England Crush Pakistan by 194 Runs to Seal Series at Lord’s

LONDON: England secured a 194-run victory over Pakistan in the second Test at Lord’s on Sunday, wrapping up the three-match series with a game to spare and taking an unassailable 2-0 lead.

Pakistan, set 389 to win, were dismissed for 194 in just 50.5 overs. Saud Shakeel produced a fighting 97, but his determined effort was not enough to prevent another defeat for the visitors. Imam-ul-Haq, who was carrying an injury, did not bat during Pakistan’s second innings.

England remained in command for most of the chase, but Pakistan briefly threatened to extend the contest during the final session. Saud and Ali Usman added 31 runs for the seventh wicket before Jofra Archer ended the stand by having Usman caught for 16 from 44 balls, including two fours.

Shakeel continued to battle on as wickets fell around him, moving within touching distance of a fifth Test century. His resistance finally ended on 97 when Josh Tongue found his edge, with the batter’s 122-ball innings containing 13 fours and two sixes.

Tongue completed England’s victory shortly afterwards. He dismissed Khurram Shahzad for nine before removing the final batter, Ali, for eight, sealing the hosts’ second consecutive win of the series.

Earlier, Saud had combined with Shan Masood to revive Pakistan’s hopes after a disastrous start. The pair added 97 for the fourth wicket, with Saud reaching his 11th Test fifty and batting positively to keep Pakistan’s chase alive.

The partnership was broken by Ollie Robinson, who removed Shan for 26 from 72 deliveries. Robinson struck again in his next spell, trapping Mohammad Rizwan lbw for just one and reducing Pakistan to 115/5.

Pakistan’s chase had begun in disastrous fashion. Azan Awais was trapped lbw by Robinson for six on the third ball of the fifth over, and the England seamer struck again on the final delivery to dismiss Abdullah Shafique without scoring.

Jofra Archer then added to Pakistan’s problems by dismissing captain Babar Azam for six, leaving the visitors at 14/3 after only 7.1 overs.

England had earlier been bowled out for 208 in their second innings, leaving Pakistan with a challenging target of 389.

Mohammad Abbas was the standout performer with the ball for Pakistan, claiming his eighth Test five-wicket haul. England resumed the fourth morning on 177/7 and added 31 runs before losing their final three wickets.

Dan Lawrence top-scored with 54 from 70 balls, striking seven fours and two sixes, before his dismissal opened the door for Pakistan to wrap up the innings. Abbas then removed Ollie Robinson for eight to complete his five-wicket haul, while Josh Tongue was run out by Babar Azam for 12.

Abbas ended with excellent figures of 5/57 from 22 overs, while Mohammad Ali and Khurram Shahzad picked up two wickets each.

England had initially appeared to be on the back foot after Pakistan enjoyed a strong opening day. However, the hosts recovered from 243/9 in their first innings through a valuable 47-run last-wicket partnership between Josh Tongue and Gus Atkinson, taking their total to 290.

England’s bowlers then dismantled Pakistan for only 110 in 37.2 overs to establish a decisive 180-run advantage. Imam-ul-Haq was again unable to contribute with the bat because of injury.

The victory at Lord’s gives England an unassailable 2-0 advantage in the three-Test series, leaving Pakistan with only the final match to avoid a clean sweep.