The English bowling attack dismantled the Pakistani batting lineup in a dominant display of fast bowling at Edgbaston. During the final Test of the three-match series, the touring side was bundled out for a paltry 133 runs in their first innings. Right from the onset, the visitors struggled against the hostile pace battery, with the scoreline at one point looking unlikely to even cross the triple-digit mark. Josh Tongue spearheaded the attack with four wickets, while Ollie Robinson and Jofra Archer chipped in with three scalps each to wreck the opposition.
The innings got off to a disastrous start as Pakistan lost five wickets with just 48 runs on the board. Captain Babar Azam failed to make an impact, lasting only a brief while before being bowled by a magnificent delivery from Tongue for 7 runs. The ball pitched on a good length, nipped back sharply, and shattered his off-stump. Azan Awais also fell cheaply after being caught at midwicket off Tongue, while Shan Masood became Archer's victim in the same region, leaving the batting unit in deep trouble.
Saud Shakeel Fights Back Before Edgbaston Collapse
With four wickets down for a mere 26 runs, Saud Shakeel attempted to steady the innings and displayed some resilience. He survived an early scare when a catch was dropped in the slips, subsequently capitalizing to stroke a few fine boundaries. However, the relentless pressure from the bowling side eventually proved too much. Tongue delivered a sharp delivery that moved in from outside off-stump and knocked back Shakeel's stumps, ending his gritty knock of 43 runs from 47 balls. Debutant wicketkeeper Ghazi Ghori started his Test career by hitting his very first delivery for a boundary, but Tongue pinned him LBW shortly after. Another debutant, Mohammad Imran Randhawa, also fell to Tongue as the innings folded.
Robinson Torments Batters After The Lunch Break
Pakistan had already lost seven wickets by the lunch interval with the score at 100 runs. Immediately after the break, Ollie Robinson struck on the third delivery by having debutant Razaullah caught in the slips. Robinson delivered a remarkably economical spell, conceding only 15 runs while capturing three wickets with a staggering economy rate of 1.36. The disciplined lines and lengths maintained by the English seamers ensured that the visiting batters never found any breathing room throughout the session.
Late Resistance From The Tail Enders
When defeat seemed imminent, the last-wicket pair of Mohammad Abbas and Mohammad Ali put up a brief fight by adding 26 runs, which remarkably turned out to be the highest partnership of the innings for Pakistan. Notably, the team's opening partnerships across five innings in the series have failed to even cross a combined total of 20 runs. The resistance finally ended when Archer induced an edge from Abbas to second slip, sealing the innings at 133 runs.
