Multan: Aiming to bounce back from a humbling defeat in the opening Test, Pakistan opted to pick new faces and a turning track for the second Test against England, which started earlier this morning in Multan.
Skipper Shan Masood took a positive decision to bat first after winning the toss but the decision backfired as the hosts lost two early wickets.
After suffering defeat in the opener despite scoring 556 runs in the first innings, Pakistan replaced the flat track with a slow and low pitch to assist the spinners. But it was England, who took advantage of the conditions with Jack Leach taking two wickets in his first three overs to leave the hosts rattled.
Leach, who dismissed Abdullah Shafique and Masood cheaply, broke a 135-year-old record by becoming the first England spinner to take wickets in the first ten overs of a Test match for the first time since 1889.
Amidst the intense cricketing action, one hilarious moment was caught on camera when star batter Joe Root was captured shining the ball on Leach’s head. Since the COVID-19 outbreak, using saliva to shine the ball has been banned in cricket but the players find creative methods to shine the ball.
WATCH: JOE ROOT SHINES THE BALL ON LEACH’S HEAD
Shiny head 🤝 Shiny ball pic.twitter.com/2yqEESpaeu
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) October 15, 2024
This is not the first time Root has used Leach’s head to shine the ball. On England’s previous tour to Pakistan in 2022, Root shone the ball by rubbing the red cherry all over the left-arm spinner’s head on Day 3 of the opening Test in Rawalpindi.
The rib-tickling incident occurred during the 73rd over of the Pakistan innings and the left commentators in a fix.
Ayub, Ghulam steady Pakistan
After the early blows, Saim Ayub and Kamran Ghulam steadied the ship for the hosts with a superb partnership of over 100 runs. Both batters reached individual milestones after crossing the 50-run mark in tough conditions in Multan.
PAK vs ENG 2nd Test: Amidst the intense cricketing action, one hilarious moment was caught on camera when star batter Joe Root was captured shining the ball on Jack Leach’s head. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
