azam 39), target 217

Woakes continues, as does the usual calm pattern of strike rotation and scoreboard-nudging. The bowler doesn’t do anything wrong at all really but he’s got nothing to work with, either from the conditions or the match situation.

39th over: Pakistan 185-4 (Hafeez 95, Babar Azam 37), target 217

Hafeez is closing in on an untroubled ODI century - he pushes Willey off the back foot for a single to bring it nearer. Babar, who’s grown into this innings after starting like a tail-ender, then drives beautifully down the ground but is denied anything more than one by eager fielding. But they’re just ticking these off – ones are all they need, and are all they get in this over – four of them in total. There’s just a smidgeon – a hint, a suggestion, an aroma if you will – of a chance off the final ball of the over, a cutter that loops up off Babar’s bat and just short of a diving Morgan at mid-on.

38th over: Pakistan 181-4 (Hafeez 93, Babar Azam 35), target 217

Woakes finds Hafeez’s outside edge but it flies past the keeper for four more before a selection of easy singles are taken. Seven come from the over – suddenly my musings a few minutes back on whether 250 might have been competitive seem a bit daft, frankly.

37th over: Pakistan 174-4 (Hafeez 87, Babar Azam 34), target 217

David Willey returns to the attack for his fifth over, round the wicket at Babar who brings up the 50 partnership with an easy drive to long-on for a single. Hafeez adds another before the bowler just strays a fraction to legside, which from the angle Willey’s coming at, only needs to be nudged and it’ll go to the fine leg boundary for four. Emboldened, Babar swings at a slightly shorter delivery and hoiks it away in front of square on the legside for six. Two more follow to complete a damagingly expensive over. Pakistan need 43 off 13.

36th over: Pakistan 160-4 (Hafeez 86, Babar Azam 21), target 217

Talking of drinks, the rest of the England team owe Reece Topley one for his efforts in keeping them, if not right in this game, at least at its margins, hovering by the door. He’s withdrawn from the attack for now, with Woakes, who wasn’t too wayward earlier and can bowl at the death, replacing him, but he and the team need to find something out of the ordinary now. He tries an off-cutter at Babar Azam which he hacks out on the offside. A back-foot push square on the offside brings Babar a single but it’s a decent over – if England had managed just 30 more with the bat we might have a game here.

35th over: Pakistan 158-4 (Hafeez 85, Babar Azam 20), target 217

Root fancies an appeal for a lbw against Hafeez – it’s full and the batsman misses with his sweep but it’s probably judged to have pitched outside leg, and two leg-byes are taken instead. Again, replays show the bowler is unlucky: it’s pitched in line after all. Hafeez sweeps a two and then adds a single as a fine hundred approaches. Time for a little drinks break.

34th over: Pakistan 153-4 (Hafeez 82, Babar Azam 19), target 217

Topley, his face glowing bright red with exertion and heat, is hurling himself into this contest like a toddler throwing themselves at the walls of a bouncy castle, spearing one into the top of Hafeez’s pads and even trying a muffled lbw shout, with no real expectation of reward. Three singles follow from what, unfortunately for England, is Topley’s penultimate over.

33rd over: Pakistan 150-4 (Hafeez 80, Babar Azam 18), target 217

Hafeez sweeps Root for one. Babar Azam clips for one. Hafeez flicks away on the legside for one. There are some dot balls. And not much else of note. Hence the short sentences.

32nd over: Pakistan 147-4 (Hafeez 78, Babar Azam 17), target 217

Babar nudges Topley off his hips for one before the bowler launches into a lusty appeal for a caught behind against Hafeez, who looks like he’s tickled this down the legside through to Buttler. But it’s not given and England, deprived of reviews, can do nothing but huff and sigh. There are only three runs from another impressive probing over though. Pakistan aren’t yet running away with this.

31st over: Pakistan 144-4 (Hafeez 76, Babar Azam 16), target 217

Joe Root gets his first bowl, coming round the wicket at the two right-handers, who rotate the strike with nudges and nurdles on the legside – five ones, one of which should have been two but the eagle-eyed umpire Raza spotted that one of them was a short run. I do like it when you see a bit of Sunday afternoon club cricket well spotted by a diligent umpire.

30th over: Pakistan 139-4 (Hafeez 73, Babar Azam 14), target 217

As expected, Topley – England’s best bowler by a distance so far – returns to the attack, from round the wicket this time. He concedes three singles and is reasonably tight and accurate. “Middle Overs Meandering being a passable prog title,” acknowledges Anthony Ferguson, “I always thought Corridor of Uncertainty would be another, possibly performed by Sticky Dog. Caught At Cow Corner would be a great folk title, while Lashed Through the Covers could be for a Pogues’ collection of other people’s songs.” Or other people’s covers of Pogues songs, I guess.

29th over: Pakistan 136-4 (Hafeez 72, Babar Azam 12), target 217

Hafeez and Babar take Moeen for a single each and that’s all. “All very well to say we’ve seen this before,” sighs John Starbuck, “England spinners with a lack of bite abroad – but how else are they to get any kind of top-level experience other than being called on to bowl? Andrew Strauss has mentioned that new spinners are being given some tuition abroad but the best encouragement is for them to see actual England spinners playing international cricket. You wouldn’t imagine they could force their way into the IPL or many other tournaments the way batsmen and seamers/quicks can, because they are going to be crowded out by the vast numbers of sub-continental and Caribbean competition. The only way they will really develop in this country is either playing on somewhat sub-standard pitches or waiting for the ECB to give up county cricket during the full summer, so they end up honing their craft abroad, which means lots of imports to choose from. What would you do?”

28th over: Pakistan 134-4 (Hafeez 71, Babar Azam 11), target 217

Babar Azam gets off strike straight away with a cut off Rashid for a single, a shot replicated by Hafeez next ball with the same outcome. Azam grubs one down the ground for another single, before Rashid finds some extravagant turn, with a sharp leg-break that befuddles Hafeez, who misses it completely. As does Buttler, and a couple of byes accrue. Then – blam! – Babar Azam settles his nerves in emphatic style by picking Rashid’s attempted wrong’un, meeting it at the pitch and thumping it over long-on for SIX. Rashid may not be back next over now – he’s sent down eight on the trot.

27th over: Pakistan 122-4 (Hafeez 69, Babar Azam 3), target 217

Moeen finds some turn and drift into the right-hander Azam and has a huge appeal after hitting him on the pad but replays show it was going over the top, and England haven’t got any reviews left anyway. A pull on the onside brings the slightly nervous Azam one run, granting Hafeez the strike for the final two balls of the over, the first of which is crisply and delightfully struck through the covers for four.

26th over: Pakistan 117-4 (Hafeez 65, Babar Azam 2), target 217

Rashid continues – the wicket at the other end might have something to do with that – and he manages to keep Babar Azam on strike with some well pitched and flighted deliveries, which also have just enough variation to keep the batsman under pressure. He does score off the final ball of the over though, a slightly mistimed crack to deep point for one. That was possibly Rashid’s best of the seven overs he’s bowled.

25th over: Pakistan 116-4 (Hafeez 65, Babar Azam 1), target 217

Hafeez takes a single before Malik surrenders his wicket rather needlessly with an ugly flick to mid-on – ending a partnership that looked unperturbed. Babar Azam is off the mark first ball before Hafeez, unruffled by losing his partner, creams a lovely drive through the covers for four. As long as he stays in, you suspect, Pakistan will win comfortably.

Shoaib tries to work Moeen away on the onside and only pushes it in the air off the back foot to mid-on where Roy takes the catch. Soft.

24th over: Pakistan 110-3 (Hafeez 60, Malik 26), target 217

Morgan persists with Rashid, but he’s not rewarding him with much in the way of close fielders, and no slips. He tosses it up a bit more but is accurate for four balls before conceding a single as Hafeez pushes past mid-off. And finally – maddeningly – he drops too short with the last ball and Malik belts it past mid-on for four.

23rd over: Pakistan 104-3 (Hafeez 58, Malik 20), target 217

Hafeez paddle sweeps Moeen in the air but safely to add a single and Malik adds another from a tight but not particularly menacing over. England’s best hope at present might be to induce some between-wickets farce from Hafeez in the hope of getting a run-out. The PA system is now treating us to a kind of hard-house version of Sweet Child of Mine, which doesn’t really work out for anyone.

22nd over: Pakistan 102-3 (Hafeez 58, Malik 20), target 217

Hafeez finds some rare sharp turn with a ball that pitches outside leg and hits Hafeez on the pads. It’s a much tighter over that yields only one single.

21st over: Pakistan 101-3 (Hafeez 57, Malik 20), target 217

Malik milks Moeen for a single, which is followed by a wide, and then another flicked couple. The hundred arrives when Hafeez gets forward to meet the spin and sweeps it square on the legside for four. Again, the England spinners just can’t find the level of control and pressure needed. We’ve seen this movie before.

20th over: Pakistan 92-3 (Hafeez 52, Malik 17), target 217

Hafeez brings up his 50 in style, rolling back and hammering Rashid over the deep midwicket boundary for six. You drop short like that and you’re asking for a clouting. Another single brings up the 50 partnership. Ian Botham in the commentary box is fulminating about the shortness of the boundaries on that side – there’s loads of spare grass behind them.

19th over: Pakistan 84-3 (Hafeez 45, Malik 16), target 217

Hafeez pulls Moeen towards deep midwicket for a single, and Malik flicks in the same direction for another. Pakistan aren’t running amok here, but they don’t need to be unless they lose wickets, and they’ve not looked so likely to of late. So every now and then, they can just have a go, as Malik does at the end of the over, with a slogged lofted on-drive for four. Not many emails for a while – don’t tell me you’re all watching a rugby press conference?

18th over: Pakistan 77-3 (Hafeez 43, Malik 11), target 217

Hafeez adds two with a firm push on the offside and then gets four with a classy late cut that Moeen does really well to catch up with and then really badly to dive straight over and watch the ball run to the ropes. Rashid has a shout after a wrong’un that cuts sharply back into Hafeez but it hit bat first – a splendid ball, mind. One more single follows.

17th over: Pakistan 70-3 (Hafeez 36, Malik 11), target 217

We have spin at both ends, as Moeen Ali gets his first bowl. A fluffed paddle sweep causes confusion among the batsmen as Buttler gets back and rolls at the stumps before Malik makes his ground at the non-striker’s end and no run is taken. Hafeez adds one but it’s all a bit stereotypical middle-overs meandering at the moment. (“Middle overs meandering” would be a presentable prog-rock album title, I reckon).

16th over: Pakistan 69-3 (Hafeez 35, Malik 11), target 217

Rashid has to reassert some control here and he gets his line a bit better at first. Hafeez then pushes him down the ground for one before before Malik drives through the covers for another single. Quiet, workmanlike strike rotation is the order of the day – there’s only three from the over, which is a considerable improvement on Rashid’s previous one.

15th over: Pakistan 66-3 (Hafeez 33, Malik 10), target 217

Woakes continues and Hafeez cuts him down to third man for one. Two more singles keep the strike rotating before Woakes decides to pep things up a bit with a bouncer, but it’s easily ducked under.

14th over: Pakistan 63-3 (Hafeez 31, Malik 9), target 217

Spin for the first time – should we roar an aggressive ‘bring it on!’ or hide behind our desks and watch through our fingers? – in the form of Adil Rashid. Pakistan’s approach looks immediately similar to how it was in the Tests as the first ball is dropped shot and clouted to the wide long-on boundary for four by Hafeez, who adds a single next ball. Shoaib wants to join the party but takes a bit of a risk with a hoik in front of square on the onside that Hales is oh-so-close to plucking out of the air but it just beats him and goes for four. Another couple of singles follow. Matt Arnott’s tweeted attempt to reverse-jinx things (see 11th over) looks a dismal failure thus far – 11 from the over.

13th over: Pakistan 52-3 (Hafeez 25, Malik 4), target 217

Hafeez clips Woakes to midwicket and takes a single from the fielder’s slight fumble before a dab in the same direction also brings Shoaib one. The Pakistan 50 is brought up by a late cut down towards wide third man from Hafeez before Malik punches elegantly through the covers for two.

12th over: Pakistan 47-3 (Hafeez 23, Malik 1), target 217

Topley, who can be delighted with his evening’s work so far, continues, and almost sees another wicket as Hafeez messes up a call for a quick single and his change of mind has Malik scampering back to the non-striker’s end but thankfully for him Rashid’s shy at the stumps misses. There are singles for each batsman but no more – it’s still very much in the balance.

11th over: Pakistan 45-3 (Hafeez 22, Malik 0), target 217

Powerplay session is called, as Woakes continues. Hafeez defensively nudges out two balls before swivelling and pulling a ball that sits up invitingly and it zooms away to the deep midwicket boundary for four. The only scoring shot of the over, mind.

10th over: Pakistan 41-3 (Hafeez 18, Malik 0), target 217

Morgan keeps Topley in the attack, and he reels off four dot balls bowling to Younis, who’s not quite looking as comfortable as Hafeez. As he proves, when pulling Woakes across the line to Rashid at mid-on, and the catch is taken low and comfortably. And so ends a great player’s ODI career – his imperious recent Test form was never particularly visible in this knock, it must be said, but what a player nonetheless. The ovation he receives on departure, including from England’s players, is deserved. A wicket maiden – game on.

Younis’s ODI career is over! He pulls Topley to Rashid at mid-on and gets a standing ovation from all in the ground.

9th over: Pakistan 41-2 (Hafeez 18, Younis 9), target 217

Darn but Hafeez can be a fine batsman to watch – he crisply straight-drives the first ball of Woakes’s spell past the bowler for four, but the bowler’s comeback is good: a dipping yorker into the batsman’s blockhole that Woakes has reviewed, upon seeing his lbw appeal rejected. Technology, however, as well as the on-field umpire, tells us this is an unwise thing to do, as it clearly clunked the toe of Hafeez’s bat. Hafeez works an other yorker away through midwicket for two.

8th over: Pakistan 35-2 (Hafeez 12, Younis 9), target 217

Younis Khan absolutely leathers a square drive on the offside, which Hales manages to parry and prevent four, conceding only one instead. Hafeez takes another flicked single square on the offside to keep the strike rotating before Topley tries a slower ball that Younis works away off his pads for one, and Hafeez does likewise with a similar delievery. From the student disco soundtrack Vish tweeted about earlier, we’re now straying into an ageing-ravers-in-Ibiza vibe for the between-overs music. Don’t give up yer day job.

7th over: Pakistan 31-2 (Hafeez 10, Younis 8), target 217

Hafeez rocks onto the back foot and sumptuously pushes a straight drive past Willey for four. Excellent shot. These two left-armers have found their stride though, and aren’t letting Pakistan get easily away from them at the moment, the trouble being, of course, that even conceding only four an over won’t worry Pakistan too much in the circumstances.

6th over: Pakistan 27-2 (Hafeez 6, Younis 8), target 217

Younis, showing his class and experience, unfurls the shot of the innings so far, crisply straight-driving Topley for four, but in general Pakistan can’t get on top of the tall new-Hampshire-signing. This pitch is bothering me – not what it’s doing or its condition, but its aesthetics, looking as it does like a slab of dropped-in concrete.

5th over: Pakistan 23-2 (Hafeez 6, Younis 4), target 217

Willey is just pitching a fraction too much towards the legside, which makes it easy for Hafeez to just flick him down to the fine leg boundary for four. Taylor then dives smartly at point to prevent four more runs, or indeed any runs. It’s Willey’s most accurate over to date, with just the one scoring shot.

4th over: Pakistan 19-2 (Hafeez 2, Younis 4), target 217

Decent from Topley, who drops one just back of a length that nips back a touch and Bilal can do nothing with but leave; the next one doesn’t bounce as much, hits the top of Bilal’s pads, prompting a rejected appeal and review. It was worth it too – the decision is overturned and Bilal has to go. It was knocking the top of middle and off stumps. So out comes Younis Khan, for his final ODI innings, and Topley discomforts him too, inducing an ugly wide slash and miss at a slanting delivery. It’s good stuff from the bowler, but he’s struggling with his run-up though, twice abandoning at the delivery stride, before Younis gets off the mark with a slightly weird attempted cut at a wide ball which he pulls straight in front of him and it races straight for four. England were 14-3 at this stage.

Now what’s this? Topley opts to review a rejected lbw decision and is vindicated. Hope for England.

3rd over: Pakistan 15-1 (Bilal 2, Hafeez 2), target 217

The left-armer Willey probes outside Bilal’s off-stump, and finds some uneven bounce when the third pretty much grubs along the ground to the keeper upon bouncing. Bilal then cuts backward of square on the offside for one. Hafeez, fresh from his excellent Test series, gets off the mark with a push through the covers for two.

2nd over: Pakistan 12-1 (Bilal 1, Hafeez 0), target 217

Reece Topley takes the ball and what a rollercoaster of an over ensues. He begins with what we might politely call a loosener, slanting it too widely across the right-hander and conceding a wide for his sins. Then – an edge! - but it doesn’t quite carry to Joe Root at second slip, and from whose hands the ball ricochets and a run is conceded. Another wide follows but the comeback ball is again a good’un, which nips back in off the seam and raps Azhar on the pad, prompting a half-hearted appeal but it didn’t quite do enough. Once more though, it’s followed with a wide, down the legside this time. A couple of dot balls steady the ship before – boom! – he pins Azhar leg-before, with an excellently pitched inswinger. Azhar briefly contemplates a review but he’s plumb, and thinks better of it.

Topley crowns a topsy-turvy over with a lovely inswinger that traps Azhar in front.

1st over: Pakistan 8-0 (Azhar 8, Bilal 0), target 217

Pakistan start positively. Azhar is off the mark with a four first ball, clipping Willey nonchalantly off his pads to the midwicket boundary as the ball swung just a little too easily into him. He gets four more with another effortlessly timed shot, this one creamed through extra cover for four as he takes advantage of the new ball onto the bat nicely. “What about England having the same team for a Test and ODI?” wonders Mohammad Zafar, “perhaps the test team may give a better ODI performance than the actual ODI team.” They’d be absolutely knackered for a start.

Afternoon/evening everyone. There might have been a time – an early-season Gillette Cup tie in 1968, for example – when 216 would be a presentable total in a game of one-day cricket. I rather strongly suspect, however, that Abu Dhabi in November 2015 is not such a time. Aside from during the excellent Morgan-Taylor partnership, Pakistan maintained full control throughout that England innings, bowling and fielding excellently. And how can you not love the sight of Pakistan left-arm quicks steaming in, mixing it up and generally keeping batsmen on their toes? Irfan took wickets while Wahab kept it incredibly tight without managing the scalp he deserved. What a player he is to watch – as an aside, for my money, Wahab’s 30-minute fireburst in the World Cup quarter-final was the best passage of play in all cricket this year. Here’s a reminder, to while away the interval:

Well then. Pakistan are clear favourites, but this is a day-night game, the first match of the series, between two teams that are always capable of the unexpected. It’s far from over, honest. Stick around with Tom Davies, who will be your guide for the second innings. Thanks for all your emails, apart the slew of David Willey jokes in the last half an hour – you’re better than that...

So England settle on an underwhelming 216, with Eoin Morgan and James Taylor’s 133 partnership crucial to the cause, to say the least. There were cheap wickets, particularly in a dismal start that saw them slump to 14-3, but Pakistan bowled and fielded with a ruthless zeal, making life constantly difficult for England.

Topley swings and misses, then charges down the track, and England should pick up a sneaky single – but Sarfraz fields brilliantly, diving and turning to rattle the stumps with a direct hit, a split second before Woakes got back in.

50th over: England 213-9 (Woakes 30, Topley 0) In deep trouble after 3.1 overs, looking good for 250+ after 31 overs, this is probably about what England deserve on balance, and it’s certainly under par. Woakes almost finds the boundary with a flay at a full toss, but takes two – and a single puts Topley back on strike...

49th over: England 213-9 (Woakes 30, Topley 0) Yorker, then a bouncer, then a length ball that darts off the seam, as Irfan welcomes Reece Topley to the game. The No11 at least makes it to the end of the over, and Woakes, who has carved out a 30 he won’t have enjoyed, will be on strike for the final over.

Willey loses patience after grubbing to 13 from 24, swinging at an arrow-straight Irfan delivery and turning in time to see his off-stump smashed to pieces.

48th over: England 210-8 (Woakes 29, Willey 11) “Wasting time talking... why bother with that, just go straight upstairs” says Beefy, and thankfully, he’s talking about a review, with Wahab claiming Woakes has edged a yorker through to the wicketkeeper. It’s a hopeful review, and an unsuccessful one. Just one boundary in the last 19 overs, as Pakistan keep England pinned back. Willey and Woakes are forced to scurry for a risky double to move the scoreboard on. When Woakes does get something to aim at, he’s denied by more fantastic fielding from Babar Azam. Pakistan have given very little away in the field today.

47th over: England 207-8 (Woakes 21, Willey 9) Anwar Ali comes into the attack, and gets Willey swinging for six, and hitting fresh air, as the ball bounces limply off the track. Anwar also serves up a slow bouncer as the two batsmen continue to be mercilessly tied in knots. Just two from the over.

“Is it Anwar Ali who bowled the ridiculous in-swingers in the U20 world cup a few years ago?” asks Christopher Dale. Yes, it appears Anwar has some form in that department.

46th over: England 205-8 (Woakes 20, Willey 8) Woakes and Willey are upping the ante in increments, running a lot more singles and getting a double off Wahab after a rare mis-step in the Pakistan field. That takes them over 200, and into the zone marked ‘not a total disaster’.

Willey steers a shot to midwicket, where Anwar has a shy at the stumps, but misses with the batsman stranded. There’s another run-out chance, with Wahab kicking the ball towards the stumps – Root won’t like that – but instead turning his ankle and dislodging the bails with his heel. Clownish, in truth.

45th over: England 198-8 (Woakes 20, Willey 8) Irfan to Woakes, who picks up a couple with a patient stroke past third man. Now they’re motoring! The batsman, already England’s third-highest scorer, then plays at an angled delivery and is fortunate not to edge through to Sarfraz. Another two for Woakes with an awkward drive to mid-on, before Willey again gets a firm bat to a full-blooded yorker.

44th over: England 191-8 (Woakes 15, Willey 6) Yasir back in to Willey, who gets a single, steering a floating delivery to midwicket. Yasir keeps his deliveries full, perhaps not wanting to gift a shot at the fence in pursuit of a wicket. England being suffocated here, but there’s still a few overs to cut loose.

43rd over: England 188-8 (Woakes 14, Willey 4) Some scores England have been on in this innings: 14-3; 146-3; 181-8. Willey is up again, and able to continue, and will be delighted to see Irfan steaming in at him. Pakistan are certainly keeping the heat on the batsmen, who are getting no time to settle, having to chase singles in the scrappiest of fashions. If it’s any consolation, the rest of the innings makes Morgan’s cultured 76 look even better.

42nd over: England 183-8 (Woakes 12, Willey 2) Willey does very well to get his bat to a Wahab yorker that would have rattled the stumps of many more accomplished batsmen. Wahab appeals for lbw, even considering a review, so stunned is he by Willey’s defence. Wahab dishes out more punishment to the new batsman, finishing the over with a bouncer that clubs Willey in the stomach. He tumbles to the turf, clearly in some discomfort, and the physio is heading on.

41st over: England 181-8 (Woakes 11, Willey 1) Don’t despair, England fans (OK, maybe despair a little bit) – David Willey, for a No10, is certainly capable of adding runs to this meagre looking total. He at least adds one, clipping a straight ball behind square leg, before Woakes misreads a cutter that almost clips the stumps. England will do well to see fifty overs out from here.

Pakistan are allowed an extra man in the outfield, but that won’t be necessary, as Rashid surrenders his wicket, wafting pitifully to the substitute at mid-on. Not the best.

40th over: England 178-7 (Woakes 10, Rashid 6) Wahab and Irfan, with just the one wicket between them, have four overs each to bowl in the final ten. This looks a nailed-on maiden, with Wahab trying to force the issue on a flat pitch and Woakes unable to find any rhythm, taking one short ball in the stomach. That’s until the final ball, which flicks off Woakes’ pad and flies away for four leg byes. Scrappy stuff.

39th over: England 174-7 (Woakes 10, Rashid 6) Malik closes out a crucial spell, with Woakes going down on one knee to sweep a full delivery awkwardly over his shoulder. Rashid searches for singles, but picks out the fielder at midwicket, then trundles a flighted ball straight back to the bowler. The run rate, unsurprisingly, is going in the wrong direction.

38th over: England 172-7 (Woakes 9, Rashid 5) The lights are on, and Wahab returns to try and shake up this nascent tail-end partnership. Wahab sticks to a full length, but he’s dealt with comfortably by both batsmen, who pick up three singles in the over. He’s still searching for a wicket, but England are approaching the final ten overs with precious little momentum.

37th over: England 169-7 (Woakes 8, Rashid 3) The game is trundling on, with Rashid and Woakes working a few stodgy singles off Malik, while everyone tries to comprehend exactly how Babar Azam caught that.

“I like to spend all day idly procrastinating from work by following the OBO,” says Ben. “This looks worryingly like I’ll have to get back to work within the next half an hour”. I don’t know these England players can look themselves in the mirror.

36th over: England 166-7 (Woakes 7, Rashid 1) Four wickets in the last six overs, three in the first four, and none inbetween. What a curious innings from England, and 250-plus suddenly looks like a pipe dream. Woakes gets motoring with a four, sending a full toss through four, escaping the clutches of superhuman fielders spotted in that vicinity.

What on earth. Moeen goes, and England teeter on the brink – but he didn’t do a whole lot wrong, dismissed brilliantly by Babar Azam, who threw himself to his left to take a phenomenal one-handed catch at midwicket!

35th over: England 160-6 (Moeen 7, Woakes 2) The spin is starting to work for Pakistan, with Malik taking two key wickets in fading light. 15 overs left – expect Pakistan to stick with this strategy. England are 159-6, with the Morgan-Taylor partnership providing 133 of those runs.

Taylor runs out of chances, following up the dropped catch, the missed lbw and running out a team-mate by edging to Azhar at midwicket, who dives forward to take a fine catch. An ignominous end to what had been an impressive innings.

34th over: England 157-5 (Taylor 60, Moeen 6) Yasir, who is yet to get in on the wicket-taking action, bowling to Moeen, who skips forward and chips over extra cover for a couple. Bumble and Jonathan Trott are discussing Dubsmash. Trott “doesn’t see the fascination”.

33rd over: England 153-5 (Taylor 59, Moeen 3) Malik traps Taylor, with the ball striking the top of the batsman’s prominent front pad. There’s a meek appeal that’s turned down – and Pakistan opt to review, but are told they’re out of time. Replays show it was heading straight for leg stump, and England have had a lucky escape there...

32nd over: England 150-5 (Taylor 58, Moeen 1) So, a teak-tough partnership bisecting a top-order collapse. It’s so England 2015, but there is still plenty of batting ability in the lower order – starting with Moeen, back in a more comfortable No7 slot after his opening adventures. A single each from this over, as Moeen and Taylor begin picking through the rubble.

Poor Jos Buttler. He’s gone cheaply again, although this wasn’t really his fault – Taylor tried to run a risky single, and the ball was fielded smartly by Azhar, with Sarfraz whipping off the bails before Buttler got to the crease.

31st over: England 148-4 (Taylor 57, Buttler 1) Just before Morgan’s dismissal, Taylor had a lucky escape, sending a slog miles into the air, before it fell between Azhar Ali’s outstretched hands. It could have been costly, were it not for Malik’s immediate intervention. Let’s hope the next man in isn’t horribly short of confidence, eh?

Malik gets a bit of turn, and Morgan gets the thinnest of edges that flies through to Sarfraz. Out of nowhere, the captain has gone!

30th over: England 146-3 (Morgan 75, Taylor 56) The first close call in quite some time, as Taylor mistimes a cut down the off-side, and swishes at fresh air, almost edging through to Sarfraz. Taylor rotates the strike with a punch into the covers, and Morgan sees out the over in composed fashion.

29th over: England 143-3 (Morgan 74, Taylor 54) Shot! Taylor, who seems to have enjoyed this knock immensely, reaches his half-century by skipping down the track, swinging and sending a loose Malik ball into the stands.

Tom van der Gucht has worked the Lancaster story into a cricketing riff, doing my job so I don’t have to:

28th over: England 134-3 (Morgan 73, Taylor 47) England taking a leaf out of their opponents’ book and playing spin with plenty of attacking intent - Morgan continues the theme, getting set for a sweep that gleans three runs. Taylor on strike, and with Yasir working down his off-side, he cuts through the covers for a single. The partnership is up to 120.

27th over: England 130-3 (Morgan 69, Taylor 45) Irfan is given the hook, replaced by Bilal, whose first ball is not the best, and is smacked haughtily through midwicket for four by Morgan, who will take those all day long. Taylor gets in on the action, shuffling his feet and smashing Bilal back down the ground – and all the way for a six! That bowling change didn’t work.

26th over: England 117-3 (Morgan 64, Taylor 39) It’s been a slightly stickier spell for England, with the boundaries drying up as Irfan and Yasir offer a beguiling contrast from either end. Yasir keeps Morgan on the back foot, save for a wonky wallop down the ground that drops short of long-on.

Crowd watch: a much more vocal and visible audience today, with the sun setting and, presumably, fans able to enjoy the cricket with the working day over. A fair few are asleep, mind you.

25th over: England 115-3 (Morgan 63, Taylor 38) Irfan, who may have hoped for better after that lethal first over, keeps Morgan guessing with variations in pace, but coughs up a couple of wides in his pursuit of a breakthrough wicket. England halfway, and looking set to build a target of 250-plus – that might be enough with Pakistan batting under the lights.

24th over: England 112-3 (Morgan 63, Taylor 37) Back comes Yasir Shah, but his first ball is dragged down and lofted over midwicket for a couple by Morgan. Yasir does find a bit of turn, but off a short ball that Morgan can dab away to square leg. Just two from the over. What’s with this Pakistan kit, by the way? It’s an austere shade of forest green – I like my Pakistan one-day kits in a more garish hue, somewhere between lime and hi-vis jacket.

23rd over: England 110-3 (Morgan 61, Taylor 37) Taylor has taken his runs however he can get them, racing for a single after a tickle into the covers. England keep adding singles, with Irfan unable to get much pace out of the pitch. Morgan flicks a full toss away for one, Taylor edges awkwardly through point... runs are runs, though, as Root and Roy will be happy to tell you, and four more will bring up a century partnership.

22nd over: England 106-3 (Morgan 59, Taylor 35) Wahab is still gunning for Morgan, but the captain is well and truly settled in now. There’s a bit of a break as Wahab fiddles with the studs on his shoes. I was hoping for a padded-up Joe Root to come out of the pavilion to remonstrate with him, but no dice. Wahab tries the slower ball, then a fuller ball, but Morgan stands firm. Just a wide from the over.

21st over: England 105-3 (Morgan 59, Taylor 35) Another canny couple of singles bring up triple figures – an eminently respectable recovery after falling to 18-3. Taylor is finding a bit of silk to go with the steel, driving through the covers for another four to close the over.

A student union is missing a DJ if the tunes blaring out at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium are anything to go by. #PakvEng

20th over: England 98-3 (Morgan 57, Taylor 30) Taylor, who has scurried tirelessly in support of the more elegant Morgan, gets in on the fence-finding with a sweet drive for four off a wide Wahab delivery – that’s just his second boundary so far.

19th over: England 92-3 (Morgan 56, Taylor 25) Morgan, now wedged awkwardly between Graeme Hick and Alan Lamb on the all-time ODI runs list, picks up a tenth boundary with a late chop behind point, as the partnership edges beyond 75.

18th over: England 87-3 (Morgan 52, Taylor 24) Wahab bustles through another threatening over, with just one run taken from it, Taylor tucking the ball off his hip and running a quick single, summing up his innings nicely.

“People don’t understand comedy” sighs Robert Wilson. “They don’t know hard it is, how much absolute commitment it takes. Great comedy requires flawless structure and total economy. The first few overs of this innings were near-perfection (the brilliant bathos of the Hales dismissal!). I’m awed by the standard. And now this humourless and philistine pair look set to ruin it.”

17th over: England 86-3 (Morgan 52, Taylor 23) Bilal Asif, the off-spinner whose curious action has been freshly cleared, allowing him to return to the team, comes into the attack. Taylor takes a quick single first ball – almost too quick, as it’s tossed back at the stumps with Morgan chasing, but flies wide. Morgan brings up his fifty with a delivery that sits up nicely, and is blasted beyond midwicket. He’s looked in excellent nick on his return.

16th over: England 79-3 (Morgan 47, Taylor 21) With England coping comfortably with the spin, so it’s time for Wahab to try and break this partnership. The seamer, who summoned reverse swing from this flat track in the first Test, has Morgan on his heels throughout the over, but the hustling Taylor picks up a couple of runs to keep things moving.

In non-cricket news – rugby union, to be precise – Stuart Lancaster has left his post as England’s head coach with immediate effect. More on that here.

15th over: England 76-3 (Morgan 46, Taylor 19) Morgan is still finding the gaps at will, and cracks Malik through point for another four – his eighth boundary, as he edges towards a crucial half-century. Drinks time!

“As well as being Armistice Day in Europe and Singles Day in China, today is also Corduroy Appreciation Day, when devotees wear whatever such garments they have” purrs John Starbuck. “I urge OBO readers to get into some wardrobe action to help matters run more smoothly. We need every chance we can get.”

14th over: England 69-3 (Morgan 41, Taylor 17) Morgan has played some imperious stuff so far, and the opening shot of the over – a contemptuous swat through the off side for four – is the pick of the punch. The captain gets forward on the next ball and drives in the same direction – but Wahab saves the boundary with a bit of acrobatic fielding. Whisper it, but England can almost see daylight from the almighty hole they dug for themselves.

13th over: England 61-3 (Morgan 34, Taylor 16) Malik to Taylor, who repeats his scoop shot trick, and can’t resist a wry smile at his own audacity. Morgan, still scoring at a run a ball, nabs a single with a prod towards midwicket.

12th over: England 57-3 (Morgan 33, Taylor 13) After losing three wickets in a shade over three overs, these two have certainly settled things down. They keep the scoreboard ticking over, both aiming towards backward point to pick up quick singles. Could Pakistan regret not throwing Wahab Riaz in when England were teetering on the brink?

11th over: England 52-3 (Morgan 32, Taylor 9) There are now just four fielders allowed outside the 30-yard circle, and the upshot is an over where England run for six in the over – the highlight a cheeky flick over Sarfraz for two from Taylor. Pakistan respond by handing Yasir Shah the ball...

Nick Clark isn’t happy: “It’s my birthday, I’ve needed to get up at 6.30 to spend an hour and half on tube for a bloody training course despite having booked the day as holiday, and now I’ve looked at the cricket score. It’s not going quite as planned...” Happy birthday, Nick.

10th over: England 46-3 (Morgan 30, Taylor 5) Morgan is finding his groove, stepping out of the crease and sending Anwar’s first ball back over the bowler’s head for a one-bounce four. His tactic seems to be to exercise patience, and pick up boundaries rather than grub for singles. It’s working for him, and he notches another four with a tidy cover drive. Just as he’s starting to look impressive, he edges a short ball perilously close to his stumps. It’s the England way.

9th over: England 37-3 (Morgan 21, Taylor 5) Malik, who has retired from the Test team, takes the ball and will bowl to Morgan from the north end. Morgan gets a fourth boundary with a sweep past backward square, and bunkers down for the rest of the over, adding just a single with a punch past mid-off. 21 in 21 balls for Morgan, while the doughty Taylor has five from 17.

8th over: England 32-3 (Morgan 16, Taylor 5) Oof! Anwar continues – Wahab and Yasir haven’t bowled a ball yet, by the way – and almost takes care of Morgan, the captain flaying off his pads, just beyond a diving Malik at midwicket! It would have been an exceptional catch, but it was too close for comfort. It runs away for four. There is certainly a bit more life in this pitch than in the Test match, when it had all the fizz and ferocity of an old mattress.

7th over: England 27-3 (Morgan 12, Taylor 5) Irfan attempts to fire a bouncer at Morgan, but it pops apologetically up off the service, and Morgan is able to swish it wide of short leg for a couple of runs. An ugly full toss from Irfan closes the over, which is allowed by the umpires despite passing Taylor at around nipple height.

6th over: England 24-3 (Morgan 9, Taylor 5) Taylor has brought a sense of calm to the crease that, quite frankly, was urgently needed. After straight-batting his way through the over, he whips the final delivery through midwicket for four, his first boundary of the innings.

5th over: England 19-3 (Morgan 8, Taylor 1) Irfan bowls to Taylor, who is around 18 inches shorter than the seamer, just in case England didn’t feel intimidated enough. Irfan gets overexcited, picking up a warning for running down the track. Taylor handles Irfan’s heat with aplomb, defending before aiming a drive past mid-on – but Bilal does well to field it. A maiden.

“Finally we get a good start in this tour. I mean, OK, we lost the toss again, but 3 down, nothing on the board, our bowlers tearing in…. hang on, sorry, what? England are in? Does anyone have any gin?” weeps Guy Hornsby.

4th over: England 19-3 (Morgan 8, Taylor 1) A second wicket for Ali, though it didn’t take anything too special to dislodge Hales from the crease, as the opener edged thoughtlessly into the slips. Morgan adds a more composed boundary, cracking a decent delivery through cover point for four.

A terrific tactical ploy from England here, lulling Pakistan into a false sense of security. To be fair, Pakistan’s bowlers have been deadly thus far, and Anwar finds an outside edge. It flies to slip, and the retiring Younis gathers it at the second attempt.

3rd over: England 14-2 (Hales 10, Morgan 4) Irfan to Hales, with Morgan at the other end, probably not relishing facing the big man any time soon. It’s a low bounce that almost has Hales in trouble, with a nervous edge just falling short of the slips. Hales takes three with a nice stroke through midwicket, and now Morgan will face up to Irfan, with a short leg in place. The first is a full ball that Morgan adjusts to dab away, the second is a snorter that Morgan flaps at, with a glove edging the ball over Sarfraz and away for a fortunate four.

2nd over: England 7-2 (Hales 7, Morgan 0) Eoin Morgan sees out the final ball of the over, making a welcome return to the crease after that blow to the head he suffered against Australia. He’s got a major spot of ship steadying to do here.

The review confirms what we all suspected, as although the ball was darting towards the edge of leg stump, it remains umpire’s call. Joe Root joins Jason Roy back in the pavilion without a run to his name.

2nd over: England 7-1 (Hales 7, Root 0) Hales gets off the mark with a tasty drive straight back past new bowler Anwar that runs away for four. Hales picks up three with a clip to backward square. Root on strike, and Anwar looks to have trapped him lbw! The ball juts back in past the inside edge, and catches Root square on the pad, but Root will review.

1st over: England 0-1 (Hales 0, Root 0) A wicket maiden for Irfan, and the lofty seamer caught Jason Roy completely cold there. Joe Root is the man in at the crease, seeing out a ferocious opening over in cagey fashion.

Irfan opens the bowling, and with his second ball, he dispenses with Jason Roy, who is castled by a full delivery that moves back in and crashes into the stumps. A fine start for England.

It’s Armistice Day, and both teams observe a minute’s silence out on the pitch. Play begins in five minutes.

England and Pakistan mark #ArmisticeDay by observing a silence before today's ODI #LestWeForgetpic.twitter.com/dMHLsAZjTH

A couple more chunks of cricketing news, before we get this show on the road. First up, England’s women’s side have named their new head coach – it’s Mark Robinson, the current Sussex coach, who will replace Paul Shaw.

And – banter alert! – Mitchell Marsh and Peter Siddle poked fun at a sleeping Darren Lehmann on the Australian team’s flight to Perth, and are now sweating over making the team for the second Test.

Pakistan: Azhar (c), Bilal, Hafeez, Younis, Malik, Babar Azam, Sarfraz (wk), Anwar, Wahab, Yasir, Irfan.

England: Morgan (c), Roy, Hales, Root, Taylor, Buttler (wk), Moeen, Woakes, Rashid, Willey, Topley.

England win the toss, and will bat first. Eoin Morgan says he expects ODIs to be “a different challenge” – one that will be taken on by the same team who lined up against Hong Kong in the warm-up. Azhar Ali plans to win the match for the departing Younis Khan, but accepts that batting first hands England a slight advantage. Official team news to follow shortly...

Breaking news...

Pakistan’s Younis Khan will retire from one-day internationals after today’s match. That’s right, not after the series – Khan will play the opener, then call it a day. The 37-year-old is set to make his first (and, it would seem, last) appearance since the World Cup, having been recalled to the one-day team for this series.

Hello. Watching England play cricket is rarely plain sailing, but 2015 has been particularly hard on the nerves. This four match, limited overs series with Pakistan offers a chance for the one-day side to inject some optimism after a dispiriting Test series defeat. In a year that’s seen an Ashes triumph and World Cup humiliation, that statement alone offers an indication of England’s constant unpredictability.

It’s not just blind faith that gives England supporters hope against the opponents that outfoxed them over fifteen hard days in the Gulf. Pakistan are second in the Test rankings, but only eighth in the limited-overs standings, and are somehow even more inconsistent than their opponents in this format, having spent the summer muddling through series against Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Zimbabwe. England can ill afford to be too bullish, with captain Eoin Morgan and vice-captain Jos Buttler gingerly returning to the crease for very different reasons.

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