Rawalpindi: England showcased its masterful approach of aggression in Test cricket with a superb 74-run victory over Pakistan in the final session of the first Test on Sunday.
Needing 263 runs with eight wickets in hand on Day 5, Pakistan was dismissed for 268 against the reverse swing of James Anderson (4-36) and Ollie Robinson (4-50) losing its last five wickets for just 11 runs after tea.
Jack Leach wrapped up the game by having the last wicket of Naseem Shah, trapped
leg before wicket, after England delayed the second new ball
for well over an hour with Anderson and Robinson
doing the damage with the old ball.
Pakistan also succumbed to the relentless attacking field settings of England captain Ben Stokes throughout the final day before Robinson and veteran Anderson sliced through the lower order with the host needing 86 runs.
"What we've had to deal with coming in makes this win even better," Stokes said, referring to a virus that hit half of his teammates on the eve of the match before they recovered in time for England's first test in Pakistan in 17 years.
"We wanted to come here and carry on with our mantra of exciting cricket and giving ourselves an opportunity to win. We've no interest in drawing."
The win on a docile Pindi Cricket Stadium wicket firmly underlined England's fearless aggressive approach under new coach Brendon McCullum, which saw them win six of the seven test matches back home this summer. Robinson exposed Pakistan's long tail soon after tea when he had Agha Salman (30) trapped leg before and then Azhar Ali (40) fell in the fielding trap when Joe Root grabbed a low two-handed catch in the leg slip.
Robinson had earlier ended the nearly four-hour defiance of one of the four Pakistan debutants Saud Shakeel in the second session to a brilliant diving catch by Keaton Jennings as the lefthander top-scored with 76.
Anderson broke the 87-run stand by having Mohammad Rizwan caught behind off a delivery which moved a shade outside the off stump and took the outside edge of the bat as England kept on coming hard at the Pakistan
middle-order.