Wicket! Broad lbw b Yasir 7 (England 273-7)
Broad misses the slog-sweep and goes without even reviewing. IS he feeling OK?
Mid-82nd over: England 272-6 (Woakes 80, Broad 7) And the new ball is shared by… Yasir Shah! He gives Woakes some room, which brings a single to the sweeper. Now Broad has the strike and he can finish it with a four…
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81st over: England 272-6 (Woakes 79, Broad 7) Shaheen tries a short one and Woakes pulls for a single. What a hand he has played here. Bowls well, too. England need 5.
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Mid-81st over: England 271-6 (Woakes 78, Broad 7) Woakes goes for a big drive, gets an inside edge, but luckily for him it thuds into his pad. And then there’s a no-ball! A big one, too. Woakes gets some width, his second-favourite thing after shampoo, and he drives for two. And then for four! Straight past the bowler, sweetly timed. England need 6.
More runs for Chris Woakes. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian
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80th over: England 264-6 (Woakes 72, Broad 7) Yasir overpitches, allowing Woakes to swish for a single off the last ball of the over. The new ball is being handed to Shaheen. England need 13. Pakistan need another twist.
“Test cricket eh?” says Sam Walker. “Bloody hell!”
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Mid-80th over: England 263-6 (Woakes 71, Broad 7) Broad sweeps again… and it thuds into the man at short leg. Painful but effective. Another sweep, a single this time. Meanwhile Shaheen is getting loose, a hint that the new ball is going to be taken. England need 14.
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79th over: England 262-6 (Woakes 71, Broad 6) A full toss from Shadab, and Broad will be rather miffed to have swept it for a mere single. Shadab recovers to bowl two dot balls to Woakes. England need 15. The tension is delicious.
Mid-79th over: England 261-6 (Woakes 71, Broad 5) Azhar keeps faith with Shadab, and Broad sweeps him for four! England need 16.
Broad sweeps. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian
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78th over: England 257-6 (Woakes 71, Broad 1) Buttler, back in the zone now, tucked Yasir for two, then reverse-swept for two more, helped by a misfield. But then he tried one reverse-sweep too many. And England have sent in Stuart Broad, their reborn resident slogger, which (by the way) is an idea Rob Smyth floated in a text before the start of play. Broad’s Test average this summer is 102. Good move, on paper… England need 20.
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Wicket! Buttler lbw b Yasir 75 (England 256-6)
Umpire’s call!! Oof. Well bowled Yasir, and very well played Jos Buttler – a beautiful counter-attack and an innings to silence all those critics of his. England need 21. Has the twist come just in time?
Jos Buttler walks. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian
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77th over: England 252-5 (Buttler 71, Woakes 71) Shadab drops short, Buttler’s eyes light up and that’s six! Pulled over midwicket. England need 25. Back to the fives and twos.
76th over: England 244-5 (Buttler 64, Woakes 70) Yasir turns one past Woakes’s bat as it dangles out there, doing nothing. Woakes pulls himself together and goes back to his signature drive. This is now his second-highest score for England, and the second-highest score of this match, and surely his best Test innings. England need 33.
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75th over: England 243-5 (Buttler 64, Woakes 69) Buttler miscues a pull – and it loops up and falls safely in the middle of nowhere. England need 34. Five overs to the new ball. “Gotta take it,” says Shane Warne. “Fantastic effort this from England. Lotta ticker.” Praise comes no higher from an Aussie.
74th over: England 241-5 (Buttler 63, Woakes 68) Buttler is calm enough to reverse-sweep Yasir, though he only gets a single for it. Woakes cuts for two, then squirts for one. Another single from Buttler and England need 36.
73rd over: England 236-5 (Buttler 61, Woakes 65) Azhar saw Yasir making things happen again and summoned his lesser leggie, Shadab – who very nearly made something happen too. Got to feel for Pakistan, they haven’t done much wrong here. And they can still turn it round. England need 41. The second new ball, due in seven overs, is back in the frame now.
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Not out!
It was missing off, by about three millimetres. And Pakistan are out of reviews! Tim Paine, I hope you’re watching.
72nd over: England 235-5 (Buttler 60, Woakes 65) Buttler is hit on the shoulder as Yasir gets one to pop – the fireworks may have returned. He decides to take charge and reverts to the reverse sweep. It’s only a single, but it’s a nice moment of self-assertion. England need 42. This is crunch time.
“I do hope,” says Andy Bradshaw, “people haven’t been conned by that conniving dastardly harlot Hope into thinking England have a chance. Beware, let her in through the door and her evil colleagues Heart Break and Despair will burst in through the toilet window whilst she has you distracted.”
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Not out!
Buttler was cutting, too close… but Ultra Edge has nothing, so that’s a fine decision from Richard Kettleborough.
71st over: England 233-5 (Buttler 59, Woakes 64) Shaheen continues, and still there’s not much happening for him. Buttler spots a slower ball and clips it for a couple. If this was a story by Arthur Conan Doyle, it would be called The Strange Case of the Missing Fireworks. England need 44.
“It’s noticeable,” notes Brian Withington, “that England’s batting has understandably become somewhat more cautious as we lurch from the depths of WinViz improbability towards something approaching favouritism. Time to be very afraid.”
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70th over: England 230-5 (Buttler 57, Woakes 64) Pakistan need a wicket so badly and Yasir almost delivers, persuading Woakes to glove a leg-break that lands just short of gully. Woakes, rattled, flails at a long hop and misses. When he shovels to leg, Buttler calls him for a quick single which is just what is needed – shepherding his mate up to the other end. England need 47.
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69th over: England 228-5 (Buttler 56, Woakes 63) Woakes, facing Shaheen, gets one where he likes it, outside off, and cuts for two more. He adds a single before Buttler gets another yorker and digs it out calmly enough. The camera goes to Stokes, who has made no runs in this match – but has surely played a part in this partnership, by giving England belief that they can pull off unlikely run chases.
68th over: England 225-5 (Buttler 56, Woakes 60) Yasir finds the edge of Woakes’s bat, only to see it scoot away for two through the vacant gully. Woakes adds another single, driven down to long-off. England need 52. And Pakistan need five wickets. “A pleasing array of fives and twos,” says my daughter Laura (22) on the sofa next to me.
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67th over: England 222-5 (Buttler 56, Woakes 57) Shaheen tries the toe-ball, but Buttler has seen a few of those on his white-ball travels and gets enough on it to glance for a hard-run two. England need 55. They may even be able to cope with a double Nelson.
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66th over: England 219-5 (Buttler 54, Woakes 56) Woakes cuts Yasir for a single to bring up a quite superb hundred partnership off 123 balls. This is how to counter-attack. Buttler made the running at first, then Woakes nipped past him. England need 58.
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“Has WinViz been drinking?” asks Tom van der Gucht. “It has lurched wildly in terms of its predictions today. Just before Sibley was out, England were at something ridiculous like a 70% chance of winning. It’s like an Englishman who’s spent the day tanking pints of Stella in a pub beer garden, swaying from bonhomie to truculent to tearful to philosophical in the early evening summer sun.” Beautifully put.
65th over: England 216-5 (Buttler 53, Woakes 54) It’s a double change as Azhar brings back Shaheen, much to the relief of Michael Holding, who wants to see the ball angling into Woakes, not feeding his strength on the off side. The batsmen take a couple more singles. They need another 61.
And that’s drinks, with England unable to believe what a good hour they’ve just had. There has to be a snag, doesn’t there?
62nd over: England 214-5 (Buttler 52, Woakes 53) What would you do in Azhar Ali’s shoes? Turn, I suspect, to your senior leggie. Off goes Abbas, back comes Yasir. Buttler is now confident enough to sweep him out of the rough, which yields a single. That’s the only run from the over as Woakes treats Yasir with the respect his performance has earned.
63rd over: England 213-5 (Buttler 51, Woakes 53) Before the drive that brought up his fifty, Woakes stepped away to leg and smashed a four off a bouncer from Naseem – a stroke that was half Bob Willis, half Novak Djokovic. Which may be a first in sporting history. Eleven off the over! England need 64. And WinViz gives them 61pc now, which may be overdoing it.
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Fifty to Woakes!!
Reached with his signature cover drive off Naseem – 52 off 59 balls. That is a very timely return to form from a man who couldn’t buy a run in the past few Tests.
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Fifty to Buttler!
Reached with a controlled pull, off only 55 balls. Is it safe to mention Universe Jos?
Chris Woakes and Jos Buttler punch gloves after Buttler reaches fifty. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian
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62nd over: England 202-5 (Buttler 49, Woakes 44) Woakes lives dangerously again, almost chipping Abbas to mid-off. But Abbas is a bit rattled, for such a master craftsman – he digs one in short, and Woakes easily swivel-pulls for another single. Buttler takes a single too, with a tuck to midwicket. These two have been so positive that they’re close to taking the new ball out of the picture.
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61st over: England 200-5 (Buttler 48, Woakes 43) Another single for Buttler, soft-handsing Naseem into the gap at point. “This is not what Pakistan are good at,” mutters Nasser, “this is line and length.” Not usually a problem in Test cricket, but you know what he means. And then Woakes gets just enough width to play a late glide for four. The Pakistanis have a conference, Woakes pops a pull this close to Yasir at midwicket, but gets away with it. England need 77. WinViz now gives them 47pc, Pakistan 52. Thank God for the 1pc chance of a tie – otherwise it would be Brexit all over again.
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60th over: England 194-5 (Buttler 47, Woakes 38) Woakes plays-and-misses at Abbas, but recovers with a clip for a single. Buttler follows suit, and then Abbas, straying onto the pads for a third time, lets Woakes clip for four. That may be the most wayward over Mo has ever bowled. England need another 83.
“What a game,” says Mohammad Yasir. “If Pakistan can nick some maidens they might make the new ball with something to play with. With Broad to come, England have this in the bag.” Is it me or is it easier to agree with the first point than the second?
59th over: England 188-5 (Buttler 46, Woakes 33) Yes, it’s Naseem Shah, bursting to find the bounce that defeated Ollie Pope. He’s up to 87mph right away and Buttler treats him with respect, playing very straight – until he gets a shorter ball and pulls it for four, raspingly, to midwicket. That may be the shot of the day, even better than the reverse sweeps. The partnership is 71 off 85 balls, slowing down now, but still offering a smidgen of hope. What a shame there’s no crowd in to surf on that feeling.
58th over: England 184-5 (Buttler 42, Woakes 33) Buttler takes a quick single off Abbas and would be out if the throw from backward point was a direct hit, but it wasn’t. The Shadab experiment may be over – Naseem Shah is loosening up, as if you need to do that when you’re as outrageously young as he allegedly is. England need 93.
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57th over: England 183-5 (Buttler 41, Woakes 33) With Shadab bowling and the field back, there’s some milking to be done. More singles and a two for Woakes, who sees a full toss and tucks in. England’s win percentage on CricViz is now 36, with the tie on 1pc.
56th over: England 179-5 (Buttler 40, Woakes 30) Abbas to Woakes. We thought Woakes was Mr Impeccable, but that was before we saw Abbas’s line and length. Woakes thick-edges him, safely enough, for another single, to bring the target to a round 100. Buttler take sa single too, with the keeper up to pin him to his crease. “While you’ve got Buttler,” says Nasser Hussain, “you’ve got hope.”
Woakes takes yet another single, which gets him to 30. There haven’t been many 30s in this Test: three in Pakistan’s first innings, two in England’s first, one in Pakistan’s second (Yasir, of all people) – and now four in England’s second. If one of these two batsmen can turn 30 into 80, they’re in with a chance.
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55th over: England 176-5 (Buttler 39, Woakes 28) For the slow stuff, it’s Shadab, not Yasir – the apprentice rather than the sorcerer. Buttler takes another measured single, Woakes a more muscular one. Then a measured one apiece. And finally Buttler brings out the big shot, a crunching cover drive for four. England need 101.
54th over: England 168-5 (Buttler 33, Woakes 26) A rare wide one from Abbas, and Buttler is so surprised that he misses it. There’s only one slip and a gully. The one kind of cricket Mo hasn’t mastered is the one-day game, which is just what Buttler has been looking to play today. He bides his time for now, clipping a single into the leg side. One from the over, so Mo has already restored order.
It’s going to be Mohammad Abbas, the medium-paced metronome who came to Test cricket so late that he had already had three other jobs – in a leather factory, a welder’s and a law firm. The last of these may explain his relentless accuracy.
“As this now appears to be a classic rearguard action,” says Kim Thonger, “and may very well soon mutate into a lost cause, I’ve taken the liberty of researching one such event. My thanks to Wikipedia for this. The Battle of Tirad Pass, sometimes referred to as the ‘Philippine Thermopylae’, was a battle in the Philippine–American War fought on December 2, 1899, in northern Luzon in the Philippines, in which a 60-man Filipino rear guard commanded by Brigadier General Gregorio del Pilar succumbed to more than 500 Americans, mostly of the 33rd Volunteer Infantry Regiment under Major Peyton C. March, while delaying the American advance to ensure that President Emilio Aguinaldo and his troops escaped. One learns so much from cricket, does one not?”
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53rd over: England 167-5 (Buttler 32, Woakes 26) Azhar turns to Shadab – turn, turn, turn. He gets Woakes to nick one, but it’s through the vacant gully. A bit of merry hitting does spread the field. Buttler pulls a long hop, only for a single, but it brings up a fine 50 partnership off 49 balls. As counter-attacks go, that’s in the Greenwood-Fernandes class.
Time for tea, with England needing another 110. Pakistan’s bowlers were well on top for most of that session, but now there’ll be a few butterflies in the belly, besides the Custard Creams. What a great game this is.
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52nd over: England 165-5 (Buttler 31, Woakes 24) Buttler chops Yasir for a quick single, well taken. Woakes cuts too, more aggressively but with the same result. And just when things seem to be going quiet, Buttler whips out the reverse-sweep again and nails it. WinViz is giving Pakistan a 79pc chance, England 21. That feels about right.
51st over: England 159-5 (Buttler 26, Woakes 24) Another over from Shaheen, another cover drive for four from Woakes. And a pull for two, which would have been four had Abid Ali not made a fine diving save. “Still plenty of twists to go,” says Shane Warne. These two have added 42 off 37 balls, and England need 118 more.
“Another collapse for the English middle order,” says AB Parker, “but can’t blame any of the batsmen this time around. Stokes/Pope/Root all got absolutely unplayable deliveries. Sibley only one to really have thrown his wicket away. Brilliant bowling, swing and bounce from the faster men, spin and bounce from Yasir Shah.” Very true. The Pakistanis have made better use of the bounce than England’s bowlers did, with the possible exception of Ben Stokes. Who, incidentally, was picked for this match as a specialist batsman, and ended up doing better with the ball (two for 11) than the bat (twice out for 9).
50th over: England 153-5 (Buttler 26, Woakes 18) Yasir’s still going round the wicket, so Buttler, playing cat-and-mouse, tickles him round the corner for a tidy little single. He’s got the top sportsperson’s ability to stay cool even when they’re on fire. For Woakes, Yasir goes back over the wicket and instantly regrets it as Woakes pulls out that majestic cover drive of his.
“I’ve just brought my lad back,” says Geoffrey Smith, “…from nets at the Frankfurt International Cricket Academy, where there was a German Cricket Association game going on in the middle. It’s definitely taking off here and it’s all down to the sub-continent. Give it another 20 years and we’ll be losing to Germany in yet another World Cup.” Bring it on.
49th over: England 147-5 (Buttler 25, Woakes 13) When not top-edging, Buttler is middling it. A cover force makes a satisfying crack, though it brings only a single as the sweeper is out there. Woakes follows suit, later on the shot, so he gets three for it. And then he absolutely creams a cover drive. England now have more than half the runs for exactly half the wickets. They can’t, can they…?
48th over: England 140-5 (Buttler 24, Woakes 7) Buttler’s turning into Stuart Broad! He sweeps for two, then, more crunchily, for four. Yasir stays round the wicket. “There’s only one way to get him out,” says Shane Warne, “and that’s with the top-edged sweep.” Sure enough, Buttler top-edges a sweep, but gets away with it as the ball drops in no-man’s-land. This is riveting.
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47th over: England 133-5 (Buttler 17, Woakes 7) Buttler cops one in the midriff from Shaheen, who is steaming in and touching 87mph (as, by the way, Jimmy Anderson did yesterday, possibly out of sheer frustration). Chris Woakes, who’s been hinting at a return to batting form, slash-drives for four and pulls for three. The partnership is 16 off 13 balls, punchy stuff – and shrewd, because there’s probably a ball with your name on here, and it may well be a glove-melter.
46th over: England 124-5 (Buttler 15, Woakes 0) Buttler, staying positive, strokes Yasir for two past cover, then reverse-sweeps for four, very decisively. This is white-ball Jos. Yasir counters by going round the wicket, to exploit the rough, and red-ball Jos reappears with a couple of leaves before stroking a measured single. Wouldn’t you love to see him go down with all shots blazing?
45th over: England 117-5 (Buttler 8, Woakes 0) Pope had been driving Shaheen, which was brave as he is on the short side and Shaheen is a beanpole. And there was not a thing he could have done about his dismissal.
“First of all, keep up the smashing good job!” says Milind. Thanks, it’s all been down to Geoff today. “Speaking of Cricket in Germany, I’ve been proselytising here in Berlin along with an Aussie and a couple of English chaps I know. It’s gotten to the point that we now have 3 Germans, an Italian, a Croatian and a Polish friend joining in the fun.” There’s a joke in here somewhere. “A very close friend of mine is so enamoured, that she went ahead and bought two bats, while I’ve been busy preparing taped balls for tomorrow. Perhaps soon we can send you pictures of us in Cricket Whites.” Do! Though tomorrow may be too late.
Wicket!! Pope c Shadab b Shaheen 7 (England 117-5)
That is vicious! A length ball rears up at Pope, just as it did in the first innings, and this is even nastier. He does well to get a glove on it, it loops up and Shadab trots up from gully to take an easy catch. Pope walks off in pain as well as anguish. And England’s middle order has disappeared in a puff of dust.
Ollie Pope looks on in pain as he is caught by Shadab Khan. Photograph: Reuters
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44th over: England 116-4 (Pope 7, Buttler 8) Yasir continues, as he may well do for the rest of the match. Pope takes a typical bustling single, and then Buttler cracks a cover drive. And another one! After that long vigil in the first innings, he may have decided not to die wondering.
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43rd over: England 107-4 (Pope 6, Buttler 0) So England are back down to Pope and Buttler, the pair that steadied the ship on Thursday night and Friday morning. The score then was 92 for four, so this corner they’re in is only a little less tight. Azhar Ali brings back Shaheen Afridi, who had been a forgotten man since his opening spell. He has a big appeal against Buttler, cutting him in half with a nip-backer, but, for once, they decide not to review.
42nd over: England 106-4 (Pope 5, Buttler 0) Thanks Geoff, classy stuff (if that’s not too condescending to a 30-something). And a hell of a moment to hand over.
Wicket! Stokes c Rizwan b Yasir 9 (England 106-4)
NOOOOOO! Ben Stokes is out. It was a bouncer, and he gloved it. That’s great bowling, out of nowhere near the coaching manual. And England’s chances, which had just crept above 50pc on WinViz when Sibley and Root were still in, have pretty much evaporated in the space of 20 minutes.
Mohammad Rizwan catches Ben Stokes to dismiss him. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian
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