England survive scare to sweep Pakistan series
England survive an almighty scare to eventually win the third Test against Pakistan by eight wickets and complete a 3-0 clean sweep.
Third Rothesay Test, Edgbaston (day four of five)
Pakistan 133 (Tongue 4-42) & 449 (Masood 95, Razaullah 81, Babar 76, Awais 59)
England 453 (Brook 75, Smith 69, Lawrence 65, Gay 60, Robinson 50; Razaullah 4-148) & 130-2 (Root 62*, Cox 59*)
England won by eight wickets, won series 3-0
England survived an almighty scare to eventually win the third Test against Pakistan by eight wickets and complete a 3-0 clean sweep.
The home side were already facing an unexpected chase of 130 on the fourth day after being frazzled by the hitting of Pakistan debutant Razaullah on Friday evening.
And the prospect of one of Test cricket's greatest turnarounds was raised when England were reduced to 2-2 in the opening over. Ben Duckett edged Muhammad Abbas' first ball behind and Emilio Gay was palpably leg before.
England could have been 35-3 after Joe Root rashly dragged on to his own stumps off Mohammad Ali. Ali was found to have overstepped and Root was reprieved on 23.
While Root needed fortune, Jordan Cox once again impressed with a composed 59, a further claim for the Essex man to be in the XI for the first Test against South Africa in December.
Cox and Root shared an unbroken stand of 128, Root unbeaten on 62 when victory was sealed just before lunch.
For Root, this completes a successful return to the captaincy he resumed when Ben Stokes retired in June, while England end one of their most turbulent summers in history in a positive fashion.
They switch formats to begin a white-ball series against Sri Lanka in Southampton on Tuesday, with Brendon McCullum back in charge and Kevin Pietersen as part of the coaching staff.
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England come through much-needed challenge
Such was England's serene progress up to the third evening of the final Test of the series, it was easy to forget that they were without both a captain and a coach less than two months ago.
For all the good things they have done against Pakistan, there was the feeling their credentials had not been challenged by the dismal performances of the tourists.
When Pakistan were 0-2 in their second innings, England could have won in two days. From then on, the visitors finally found some fight and England were asked to respond. The way Root's side coped with the pressure was not entirely convincing.
Their tactics in the field collapsed in the face of Razaullah's assault on Friday, then their batting was wobbling on Saturday morning. An extra hundred runs on the target might have been difficult. How Pakistan will rue being dismissed for 133 on the first day.
It is to England's credit that they weathered the storm. Even if it took Pakistan two and a half matches to show up, England have still won three consecutive Tests after a previous run of two wins in 10.
Greater challenges await on the winter trips to South Africa, Bangladesh and Australia. New head coach Stephen Fleming arrives in the UK in the coming days with plenty in his in-tray.
England left to ponder over openers
One area of concern for Fleming will be England's openers, albeit if the modest returns of Duckett and Gay have come in a summer when ball has been on top of bat.
In a dramatic start to the day, Abbas' metronomic accuracy not only sent nerves through the England dressing room, but also further exposed a growing issue at the top of the order.
Duckett edged a beauty for a golden duck. Although he has registered England's only century of the summer, Duckett has not reached 20 in five innings against Pakistan and his average since the beginning of the Ashes is 23.
Gay has three half-centuries in his first summer as a Test cricketer, though being pinned on the shin by Abbas left his average below 25. Gay swished his bat in the direction of the stumps in frustration and wasted a review, his immediate future in the team vulnerable.
At 2-2, the pressure on England was as high as the tension among the modest Edgbaston crowd. That Cox was able to navigate the hosts to safety has massively boosted his chances of remaining when Jacob Bethell returns from injury, possibly at the expense of Gay.
Cox was more secure than his senior partner, Root. Not only did the captain survive the Ali no-ball, he also edged between the static slips off a furious Abbas when he had 34.
The miss sucked the hope from Pakistan and England were able to accelerate towards their target.
Bar the past 48 hours, this has been a shambolic series from Pakistan, who have been behind since Ollie Robinson trapped Azan Awais lbw from the first ball of the first Test at Headingley.
