Twitter Reactions: England and Pakistan settle for a draw in Southampton

After getting only 10.2 overs in the last couple of days, the first session on Day 5 was washed out as well. It seemed like the match was between rain and bad light, not England and Pakistan. England were at 12-1 at the beginning of the day’s play. While it was quite clear that a result was not possible, it was a great opportunity for the England batsmen to get some runs.

Dominic Sibley and Zak Crawley began proceedings for the hosts, while Mohammad Abbas started with the ball. Both the Englishmen played some great cricket and were involved in a partnership of 92 runs. The former scored 32 runs while the latter hit a good 53 runs.

Pakistan bowling lack fire on the final day

With no result possible, everyone was hoping for some good cricket to take place. The Pakistan bowling line-up however lacked the zeal and could not make any impact on the final day. While the 92-run partnership went across more than 31 overs, the Asian side clearly had no answers. With three quality pacers in their ranks, a lot had been expected from them.

Mohammad Abbas finally joined the party, dismissing both the set batsmen in consecutive overs. He had bowled throughout the day with good discipline and consistency, deserving the two wickets he got. None of the other pacers were able to create an impact.

Joe Root and Ollie Pope were now at the crease. The England captain ended not out scoring nine runs while the latter was dismissed for nine runs by Yasir Shah. It was the lone wicket the spinner got. Jos Butler who came in next finished not out without scoring any run in the 13 balls he played. For the Pakistan side, Abbas ended with two wickets while Shaheen Afridi and Yasir Shah picked up one each.

Only 38.1 overs took place on Day 5 and England finished at 110-4, while the match ended as a draw. England lead the series 1-0 and with only one Test remaining, the Asian side would hope to level the series. With the weather forecast not very good for the next game either, we can only hope that we get a result in the final match of the series.

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