Haris Sohail (right) and Imam-ul-Haq celebrate after leading Pakistan to a commanding victory
Image courtesy of: Zimbio
Pakistan produced a stunning display of cricket to annihilate England by nine wickets and make history on the fourth day of the first Test at Lord’s.
Pakistan’s comprehensive victory, which gave them a 1-0 lead in the two-Test series, marked the first time England have lost the first Test of their summer at home since falling to the West Indies back in 1995.
Starting off the day on 235/6, England were dealt a huge blow on the eighth ball of the day as Jos Buttler was trapped lbw off the bowling of Mohammad Abbas for 67, which came off 138 balls and included six boundaries.
Buttler opted to review the decision, but it didn’t save him as replays showed that the ball was pitching in line and going on to hit the stumps.
Mark Wood did not last long at the crease as he was caught behind off the bowling of Mohammad Amir for four runs.
Stuart Broad failed to trouble the scorers as he was caught behind off the bowling of Abbas for a duck.
England ended up being bowled out for 242, which set Pakistan a target of 64 to win, when debutant Dominic Bess was cleaned up by Amir for 57, which came off 106 balls and included eight boundaries.
Abbas and Amir picked up four wickets apiece, while Shadab Khan chipped in with two.
Chasing 64 to win, Pakistan made a disappointing start to their innings as opener Azhar Ali was clean bowled by James Anderson for four runs.
Despite the loss of Azhar, Haris Sohail and Imam-ul-Haq finished things off with an unbeaten 54-run partnership.
Sohail finished on 39 off 32 balls, which included six boundaries and a six, while Imam remained undefeated on 18 off 34 deliveries, which included two boundaries.
Anderson was the only bowler to take a wicket.
England captain Joe Root was less than impressed with his side’s performance, and said: “Not good enough. We were out-performed in all three departments. We needed more runs in the first innings. I think we did some really good work leading into the game, making sure we were ready, but we just didn’t follow through.
“We played some poor shots, gave some wickets away. You can’t afford to do that. You look at the wicket now and you see how abrasive it is, would have been a different game batting last on that surface.
“As a batting group we have to find a way. You have to read the game, absorbing a bit of pressure, getting through tricky periods. We have to be a bit smarter. It’s a difficult pill to swallow. We have to be better. I’m sure we can bounce back.”
Pakistan skipper Sarfraz Ahmed was thrilled to have won, and said: “I’m very proud of my team, the way the young players produced their talent. When we came here, we were very inexperienced but we were very confident.
“We have a very good bowling side. Our coaching staff worked really hard, told us to pitch it up. The way the bowlers did the job for us was great. We worked really hard on our fielding. Our catching was fantastic. The Malahide game was a very tough game, the way we won the match it was good for us.”
Abbas was named Man of the Match, and said: “I enjoyed it a lot, Lord’s a full house, enjoyed very moment of it. Thank you to PCB for letting me come to Leicester [as it] helped me get used to conditions and helped me pitch it up. Glenn McGrath and Mohammad Asif are my heroes. Learnt a lot from Asif who has been a great help to me.”