Key Takeaways
- England beat Pakistan by eight wickets in the third Test at Edgbaston.
- Joe Root led England's comeback, surviving early wobbles to reach his half-century.
- Pakistan's Razaullah's heroic batting effort was too little, too late.
England secured a 3-0 series win over Pakistan in the third Test at Edgbaston, despite early wobbles that threatened their victory. The home team, chasing just 130 to win, were in deep trouble when openers Ben Duckett and Emilio Gay were dismissed in the first over, bowled by Mohammad Abbas.
Captain Joe Root, England’s record run-scorer, led from the front. Root, in his second spell as England skipper, admitted his team was not the finished article but said he was delighted with their series win. 'The amount of uncertainty, noise and I guess chaos there was coming into the series, the way the guys have dealt with that – being so clinical with what we’ve had in front of us – and be stood here with a 3-0 win is really pleasing,' he told Sky Sports.
Root's team had appeared set for a quickfire win inside three days on Friday before debutant fast bowler Razaullah launched an audacious assault with the bat, clubbing nine sixes as he raced to 81 off 63 balls. The 21-year-old number nine, who also took four wickets in England’s first innings, put on 121 for the ninth wicket with fellow paceman Abbas (42) as England floundered.
Root's men had appeared set for a quickfire win inside three days on Friday before debutant fast bowler Razaullah launched an audacious assault with the bat, clubbing nine sixes as he raced to 81 off 63 balls. The 21-year-old number nine, who also took four wickets in England’s first innings, put on 121 for the ninth wicket with fellow paceman Abbas (42) as England floundered.
England reached their target in the 25th over, with Root unbeaten on 62 and Jordan Cox 59 not out. Root, in his second spell as England skipper after the departure of Ben Stokes, admitted his team were not the finished article but said he was delighted with their series win. 'We had a little bit of pushback yesterday which, in a strange way, was quite a good thing for the group,' he said. 'Fair play to Razaullah, he made things difficult for us. He played some wonderful shots and made it very difficult to set fields to. He struck the ball nicely – I don’t know how he didn’t pull a muscle, swinging the bat that hard.'
Pakistan's woes continued, with the tourists sending seven players home after a miserable series. They lost the first Test by an innings and 103 runs and the second by 194 runs. England celebrated their first Test series win since 2024, while Pakistan have now lost 16 of their past 21 games and are rooted at the bottom of the World Test Championship table.
The series win sets England up nicely looking ahead to the start of a new era with new head coach Stephen Fleming coming in. Root's team will be eager to build on this success and continue their strong form in the upcoming matches.
The amount of uncertainty, noise and I guess chaos there was coming into the series, the way the guys have dealt with that – being so clinical with what we’ve had in front of us – and be stood here with a 3-0 win is really pleasing.
Joe Root, England captain
We had a little bit of pushback yesterday which, in a strange way, was quite a good thing for the group.
Joe Root, England captain
