England’s innings began with Ben Duckett and Emily Guy, but the hosts lost their first wicket when Guy was dismissed for 8 by Mohammad Abbas, with wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan taking the catch.
Duckett followed soon after, scoring 17 before being dismissed by Abbas, leaving England 26 for two. Captain Joe Root then fell for just 4 at a total of 36, giving Abbas his third wicket of the innings.
Harry Brook and Jordan Cox then launched an attacking counterattack, adding 41 runs for the fourth wicket and taking England’s total to 77. However, Brook was bowled by Mohammad Ali for 15, leaving England four wickets down.
At the toss, Babar Azam said playing at Lord’s as captain was an honour and that Pakistan would look to exploit the grass on the pitch under overcast conditions.
England captain Joe Root said his team would also have preferred to bowl first. He said the pitch looked good and England would aim to post a big total. Pakistan made one change to their playing XI, with Babar Azam returning to the side while Salman Ali Agha was dropped.
Pakistan’s playing XI includes Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Azan Owais, Imam-ul-Haq, Shan Masood, Abdullah Shafique, Saud Shakeel, Ali Usman, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Ali and Mohammad Abbas.
England’s team comprises Joe Root, Emily Guy, Ben Duckett, Jordan Cox, Harry Brook, Dan Lawrence, Jamie Smith, Gus Atkinson, Jofra Archer, Ollie Robinson and Josh Tongue.
England lead the three match Test series 1-0 after winning the first Test in Leeds by an innings and 103 runs. The series is Pakistan’s first red-ball tour of England since 2020. Pakistan last won a Test series in England in 1996, when Wasim Akram’s side secured a 2-1 victory.
Overall, England and Pakistan have faced each other in 93 Tests, with England winning 31, Pakistan 23 and 39 matches ending without a result.
