Masood, Shafique hundreds see Pakistan take control
Written by I Dig SportsPakistan 328 for 4 (Masood 151, Shafique 102) vs England
The bulk of the contest was taken up by Pakistan's second-wicket stand, eventually worth 253. England had arrived in the country amid talk of spicy pitches and a fragile home batting line-up, but Masood's assertive innings - the second-fastest Test hundred by a Pakistan captain - and a more dogged effort from Shafique shut the door after England had bagged Saim Ayub cheaply in the fourth over.
That was to be their only success for two-and-a-bit sessions as Ollie Pope, again standing in for the injured Ben Stokes, shuffled through six bowlers as the temperature hovered in the high 30s C. On 16, Masood successfully overturned an lbw decision granted to Carse, who touched 90mph in his first spell in Test cricket before flagging in the heat; a cut off the same bowler landed fractionally short of Pope at point when he had made 134. In between, there was not much other than crisp strokeplay.
Masood's first boundary came via an edge off Carse but he quickly kicked up the gears when Shoaib Bashir came on to bowl, as Pakistan seemingly looked to put pressure on England's designated No. 1 spinner. After being hit on the pad by one that didn't turn, Masood responded by thumping four of Bashir's next eight balls to the rope, the pick a skip down the track and launch through cover as he sped towards a 43-ball half-century during the morning session.
Shafique, searching for form after six single-figure scores in seven Test innings, overcame a watchful start when he was troubled on both edges by Woakes. The closest England came to breaking the stand came during the morning session when Pope missed the stumps at the non-striker's end after Shafique chanced a non-existent run to mid-on.
Following Masood's lead, Shafique pounced on Bashir with lunch approaching, doubling his number of boundaries with a volley of 4-4-6 - the last of which brought up his fifty, from 77 balls. He was the less fluent of the pair but, nevertheless, they were both largely untroubled as the stand pushed on past 200 deep into the afternoon, Pope taking his DRS record as captain to 11-0 when unsuccessfully reviewing for a catch at slip off Masood.
After some tough moments leading the side in Stokes' absence during England's 2-1 win over Sri Lanka last month, Pope again found his captaincy skills stretched to their limit. He could take some credit for conjuring a mini-oasis in the middle of a Multan desert, as two wickets fell in the space of 17 balls after tea - though the heat also played its part, with both batters suffering visibly from cramp.
Shafique, on 94 at the interval, had gone to his hundred soon after with another straight six but could only add a couple of runs to his score. Carse again missed out on a maiden Test wicket when a gloved pull just cleared leg slip, before England switched tactics, employing a ring field with Atkinson bowling dry in the channel: it only took four balls for Shafique to pop up a tired drive to cover.
With Leach bringing a semblance of control from the other end, he was rewarded during a spell of three consecutive maidens with the wicket of Masood, who misjudged the flight to skew a return catch to the bowler - giving Leach his first Test wicket since the tour of India in January.
Saud Shakeel swept and reverse-swept three boundaries in one Leach over as he and Babar put on a measured stand of 61. But England were given another lift with the shadows beginning to lengthen as Woakes - playing his first overseas Test since March 2022 - beat Babar's inside edge with the second new ball to win an lbw decision that was upheld on review. It extended Babar's run without a Test fifty that goes back to December 2022 and could prove a vital fillip for Woakes as he seeks to repay England's faith in him despite an average north of 50 away from home.
England's initial success in removing Ayub might have raised expectations but Masood's decision to bat (Pope said he would have done the same) was soon backed up, despite an initial tinge of green to the surface. There was little movement on offer for England's opening pair of Woakes and Atkinson, and it was something of a surprise when Ayub gloved an innocuous-looking short ball to the keeper.
The dismissal extended Shafique and Ayub's miserable run as an opening pair, failing to reach double-figures for the seventh time in a row. Atkinson, having enjoyed a sparkling debut during England's home summer, had a wicket with his 10th ball on tour. Both he and his team-mates had to wait 56 overs before they had a second.
Alan Gardner is a deputy editor at ESPNcricinfo. @alanroderick