Twitter Reactions: Shan Masood slams ton before Pakistan bowlers rip England on Day 2

Pakistan began Day 2 at 139/2. James Anderson dismissed Babar Azam in the very first over. The batsman could not add anything to his overnight tally of 69 runs. Mohammad Rizwan lost his wicket soon after. This is when Shadab Khan walked out. He, along with Shah Masood, gave the England bowling line-up a very tough time.

With a 105 run partnership for the sixth wicket, they helped the Asian side get a massive lead. The partnership came in less than 25 overs which shows how they played at a great run-rate. The English bowlers had no answers to this batting duo and used almost all the bowlers they had. Shadab was finally dismissed on 45 in an attempt to attack the spin bowler, Dom Bess.

While the Pakistan opener was running out of partners, he successfully brought up his 150. Getting a hundred in England is no joke, and a 150 in the very first Test just shows the batsman’s calibre. He lost his wicket to Stuart Broad in the pacer’s very first over post the tea. Pakistan were eventually all out for 326 runs, a score rated highly by most experts.

For the visitors, it was Shah Masood who stood out with a brilliant 156. Coming to the hosts’ bowling, Stuart Broad and Jofra Archer got three, Chris Woakes got two while James Anderson and Dom Bess got a wicket each.

Pakistan bowlers bury the England top-order

The Pakistan bowlers came out all guns blazing and got the early breakthroughs they would have liked. Shaheen Shah Afridi dismissed Rory Burns in the very first over to open the account for the Asian side. Mohammad Abbas showed his class as he went on to dismiss both Dominic Sibley and Ben Stokes in quick succession.

While Root tried his best to play the waiting game and not lose his wicket, he eventually fell pray to leg spinner, Yasir Shah. This was the end of a 50 run partnership between the captain and Ollie Pope. Jos Buttler and Pope have now added another 30 runs to the English total. At 92/4, they have a lot of work to do on Day 3.

The visitors would be looking to get some early wickets on Day 3 and keep the hosts on the back foot. With their bowlers in good form, the Asian side would fancy their chances of dismantling this batting line-up. Day 3 promises to be an intense one with no team out of the game.

Here’s how Twitter reacted: