PAK vs. ENG 2024/25, PAK vs. ENG 1st test match report, October 7th – 11th, 2024

tea Pakistan 233 for 1 (Masood 130*, Shafique 94*) England

Although England struck early, with Saim Ayub trailing Gus Atkinson by 4 minutes, this was to be their only success in 52 overs on a sweltering day with temperatures hovering around 30°C. Masood set the pace with a 43-ball half-century, reaching his hundred from 102 balls – the second-fastest performance by a Pakistan captain in Tests – while Shafique was more alert as he tried to put a run of poor form behind him let.

Ollie Pope, again filling in for Ben Stokes as he continues his rehabilitation from a hamstring injury, exchanged his options to no avail. The closest England came to separating the two in almost two full batting sessions was when Pope himself missed the stumps at the non-striker's end after Shafique risked a non-existent run to middle.

Pakistan went into the game having not won a home Test since 2021 and suffering five straight defeats since Masood took over late last year. England had arrived amid talk of tricky throws and Pakistan's batting problems, but it quickly became clear that an inexperienced attack faced a steep learning curve.

The hosts reached a score of 122 for 1 at lunchtime after targeting Shoaib Bashir's offspin, and continued to pile on throughout the afternoon, scoring around 4.5 per over, despite Jack Leach Pope's appearance conveyed control. Brydon Carse, on his debut, and Atkinson attempted a short ball attack for a while, with Masood perhaps having a bit of luck when he fired the latter over fine leg for the sixth time.

A more authentic loft at the ground off Leach took Masood into the 90s before he drilled the returning Chris Woakes' through-cover point and then tickled a single to score the first Test century in four years and 27 innings, going into Year 2020 in Pakistan goes back to the tour of England.

The second-wicket pair remained largely untroubled as they headed towards a double-century stand. Pope took his DRS record as captain to 11-0 when he unsuccessfully sought a catch at slip off Masood. Bashir was taken for 59 runs in 11 overs in his tough first outing in the country from which his family came to England, and by the time tea came Pope had resorted to his sixth bowling option – in the form of Joe Root's offspin.

Masood's decision to bat (Pope said he would have done the same) was soon vindicated despite the green glimmer on the surface and the early loss of Ayub. There was little movement for England's first pair of Woakes – playing his first overseas Test since March 2022 – and Atkinson, and there was something of a surprise when Ayub played an innocuous-looking short ball to the keeper in the fourth over.

The dismissal extended Shafique and Ayub's miserable run as the opening pair, failing to reach double figures for the seventh time in a row. Atkinson, who made a brilliant debut in England's home summer, took a wicket in his tenth ball on tour.

But while Woakes continued to try and gave Shafique a few worrying moments with deliveries that were enough to hit both edges of the bat, the second-wicket pair soon settled down. Atkinson was driven to the ground by Shafique, who then opened the face to guide Woakes past the slips, while Carse's extra pace brought both scoring opportunities and danger.

That was clearly evident in Carse's second over when Masood slid obliquely through backward point for his first boundary and was then sent off to avoid a full, fast ball – only for DRS to prove it had pitched outside leg .

Pakistan were 56 for 1 at drinks and were consolidating well after the early defeat, and the introduction of spin in the form of Bashir saw Masood step up a gear. After being hit on the pad by one that didn't turn, Masood responded by knocking four of Bashir's next eight balls to the boundary, where the pick bounced across the track and shot through cover.

Shafique, who had survived Pope's underarm off stump on 34, then followed his captain's example by taking on Bashir's offspin and doubling his boundary in one over. A charge across the pitch to clear mid-on brought the century stand, followed by a cut for four and six over long-on, taking Shafique to a 77-ball fifty – his first in eight Test innings .

Both teams had named their XIs in advance. Pakistan recalled Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah after both were absent from the second Test against Bangladesh, while all-rounder Aamer Jamal was fit again after injury. Abrar Ahmed, who made his debut against England two years ago with great success, will take over the spin duties, while Salman Ali Agha can also step in.

England opted for a cautious approach to Stokes' fitness, eight weeks after he suffered a hamstring tear during the Hundred, letting Woakes lead an inexperienced close attack, with Carse making his debut and Atkinson playing only his seventh Test. Leach, meanwhile, returned for the first time since his injury on the tour of India last winter, after which he lost the number one spinner spot to his Somerset teammate Bashir.