LAHORE - England’s Harry Brook and Joe Root displayed remarkable resilience with unbeaten centuries as England ended day three of the first Test against Pakistan on 492 for three, after 101 overs, at the Multan Cricket Stadium on Wednesday. The visitors, still trailing by 64 runs, have seven wickets in hand in their first innings. Resuming play at the overnight score of 96 for one, Zak Crawley (64*) and Joe Root (32*) began proceedings on day three. Crawley, however, could only add 14 more runs to his tally before being dismissed in the 25th over by Pakistan’s spearhead, Shaheen Shah Afridi, bringing an end to the 109-run second-wicket partnership.
Root then found an able partner in Ben Duckett, and together they steered England forward with a 136-run stand for the third wicket. Duckett played an aggressive knock, smashing 84 off just 75 balls, studded with 11 boundaries, before Aamir Jamal trapped him leg-before-wicket (LBW). His departure left England at 249 for three in 49.4 overs.
It was at this point that Harry Brook joined Root, and the pair dominated the rest of the day with an unbroken 243-run partnership. Brook, showcasing his attacking flair, brought up his sixth Test century, while Root’s impeccable form continued as he notched up his 35th Test ton.
By stumps, Brook remained unbeaten on 141 off 173 balls, striking 12 boundaries and a six, while Root anchored the innings with 176* off 277 balls, also hitting 12 boundaries.For Pakistan, wickets were hard to come by on a placid surface, with Aamir Jamal, Naseem Shah, and Shaheen Afridi each claiming a wicket.
Meanwhile, England’s star Joe Root has etched his name in the history books, surpassing former captain Alastair Cook to become England’s highest run-scorer in Test cricket. Root achieved this remarkable feat during the first Test against Pakistan in Multan, surpassing Cook’s record of 12,472 runs.
Root reached this milestone when he crossed 71 runs in England’s first innings, breaking Cook’s long-standing record. Alastair Cook had amassed his 12,472 runs over 161 Test matches while Root achieved the new record in his 147th Test match, further cementing his legacy as one of England’s finest batsmen. Root now ranks fifth on the list of all-time highest run-scorers in Test cricket. The record for the most Test runs remains with Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar, who scored 15,921 runs in 200 matches. Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting was second on the list with 13,378 runs.
Scores in Brief
DAY 3 OF 5: ENGLAND 492-3, 101 overs (Joe Root 176*, Harry Brook 141*, Ben Duckett 84, Zak Crawley 78; Aamir Jamal 1-78, Naseem Shah 1-87) trail PAKISTAN 556 all out, 149 overs (Shan Masood 151, Salman Ali Agha 104*, Abdullah Shafique 102, Saud Shakeel 82; Jack Leach 3-160, Brydon Carse 2-74, Gus Atkinson 2-99) by 64 runs.