Sajid Khan and Noman Ali created history as they broke a 52-year-old record by claiming all 20 wickets in the second Test against England on October 18, Friday. Sajid and Noman Ali‘s brilliance would help Pakistan finally end their winless streak at home as they won the match in Multan by 152 runs.
Both Sajid Khan and Noman Ali had come into the game as Pakistan went for wholesale changes to their side and made it a spin-heavy one with Aamer Jamal being the only pacer. It was Sajid who had wreaked havoc in the first innings for Pakistan as he picked up a total of 7 wickets while the rest went to Noman Ali.
On Day 4, the roles were completely reversed as it was the Noman Ali show in Multan. However, Sajid provided the key breakthrough as he dismissed the dangerous Ollie Pope in the second over of the day. Following that, Noman Ali would run through the entire lineup and pick up 8 wickets for 46 to script a memorable win for Pakistan in Multan and level the series at 1-1. This was the best figures by a Pakistan left-arm spinner in Tests.
Pitch and Toss
Pitch Report : “First time that a back-to-back Test is being played at the same stadium on exactly the same pitch. It’s the same strip that used for the first Test match. What has the groundsmen been doing to try and bring this pitch back to life? A couple of days, he watered it, rolled it and had two giant fans drying the pitch from either end plus the hot sun. Yesterday, he just left it open to the elements, open to the sun to dry. So that means the cracks, that were closed slightly a couple of days ago, have now opened up.
The cracks are quite open, it’s basically how the pitch looked at the end of the first Test match. But the cracks are very solid. They are not really moving too much. So, it’ll play pretty well for a day or two. Team selections are very interesting.
England have hedged their bets, they have gone with a balanced side – three seamers, two spinners, thinking there might just as be as much off the cracks for the seamers and with the reverse swing because of the bare ends and the way the other pitches are being cut. Pakistan are all in on spin, just one specialist seamer, whole host of spinners. They’ll be desperate to win the toss.” reckons Michael Atherton
Toss : Pakistan skipper Shan Masood won the toss and chose to bat with as many as five changes in the playing XI giving debut to middle order batter Kamran Ghulam. England skipper Ben Stokes on his return to playing cricket has made two changes resting Chris Woakes and Gus Atkinson with Matthew Potts in the playing XI.
Day 1 : Kamran Ghulam’s debut ton keeps England at bay
Debutant Kamran Ghulam (118) produced a laudable century to keep Pakistan afloat on the opening day of the second Test against England in Multan. The hosts found themselves in trouble at multiple positions but Ghulam handled the crisis well. His 149-run stand with Saim Ayub (77) and a partnership of 65 with Mohammad Rizwan (37*) were critical to Pakistan on a day when England threw everything at them in terms of tactics, funky fields and psychological pressure.
Ghulam looked set to bat the day out before a sudden rush of blood led to his stumps being rattled during the closing stages of play, giving Shoaib Bashir his first wicket of the game. It was an otherwise largely flawless display against spin from Ghulam, rated highly for his expertise against slow bowling.
Therefore, England played into his hands by feeding him an overdose of spin in the first 100-odd deliveries that he faced. Against the quicker men, Ghulam looked tentative, especially during the second half of the day when England managed to extract reverse swing.
The final session didn’t start well for Pakistan as they lost Saud Shakeel cheaply against the reversing ball and it was a period that threatened a collapse. However, Ghulam and Rizwan weathered the storm, albeit with a lot of luck and shepherded Pakistan through to the second new ball. The fresh cherry didn’t really have a lot of movement on offer, forcing Ben Stokes to go back to spin quickly but the move worked as Bashir castled Ghulam with a tempter. The dismissal summarized Pakistan’s day as they never really managed to get away from England.
The two batters batted with a lot of gumption and resolve to blunt England’s bowlers on a pitch that did have variable bounce to contend with. While survival wasn’t impossible, the extreme slowness of the track and low bounce meant that strokeplay wasn’t straightforward.
There was spin on offer too and statistically, it spun a lot more today than it did in the entire first Test match. However, it was slow turn and it meant that the batters could adjust to it more often than not. England did well to stay disciplined and Stokes punted with his typical brand of innovative fields.
While Ayub and Ghulam put on commendable performances, both were guilty of soft dismissals at a time when Pakistan would have wanted them to kick on. Considering that this surface has now been used for six days, the road ahead is unpredictable and first innings runs are hence more significant than usual.
For England, Brydon Carse looked the most threatening bowler although he picked up just a solitary wicket. His reverse swinging spell with Stokes was the most potent period for England with the ball on a day when they otherwise had to toil hard.
Day 2 : Sajid Khan helps Pakistan reclaim ascendancy after rapid Duckett ton
Sajid Khan’s late four-wicket burst on Day 2 brought Pakistan roaring back into the contest in Multan, just when it seemed that England would once again take control of the match.
Responding to Pakistan’s 366 on a tiring pitch, England opener Ben Duckett did everything in his power to seize the initiative just like his team had done in the first Test last week. He scored his fourth Test hundred off only 120 balls, forged three half-century stands at a run-rate of roughly five an over, and left opposition captain Shan Masood scratching his head with his expertly placed sweep shots. But every time England looked comfortable in the middle during that eventful evening session, Sajid’s off breaks pulled Pakistan back into the contest.
Sajid found appreciable turn in the final session and struck in the first over of a new spell after Tea, producing a classic dismissal of Ollie Pope, who was bowled through the gate while attempting a drive. The spinner broke another fifty-run stand by dismissing Joe Root, who chopped on while trying to sweep from outside off-stump.
Centurion Ben Duckett fell in Sajid’s next over, edging a drive to slip, but the off-spinner’s finest delivery was perhaps reserved for Harry Brook. Later in the same over, Brook went back to punch through the covers but was beaten by sharp turn and bowled through the gate. Thanks to Sajid’s spell, England slipped from 211/2 to 225/5 and found themselves in unfamiliar territory in Pakistan in recent times.
Until Sajid turned the day on its head, England had called the shots. It all started when they picked three important wickets in the morning session. Mohammad Rizwan was the first to fall, nicking a short of length delivery from Brydon Carse. His dismissal saw Agha Salman, who was hitherto on 6 off 29, shift gears with a flurry of boundaries. He found solid support from Aamer Jamal at the other end, as the seventh-wicket pair helped Pakistan cross the 300-run mark.
The partnership came to an end when Matthew Potts extracted extra bounce from the pitch and got Salman to edge behind. Soon after the drinks interval, Sajid was lured into a drive by Jack Leach and chipped the ball to cover, leaving Pakistan eight down. Pakistan’s innings came to an end as Noman Ali was caught in the deep, with Jack Leach claiming his fourth wicket.
England’s innings, in contrast, began like a freight train, with the visitors racing to 88 runs in just 17 overs by Tea. During the lackluster afternoon session, Pakistan made only one breakthrough in the form of Zak Crawley, breaking a 73-run opening stand. Crawley’s eventful innings came to an end when he edged an away-turning delivery from Noman, but he could have been runout on 20 had Sajid Khan not disturbed the stumps before the throw arrived to him.
Duckett and Root then settled into a nice rhythm but the narrative of course changed when Sajid took matters into his own hands, bringing Pakistan back on even terms after a challenging six days in the series for the hosts.
Day 3 : Sajid, Salman put Pakistan in pole position to achieve series parity
A total of 16 wickets fell on the third day in Multan – the third-most in a single day’s play in Pakistan – as the hosts strengthened their hold on the second Test. Heading into the fourth day, England need 261 runs with eight wickets in hand on what is effectively an eighth-day pitch, aiding consistent spin, uneven bounce, and reverse swing.
It all began with Sajid Khan adding three more wickets to his overnight tally, finishing with a seven-wicket haul to bowl England out for 291. As a result, Pakistan secured a valuable 75-run lead, overcoming a frustrating 29-run last-wicket stand between Shoaib Bashir and Jack Leach. Noman Ali, who got the important wicket of Jamie Smith by having him caught in the deep, returned three wickets.
Batting for the second time, Pakistan extended their lead to 118 in the morning session but lost three wickets along the way, with England opting to open the bowling with spin from both ends. It was Shoaib Bashir who provided key breakthroughs, dismissing Abdullah Shafique caught down the leg-side and Shan Masood at gully. He struck again with the final ball before Lunch, removing Saim Ayub via an edge to put England firmly back in the contest.
Pakistan, in the second session, added 91 runs for the loss of two wickets, one of them being that of Mohammad Rizwan on 23. It was Brydon Carse, running in with a dodgy left leg, who had Rizwan’s number for the third time in three innings in this series, the mode of dismissal this time being a simple catch to slip.
Jack Leach got into the act early in the final session, dismissing Saud Shakeel (lbw) and Aamer Jamal (bowled) in back-to-back overs. Bashir then doubled down with his fourth wicket in the innings, getting Noman Ali edging to Ben Stokes at slip. Pakistan looked a bit uncertain at 156/8, their lead only 231 at the time, but Agha Salman (63 off 89) took the attack to England and helped add 65 runs for the ninth wicket.
Salman was on 4 when Carse came close to dismissing him twice in the same over, but Jamie Smith and Joe Root put down both chances. Carse finally had the batter with a short ball but Pakistan by then were well on the way to set a target of 297 runs for England.
England’s chase got off to the worst possible start as Ben Duckett, the centurion from the first innings, fell for a two-ball duck to Sajid Khan. The very sweep shot that had brought him success earlier proved his undoing, the extra bounce from the new ball making the shot difficult to control on this occasion.
Noman Ali soon had Zak Crawley stumped and England were left picking up the pieces a bit at 11/2 on a pitch where run-making now looks difficult. Joe Root and Ollie Pope steadied the ship and will be key for the visitors going into what’s likely to be the fourth and final day of the Test.
Day 4 : Noman Ali’s 8-fer and Sajid Khan seals Pakistan’s first home win since 2021 to level series 1-1
A used pitch and spin proved the downfall of England as Pakistan ended their 11-match winless streak at home from March 2022 (which included seven defeats) with a 152-run victory in the second Test in Multan. Starting Day 4 at 36/2, England ended up being bowled out for 144 as Noman Ali finished with a career-best 8 for 46 and a match haul of 11 (his maiden 10-wicket haul).
It didn’t take Pakistan long to pick up the first wicket of the day, with Sajid striking in the second over, taking a catch off his own bowling to send Ollie Pope back. Noman Ali then trapped Joe Root in front, leaving England reeling at 55/4. Ben Stokes and Harry Brook tried to build a partnership but those efforts were thwarted when Noman bagged another lbw decision, this time getting Brook. It became 88/6 inside the first hour as Noman picked up his fourth wicket when Jamie Smith top-edged a slog-sweep.
Stokes, meanwhile, continued positively and Brydon Carse started in an attacking fashion, striking two successive sixes off Sajid as England crossed the 100-run mark. But Stokes fell soon after, stumped off Noman Ali as the 38-year old left-arm spinner ended a 37-run stand to bag his fifth five-wicket haul. Carse struck his third six with a slog-sweep off Sajid while Matthew Potts got off the mark with a well-swept boundary off the same bowler.
But Noman Ali ended Carse’s stay by having him caught at slip to leave England eight down. Noman’s seventh wicket was Jack Leach who handed a catch to short leg and the left-armer had Shoaib Bashir caught at silly point to pick up eight wickets in an innings for the first time.
The foundation for Pakistan’s victory was laid in the first innings, with both bat and ball. Kamran Ghulam, replacing Babar Azam, struck a century on debut while Saim Ayub scored 77. The middle order also came up with useful contributions to propel Pakistan to 366. Ben Duckett led England’s reply with a century but the rest of the batters weren’t up to the mark as Sajid ran through England with a seven-wicket haul, bowling them out for 291 to give Pakistan a handy 75-run lead.
On a pitch that was offering a lot of turn, effectively a Day 8 wicket when Pakistan batted in the second innings, the hosts rode on Agha Salman’s fine knock of 63 to finish with 221. A target of 297 on a tough wicket proved well beyond England’s reach as Noman Ali wrecked England’s batting on the fourth morning.
This was day four of the second Test, but the ninth day of action for the Multan pitch – with three days in between for a quick spritz up – and it was by now offering consistent turn. England’s not-out batters, Ollie Pope and Joe Root, had been practicing their sweeps before the start of play and it quickly became clear what the plan of attack was in their attempts to score a further 261 for victory. “Basically getting your broom out,” as Ben Stokes put it afterwards.
Pope, however, didn’t play a shot in anger before becoming the first wicket to fall, poking Sajid’s second ball straight back into the bowler’s hands. Harry Brook attempted to sweep his first ball, Root did likewise and the battle lines were drawn.
Not that such clarity of purpose did England much good. Root and Brook had amassed a record fourth-wicket stand of 454 in the first Test on this pitch but the turnaround in control and composure was stark. Root faced eight balls, attempting to sweep seven of them before being hit on the hip as he stretched out on off stump and played over the ball to be given lbw – a decision confirmed as umpire’s call on review.
Brook got one reverse away to the boundary but his frenetic approach was not built to last and he went back to his 21st delivery, the ball staying a touch low as Noman Ali delivered from round the wicket, to be pinned in front of leg stump swinging across the line. England were 78 for 5, the top order back in the dressing room and the game as good as done.
It was soon 88 for 6, as Jamie Smith top-edged a slog sweep to mid-on three balls after dispatching Noman Ali for four with the same shot. Stokes barely played a straight-bat shot and had the most success, reaching 37 at quicker than a run a ball before he was lured down the pitch by Noman Ali. His swing across the line saw the bat end up somewhere near midwicket as Mohammad Rizwan completed the stumping – a fitting metaphor for England losing their grip.
That was pretty much that, beyond a brief sally from Brydon Carse, who survived being given out lbw to Sajid via the DRS, and subsequently smashed the offspinner for three towering sixes before the guile of Noman Ali induced another swipe and a thin edge to slip. In his next over, Noman Ali plucked out Jack Leach and Shoaib Bashir with consecutive deliveries and Pakistan’s makeshift Multan masterplan had delivered.
Presentations and Road Ahead
Shan Masood the winning skipper said : First one is always special, it has come after some hard times. A lot has happened over the last week. For everyone to work together, to come up with a strategy to pick 20 wickets and make it happen, that’s the most satisfying thing. You have to applaud the group. They have been hungry. You can’t doubt the effort of the guys and their commitment.
It’ll be special for everyone because it’s come after some tough times and it’s kept us hungry. We are just glad that we were able to put the plans in place, get 20 wickets and were able to back it up some decent first and second innings scores. A change of strategy for us. We tried going green seamers against Bangladesh, we were a bit off. Sometimes you have to look at the opposition also, look at what the ground can provide.
We haven’t played a lot of Test cricket in Multan. The only one was two years ago that offered some spin so we thought why not try to do something and make something like that. Noman and Sajid coming in, it’s never easy and they looked like two seasoned campaigners.
Second innings, we didn’t even need a third bowler and that speaks volumes for them. It’s a collective effort and what matters in team sport is chipping those 20-30 runs, putting those efforts in the field. Zahid didn’t bowl much but he was running around, he was there for the team, same with Jamal who scored some vital runs. Noman and Sajid were the front-runners and everyone chipped in. For Kami (Kamran Ghulam), it’s never easy.
When you are replacing one of the best batters in the world … I read some things that were horrid even before he played his first Test match. I can’t even imagine the pressure that someone can be under. But we were all behind him. From the get go, he seemed like he belonged. To get that century, that’s special. Agha is probably one of my favorite players, he’s a team player.
For him to play in those pressure situations and get something for the team, that’s special. There have been some front-runners, there have also been some really nice small contributions. Even Saim Ayub played very maturely. Everything added up and that’s what a team effort is.
Ben Stokes the loosing skipper said : (Could they have changed their approach slightly?) No, not at all. If you look throughout the Test match, the guys who had success from our side and Pakistan’s side were the ones who put the spin bowlers under pressure. Ben Duckett’s first innings hundred showed us the way. The sweep shots made it very difficult to control the run-rate and set fields to.
When you get extreme conditions like that, you got to find a way to negate that spin which we managed to do in some good parts, but we’d have liked to go on, especially myself and a couple of guys who got starts. (On dropping Agha Salman twice) I don’t like to live by hindsight. It just proves how important taking the chances are out here. You don’t get them very often behind the wickets.
You take those chances, the game might look a little different. In conditions like these, spinners will get spoken about a lot. Matthew Potts and Brydon Carse kept charging in spell after spell, ball after ball and created so much atmosphere when the spinners needed a break. That’s what you want. There’s a lot that we look in terms of attitude, they both certainly showed that.
They constantly felt that they were a big threat which massively helps. Good to get through this game, worked hard to get fit for this game. Nothing can prepare you for standing in the field for as long as we did and in this heat. Looking forward to the next week now. It’s been a great series so far.
Sajid Khan Player of the Match said : We lost the last two series, we just backed our process. Thanks to the Multan crowd for all the support. Noman is one of the most experienced players in our tea, he shares his experience with all of us and he’s played everywhere. I got the wickets in the first innings, he got the wickets in the second. Our combination was good.
First innings, I got out early and he (Noman) scored. In the second innings, I batted below him and it was important to support Agha bhai. Agha played one of the best innings. Kami (Kamran Ghulam) played superbly on debut, he’s one of my best fiends as well and congratulations to him.
Pakistan end their 11-match winless streak at home and level the series 1-1. They took a gamble to go spin-heavy and the two finger spinners have delivered for the hosts. All 20 wickets picked by Noman Ali (11) and Sajid Khan(9)! England needed 261 runs with 8 wickets in hand and the odds were stacked against them.
Sajid Khan removed Pope in the second over of the day and it was the Noman show after that. England, like yesterday, employed different types of sweeps and that was always going to be a high-risk ploy on a spinning (technically ninth day) track. Ben Stokes top-scored with sweeps and reverse-sweeps but eventually got out stumped when he decided to step out of his crease.
Brydon Carse struck three sixes but England weren’t able to put any sort of pressure on the Pakistan spinners. Masood used just two spinners in the final innings and they wrapped up the proceedings inside 34 overs.
Pakistan made quite a few radical changes after their innings defeat in the first Test. The selection committee was rejigged. Babar Azam, Naseem Shah and Shaheen Afridi were omitted. They decided to use the same pitch that was used for the first Test and decided to stack their XI with spinners (with just one seamer).
And it’s safe to say they all clicked. Kamran Ghulam, on debut, recorded a fighting century which allowed Pakistan to post a good first innings total. England, in reply, were in a good position, thanks to Duckett’s hundred but Sajid Khan triggered a collapse late on day two and Pakistan dominated the proceedings post that.
Having gained a 75-run lead, Pakistan scored 221 on the back of Salman’s fifty who batted beautifully with the tail and thereby setting a target close to 300. The two spinners spun a web and England succumbed quickly in the final essay. Sajid’s energy and fizz + Noman’s guile and accuracy = 20 wickets. We’ve had two contrasting Test matches here in Multan. The series decider will be played in Rawalpindi. Will spinners rule the roost again.
It had been a long time coming for Pakistan, but the conclusion was swift. Noman Ali and Sajid Khan combined for the second time in the match to bowl out England and seal Pakistan’s first win in a home Test since 2021. Eight wickets fell in less than two hours as England went down in a flurry of sweeps and reverse-sweeps.
Noman Ali claimed seven of them himself to finish with 8 for 46 and 11 for 147 in the match, both career-bests. With Sajid, who took 7 for 111 in the first innings, picking up the other two, they became the first pair to take all 20 wickets in a Test since Dennis Lillie and Bob Massie in 1972.
A crushing result, achieved within three-and-a-bit days on a re-used surface that Pakistan had hoped would help their spinners, means the series is level at 1-1 ahead of the third Test in Rawalpindi. It also provided Shan Masood with his first victory since taking over as captain, after a horror run of six consecutive defeats.
Their success was all the more remarkable given the changes made in response to last week’s crushing innings loss, with Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi and Naseem Shah dropped and Pakistan selecting a three-man spin attack that had never played together before. In the end, Zahid Mahmood was only required to bowl six overs as Sajid and Noman Ali, playing his first Test since July 2023, dismantled England in tandem.