Pakistan Collapses for 133 in First Innings Against England in Third Test as Captain Babar Azam Discloses Unconsulted Changes
LONDON: Pakistan’s bowlers could not do it better in the opening innings of the third Test against England, surrendering a paltry 133 runs from the bowlers.
Pakistan’s batting order collapsed when England chose to bat first at Lord’s. Vice-captain Saud Shakeel led the way with 43 runs, with Muhammad Abbas (21) and debutant Razaullah (11), respectively. The other national players failed to reach double digits with captain Babar Azam finding himself out for a duck, Saim Ayub got 9, Abdullah Shafique scored 3, debutant Ghazi Ghori scored 4, debutant Mohammad Imran 5 and Shan Masood 5.
Produce: Bowling Brilliance and Debutants
Josh Hull (4 wickets) and Ollie Robinson/Jofra Archer (3 wickets apiece) picked up their wickets for England.
Pakistan gave their Test debuts to three players, Ghazi Ghori, Razaullah and Imran Randhawa, in the match. Saud Shakeel has given the Test cap to Ghazi Ghori, Babar Azam has given the cap to Imran Randhawa and Muhammad Abbas to Razaullah. England are now comfortably 2-0 up in the three-match series.
Captain Babar Azam vents frustration on Selection
Addressing the press after the match, Babar Azam said the playing XI that had been changed on the day had come as a surprise to him as the changes had been made without his knowledge, consultation or formal approval.
When asked how he got the word about the team selection, Babar admitted that he was hearing about it in the board’s official press release and there’s no reason why the captain should not always be in the loop if proper selection process is being followed.