Watch: Rehan Ahmed catches Mohammad Rizwan plumb in front of wicket

Watch: Rehan Ahmed catches Mohammad Rizwan plumb in front of wicket. (Source – Getty Images)

The hosts Pakistan managed to bundle up England for 267 runs on Day 1 of the third Test at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium in Rawalpindi. The hosts commenced Day 2 on 73 with seven wickets in hand and 194 runs to trail. As soon as Shan Masood departed, Mohammad Rizwan joined Saud Shakeel in the middle with Pakistan reeling at 99 losing four batters.

The duo then stitched a partnership of 52 runs for the fifth wicket before Rizwan was trapped in front of the stumps by Rehan Ahmed. The right-handed batters tried to sweep the fuller delivery, which was skidding and did not get a slightest of edge on the bat. He hesitantly took DRS, but the replays showed three reds with no spikes on the Ultra-Edge meter. 

Here’s the video Rizwan’s dismissal:

Pakistan in search for first series win since 2021

After Rizwan’s wicket after two overs, Agha Salman followed suit contributing just one and turned out to be Rehan’s second scalp of the Test. The young England spinner then cleaned up Aamer Jamal as Pakistan were resorted to 177 with seven of their batters in the dug-out. However, Saud Shakeel is waging a lone battle batting on 79 as Pakistan were 198 after 66 overs and trail by 69 runs. 

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It is worth noting that, Pakistan have never won a series at home since 2021 and they are coming off a series loss against Bangladesh at home. After the first Test loss against England in Multan, the team dropped the likes of Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi, and Naseem Shah. They subsequently won the second Test and levelled the series 1-1 before the Rawalpindi game beckoned.

On the other hand, England are too under immense scanner as they lost all their 20 wickets to spin in the second Test. Several former cricketers were critical of the English batters trying sweep shots excessively to tackle spin.