IT’S TOTAL KHAN-AGE Younus has us on the run
The Oval: England won toss England 328 (Moeen Ali 108, Bairstow 55; Sohail Khan 5-68) Pakistan 1st Innings Y Khan S Ahmed W Riaz M Amir S Khan 218 44 4 39 2 29 Total (146 ovs) ................................ 542 Fall: Bowling:
England 2nd Innings A Cook A Hales J Root J Vince G Ballance J Bairstow 7 12 39 0 4 14 12 Total 4 wkts (31 ovs) ...................... 88 Fall: Bowling: RICHARD SYDENHAM Alastair Cook’s team need a miracle if they are to avoid a heavy defeat to Pakistan that would level the series at 2-2.
England lost four early wickets in their second innings as leg-spinner Yasir Shah snared 3-15 and the Lord’s match-winner is likely to further bamboozle our nervous batters today.
Younus made the most of a flat pitch to rack up 218 to help Pakistan to 542 before England crashed pathetically to 88-4 at stumps to still trail by 126 runs.
England, who dropped four catches, got out of jail in the third Test as they overcame a first innings deficit of 103 to win – but that is unlikely here.
Cook edged Wahab Riaz to first slip for just seven sparking the collapse from 49-1 to 74-4 as Alex Hales and James Vince flopped again.
Hales missed a ball from Yasir and was lbw for 12 then failed to have his ‘out’ decision overturned on review for the second time in the Test.
Vince then drove Yasir loosely to Misbah-ul-Haq at short cover to trudge off for a three-ball duck.
The chances of the pair making the winter Test squad for the five-match series in India must now be remote.
Hales averages 28 in 11 Tests and Vince just 19 in his seven matches.
Root was playing nicely before he too was lbw to Yasir – and unsuccessful on review.
Gary Ballance – also fighting for his England career – scrapped to survive on four with Jonny Bairstow on 14.
Pakistan had been bowled out on the stroke of tea after Younus continued from where he had left off on Friday. The marathon man defied his critics who wrote off his incredible career after making just 122 runs in three Tests. Pakistan’s top Test runscorer was jumping all over the crease before this match and looked all at sea against England’s pace attack. But never write off a champion. Younus, 38, batted for more than nine hours and plundered 31 fours and four sixes, one of which registered his double century with a pull over midwicket off Moeen Ali. His stay finally ended when James Anderson trapped him lbw with a pitched-up off-cutter.