In the second Test in Multan on Friday, Pakistan’s front-line spinners bowled England to a victory of 152 runs, leveling the three-match series at 1-1. Noman Ali took eight wickets in the process.
England was all out for 144 in the morning session of the fourth day, chasing 297 for victory on a turning ground at the Multan Cricket Stadium.
The best bowler for Pakistan, Noman claimed 8-46.
In the match, spinners Noman and Sajid Khan claimed all 20 wickets—a feat that has only been accomplished seven times in Test cricket history and once in 52 years.
With 37 goals, England’s captain Ben Stokes led the team in scoring, although their front-line hitters had trouble facing the turning ball.
“After my first test victory as Pakistan captain, I think the first one’s always special, and it’s come after some hard times, some rough times,” Shan Masood remarked.
It’s never easy for Noman and Sajid to play in their debut games, but in the second inning, they looked like two seasoned veterans coming in and getting the job done.
The fact that we didn’t require a third bowler says a lot about them.
When England started on 36-2, Pakistan was already in control and would require a remarkable batting performance to get close to the score.
In the second over of the day, vice-captain Ollie Pope (22) fell, allowing off-spinner Sajid Khan to make a return catch before left-arm spinner Noman went on the rampage.
When Noman trapped Joe Root lbw for 18, a call the batter reviewed but was unable to overturn, he delivered a body blow to the tourists.
In a similar vein, Harry Brook (16) was dismissed by Noman, and England collapsed to 88-6 after Jamie Smith was removed.
Throughout his remarkable career, Stokes has produced several game-changing hits, and England desperately needed an identical performance from him.
Coming dancing down the track against Noman, the skipper was scoring runs at a pace of one every delivery. He swung his bat, but it flew out of his hands to midwicket.
With Stokes well out of the crease, Pakistani wicketkeeper Muhammad Rizwan had all the time in the world to collect the ball and rip off the bail.
“We had to figure out a way to counteract that spin when we had such extreme conditions, and I think we did well in some areas,” Stokes said.
“… we would have preferred to have continued, particularly me and a few of the guys who received starts; we could even be able to draw nearer to winning the game.”
On Thursday, the third and final Test gets underway in Rawalpindi.
