England v Pakistan, 1st Test, Day 3 – 5 Defining Moments Of The Day

The excitement in the ongoing Lord’s test between England and Pakistan did not drop a bit on the third day as England clawed their way back into the game wonderfully. England gave away a 67 runs lead to Pakistan after getting wrapped up for 272 in the first inning batting in reply to visitor’s 339. The Hosts had the edge in the game in the morning session but the bowling attack did a fantastic job once against. Chris Woakes added one more 5-wicket haul to his name and was at the helm of the proceedings. Moeen Ali and Stuart Broad also made great contributions. Despite a poor show of batting in the second inning, Pakistan hasa handsome lead over England. Tomorrow’s day will be crucial for both the teams as it will determine which the momentum will swing for both the team.

1.Chris Woakes sizzles again:

Chris Woakes continued his fine form and snapped another five-wicket haul to end the day with a match tally of 11/101. Woakes was again the man who made the most impact with the ball. His day began with the quick scalps of Shan Masood and Azhar Ali after Broad snapped Hafeez quickly.  Thee quick wickets sent Pakistan on the backfoot. He continued his brilliant spell and added the resilient Asad Shafiq and Sarfraz Ahmed to his kitty. Wahab Riaz became his fifth victim of the day as the right arm fast bowler ended with 5/31 to his name. He also completed his 400th FC wicket when he dismissed Azhar Ali.

2. A century and a duck:

Misbah ul Haq, who stole the show with his fluent century, did not get a chance to replicate his famous celebratory style as he was dismissed for a two ball duck. It was sort of crisis situation in the middle after Shan Masood and Azhar Ali departed in quick time. But, unfortunately, he couldn’t contribute much as Moeen Ali made him depart in just a matter of two balls. Misbah was caught by Hales while trying to slog one to the leg side. By registering a duck following a ton, Misbah made himself one of the only 4 batsmen had got a duck and a hundred in their first Test at Lord’s. Only Sid Barnes, Charlie Davis and Dilip Vengsarkar had done this before.

3. Asad Shafiq and Sarfraz fight it out:

Pakistan found respite in the form of Asad Shafiq and Sarfraz Ahmed.  Shafiq followed up his 79 runs knock in the first inning with a vital 49 today. There was a sense of urgency when he came out to bat as Pakistan were crumbling badly. But, Shafiq played to his reputation and managed to add important runs before departing one run short of consecutive half-centuries. Another man who did the rescue work for Pakistan was Sarfraz Ahmed, who made a patient 45 to help Pakistan slowly get back to its feet.

4. Yasir Shah strikes (with the bat this time):

Leg-spinner Yasir Shah is having a great time at the Lord’s. After snaring a match-defining 6 wicket haul, Shah came out to bat and made valuable contributions, hitting an unbeaten 30 off 57 balls. His busy knock had glimpses of aggression which kept the entertainment quotient high till the end of the day. Shah clubbed 5 boundaries in his short knock. Pakistan will surely anticipate few more tomorrow morning.

5. Pakistan stretches lead:

Pakistan batted terribly as compared to how they batted in the first innings. They ended the day with 214/8 after Chris Woakes rattled them with yet another 5 wicket haul. Fortunately, they still have a handsome lead of 281 runs, courtesy their superb bowling performances in the first innings where they bundled up the host for just 272 runs, gaining a vital 57 run lead.