Spinner Noman Ali took eight wickets as Pakistan defeated England by 152 runs in the second Test on Friday in Multan, leveling the series at 1-1. Noman achieved figures of 8-46, while Sajid Khan contributed with 2-93, helping to dismiss England for 144 after they were set a challenging target of 297.
This victory marked Pakistan’s first home win since February 2021, following a heavy defeat by an innings in the first Test, also held in Multan. The third and final Test is set to begin in Rawalpindi on October 24. Noman finished with a match total of 11-147, and Sajid recorded 9-204, marking only the second time in Pakistan’s history that two bowlers claimed all 20 wickets in a Test match.
Pakistan’s last home win was against South Africa in Rawalpindi over three years ago, after which they experienced 11 consecutive home Tests without a victory. This win also marked Shan Masood’s first as captain since he took on the role last year, which included previous whitewashes by Australia and Bangladesh.
Pakistan’s strategy of dropping star batsman Babar Azam and making three other changes after the first Test loss, as well as playing on a reused pitch with three spinners, proved effective. Resuming their innings at 36-2, England struggled on a spin-friendly pitch, adding only 108 runs before being bowled out.
Sajid Khan claimed his first wicket early on by removing Ollie Pope with a sharply turning delivery that he caught off his own bowling. Noman then dismissed Joe Root for 18 and Harry Brook for 16, leaving England reeling at 78-5.
Brook and Root had previously scored massive runs in the first Test, but their dismissals signaled trouble for England. Noman’s fourth wicket was Jamie Smith, caught by Masood for six. Skipper Ben Stokes and Brydon Carse added some resistance, reaching 125 before Stokes was comically stumped, swinging at Noman and losing his bat.
Noman finished the match by taking the final three wickets, including Carse (27), Jack Leach (one), and Shoaib Bashir (none), surpassing his previous best of 7-70 against Sri Lanka in Colombo last year.
