Salman Ali Agha brought up his third century in Test cricket, reaching the milestone on Day 2 of the opening Test against England at the Multan Cricket Stadium. The Pakistan all-rounder Salman Ali Agha played a crucial knock, scoring an unbeaten 104 off 119 balls, laced with 10 fours and three sixes. His composed innings helped Pakistan post a formidable total of 556 in their first innings, putting them in a strong position in the match.
Salman Ali Agha’s performances have been particularly strong at home, where he boasts 588 runs at 49. Salman Ali Agha’s valuable contribution has solidified his place in the Pakistani Test setup as a reliable middle-order batter. The all-rounder’s ability to play impactful innings and anchor the lower order will be crucial for Pakistan in the ongoing series and future Test matches.
Day 2 : Morning Session : Naseem Shah’s impenetrable defence blunts English attack
Gus Atkinson has five fielders guarding the leg side. Two of them are in the close catching position. There is a short leg and a leg gully in place. We are in the first over after drinks on the first morning of the second day in Multan, where sun is as inhospitable for the visitors as it was yesterday.
England shuffle their fields a lot often these days to unnerve the batters. They draw some of the most bizarre field sets. It has worked for them. But, at the moment, it is a product of sheer annoyance. Naseem Shah, the night watcher, is at the crease. He had been promoted to number six in the dying moments of day one after England had removed Babar Azam with the new ball under fading day light.
Shah blunts the short-pitched delivery and drops it near his toes as he makes a mockery out of England’s latest plan. Asking a bowler to shelter batters in the most vulnerable conditions is an obnoxious demand. What else are the batters supposed to do if they need protection from the very challenge they have spent their entire lives training for.
But, Shah is executing the task at hand diligently. He has the desired skillset for it, which he harnessed growing up while playing one-bounce cricket with his younger brothers in cramped rooms of his house. He had bragged his impenetrable defenses in Sri Lanka in 2022 and 2023, batting for 131 and 175 minutes as Babar Azam and Saud Shakeel scored big.
After the pain and agony, the first-ever whitewash at home suffered during the last tour of England in December 2022, he saved Pakistan from further humiliation by stretching out the last wicket partnership with Abrar Ahmed until the close of the Test. So, on Monday, Pakistan could not have relied more on anyone else to save Mohammad Rizwan and Salman Ali Agha – their most consistent performers over the last two years – from an England pace attack looking induce as much damage as possible.
Then, he gave it back. A few balls after being hit on the head, Shah danced down the pitch to smash Shoaib Bashir for a gigantic six over long on. He would deposit Jack Leach, England’s most experienced spinner and the one who Abdullah Shafique and Shan Masood dealt with respect during their 253-run onslaught, for two maximums down the ground.
With Shah frustrating England and all focus on him, Shakeel constructed a much-needed half-century after the scores of 0, 16, and 2 against Bangladesh. He was eventually dismissed by Brydon Carse as he strangled him down the leg side. But, by then, Shah had scored his career-best score in international cricket (33).
Naseem Shah was sent in to ensure Pakistan don’t lose any further wickets on day one. But, he ticked a lot of boxes for Pakistan over the course of his 81-ball stay. He diminished the threat of the new Kookaburra, tired England’s premier pacers in this Test, and made the tourists grind in broiling conditions.
Pakistan were 388 before Lunch when he went back to the pavilion. It is over to Pakistan’s lower-middle order to milk the start he has provided the team on day two.
Day 2 : Post Lunch Session : Salman Ali Agha, Shakeel take Pakistan above 500
Salman Ali Agha’s unbeaten 79 has stretched Pakistan’s innings to the end of the fifth session of the first Test in Multan, taking their score to 515 for 8 at Tea on Day 2. After having put on a half-century stand with Saud Shakeel, who fell 18 short of a century, Salman Ali Agha kept the English bowlers at bay in the company of Shaheen Afridi as the duo have added another half-century stand for their unbeaten ninth-wicket partnership.
Unlike the opening day, Pakistan approached Tuesday’s play with a more conservative fashion. Naseem Shah, who was sent as the night watcher, stayed put in the middle for nearly an hour and a half in the morning as Shakeel picked up the runs. Brydon Carse eventually got the breakthrough, as well as his maiden Test wicket, when Naseem played a glance towards short fine leg to end his 81-ball stay off 33.
Soon enough, with the Lunch break approaching, England struck again – this time, the big scalp of Mohammed Rizwan, who failed to get enough elevation in his attempt to step out against Jack Leach and hit over the in-field. He was caught at mid off for a duck, and gave the English some respite on what has been a testing surface for the bowlers.
However, they couldn’t take ample advantage of the situation as Shakeel and Salman Ali Agha continued to frustrate the visitors in the post Lunch session. Salman Ali Agha took the attack to Leach right after Lunch, smashing a couple of boundaries in the opening over after the break.
Four overs later, in his attempt to hit over the boundary ropes nearly brought about his downfall when Chris Woakes held on to the catch at long off. However, the momentum took him beyond the ropes and allowed Salman Ali Agha to continue his charge. The next ball, he sent Leach packing over long on.
England struck twice again in quick succession – on either side of the drinks break, a classical off spinner’s delivery to tease Shakeel out and induce an edge to slips. Soon after, Carse had Aamer Jamal trapped leg-before to threaten a hasty end to Pakistan’s lower order resistance, but that was not to be. Shaheen and Salman Ali Agha kept the English bowlers at bay for nearly an hour before the Tea break was called.
Day 2 : Afternoon Session : Salman Ali Agha’s ton lifts Pakistan before England’s strong reply on Day 2
Pakistan piled on the runs thanks to a century by Salman Ali Agha and a half-century by Saud Shakeel on Day 2 of the first Test against England in Multan. Their efforts were bolstered by the invaluable contributions of Naseem Shah and Shaheen Afridi with the bat as Pakistan scored 556 in the first innings. But England too scored at a rapid rate to end the day on 96 for 1 in 20 overs.
Salman Ali Agha brought up his 100 off just 108 balls, to applause all around the stadium, in the final session while adding a valuable partnership with Shaheen. Continuing on from the previous sessions, the duo had managed to comfortably rotate the strike post the Tea break, unperturbed on a pitch that offered nothing for the bowlers. They layed into left-arm spinner Jack Leach scoring two sixes off him. But Afridi, in an attempt to up the ante, with a slog sweep, was castled a few balls later by Leach.
Earlier during the day, Pakistan had approached play more conservatively. Naseem, the night watcher, stayed put in the middle for nearly an hour and a half in the morning as Shakeel picked up the runs. But the fast-bowler finally fell off a glance to fine-leg while Mohammed Rizwan followed soon after with a duck, caught at mid-off.
But Salman Ali Agha had other ideas post Lunch and he took the attack to England, smashing a couple of boundaries in the opening over after the break. He survived an attempt to clear the ropes few overs later, when Chris Woakes’ momentum took him over the boundary ropes after taking the catch. But England struck twice in quick succession soon after as Shakeel was dismissed for 82 and Jamal was trapped leg-before off Carse.
The dismissal of Afridi offered Pakistan a chance of declaration but they opted against it, having lost from a similar position to Bangladesh only recently. No. 11 batter Abrar Ahmed survived two chances in two overs.
First, ‘keeper Jamie Smith missed a routine stumping chance while Gus Atkinson dropped him at mid-wicket. But Joe Root had his man an over later, as Abrar steered a quick short-ball to Ben Duckett at slip. In an attempt to take the catch, the ball hit Duckett on the top of his thumb immediately signaling to the dressing room that he was in pain.
With this century, Salman Ali Agha also achieved a personal milestone of surpassing 1,000 Test runs in just his 15th match. He now has 1,033 runs at an impressive average of 46.95. His tally includes three hundreds and seven fifties, highlighting his consistency and ability to perform under pressure. The century against England was his first fifty-plus score against them in Tests, taking his total runs against the English side to 288 at a solid average of 57.60.
As a result, there was a rejig in England’s batting order as Zak Crawley and skipper Ollie Pope walked out to bat. England, under the Bazball-era bat on this track, promised a lot and they didn’t as Crawley drove Afridi for four off the very first over. Pope nailed a pull off Naseem in the next over but Aamer Jamal took a one-handed stunner at mid-wicket to dismiss Pope for a duck.
The wicket made no difference to England’s intentions and they kept the scoreboard ticking with ones, twos and regular boundaries. They scored 11 runs off Abrar’s first over including two boundaries despite the spinner taking the edge of Crawley which was fell well wide of slip. The same thing happened in Abrar’s next over, this time off Root and the batters scampered for three as Root brought up 1000 Test runs in 2024.
Crawley continued to attack Abrar hitting him for two more boundaries in the 15th over. He repeated the feat again in the 18th over, this time off Naseem, as he brought up his 50 in the process. This was sandwiched by Joe Root almost chopping onto the stumps, off a ball which kept low by Afridi before stumps.
As Pakistan gears up for their bowling stint, Salman Ali Agha”s century has given them the momentum to apply pressure on England, setting up an intriguing contest for the remaining days of the Test.
Road Ahead on Day 3 for England and Pakistan
England have ticked along nicely to 96/1 in response to Pakistan’s total of 556. The visitors were dealt with a blow as Ben Duckett couldn’t open the batting due to an injury to his thumb. Captain Ollie Pope came out with Zak Crawley and he was dismissed for a duck as Aamer Jamal took a ripper at midwicket. But since then the runs have flowed with Crawley and Root taking control.
The pitch remains excellent to bat on with just the occasional ball doing some mischief. After probing spells from Shaheen and Naseem with the new ball, the English duo have managed to blunt the seamers comfortably, while Crawley has also looked to take the attack to Abrar in the few overs he bowled. That battle will be one to look out for tomorrow. Long way to go in this Test still, and we’ll see how it shapes up on Day 3.
Early news from the England camp is that Ben Duckett is fine and will come out to bat at some point. He was struck on the left thumb yesterday while taking a catch, and didn’t come out to open
In his absence, Ollie Pope walked out to the middle with Zak Crawley and was dismissed for a duck, thanks to a stunning catch from Aamer Jamal. But the partnership between Crawley and Root underlined the difficulty of the task that lies ahead of the Pakistan bowlers. England did their share of the grind for 149 overs, and now it’s the turn of the hosts on a pitch that still remains pretty lifeless.
The cracks on the pitch have widened slightly. We saw a couple of instances of variable bounce yesterday, and the odd ball gripped for the spinners. But by and large, batters shouldn’t have too many issues