Hosts England, after winning the toss, elected to bat first in the third and final Test against Pakistan at the Rose Bowl on Friday. England, leading 1-0 in the series, will be aiming to clinch a first series triumph against Pakistan in 10 years. After registering a victory in their last Test series against West Indies, England will be itching to clinch consecutive series.

After bracing the field on Day 1 of the third Test, England was struck with an early blow as opener Rory Burns was dismissed by Shaheen Afridi in the fifth over. What followed was Yasir Shah trapping Dom Sibley too, leaving England in a spot of bother.

With the scoreboard reflecting 73/2, 22-year-old Zak Crawley stepped up and struck a brilliant half-century. Crawley is currently eyeing to script his maiden ton in the traditional format. The youngster was assisted by Joe Root until the skipper was dismissed by youngster Naseem Shah off an unplayable delivery.

Naseem Shah plucks his first wicket of the third Test

Itching to scalp his first wicket of the Test, the young pacer hit the perfect length to show the exit door to a dangerous Root. 17-year-old Naseem landed the ball on the good length, forcing Root to defend the delivery. However, the ball took a thick outside edge off Root’s willow and wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan made no mistake in taking the catch. The ball was in front of the first slip but Rizwan brilliantly moved to his right and plucked the ball.

With Naseem’s brilliant delivery, the visitors were also successful in breaking a vital partnership between Root and Crawley. Post Root’s departure, Yasir Shah struck again as he dismissed Ollie Pope, with England reeling at 127/4. Shaheen and Naseem scalped a wicket each while Yasir took two to put Pakistan in the driving seat.

After suffering a defeat in the first Test and the second Test turning into a rain-affected draw, Azhar Ali and his men will be aiming to level the series by clinching the final Test. After the red-ball series, both the sides are slated to lock horns in three T20 Internationals, starting from 28th August.

Here’s Naseem Shah’s delivery:

A very good ball.

Scorecard/Clips: https://t.co/JVsNai1pz8 pic.twitter.com/6Av7Ik55oa

— England Cricket (@englandcricket) August 21, 2020