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Big hundreds from
Yousuf, Younis gives the lead for Pak – Day 3,
3rd Test at Headingley Report |
August 06, 2006 (Link to
Scorecard)
It's all even-steven at Headingley with Pakistan
going past the English total of 515 by just 23
runs and the fate of this Test Match now hanging
on the result of the second innings of both the
sides. Both teams can actually forget about the
first three days of this Test Match as England's
second innings total plus the one run will be
the target for Pakistan considering that the
23-run lead is a negligible one on this pitch
and the homeside are 3/0 after having to face 2
overs before stumps on Day 3. It was largely
Pakistan's day with Mohammad Yousuf and Younis
Khan plundering the bowlers all over the park.
The pair had batted for almost half of the day's
play to take their partnership to an epic 363.
Both the Y's missed out in completing their
double hundreds and a flurry of wickets just
before the Tea Break got the life back in the
Test Match. As many as 339 runs were scored in
today's play at the loss of 8 wickets.
Pakistan began the third day's play at a solid
202 for 2 and they were up against an older and
softer ball which was hardly doing anything off
the wicket or in the air. Mohammad Yousuf and
Younis Khan continued from where they had left
in the previous day and it looked clear that
England will have a long wait to break this
partnership. It was because both batsmen were
professional enough to cash in on the perfect
batting conditions and their form to get the big
scores. Mohammad Yousuf who resumed on 91 today
got to his 18th Test Match hundred quite early
in the day and Younis Khan got his after the
drinks break. England took the second new ball
in the 81st over and that was the only way they
could make inroads in the Pakistani batting.
Steve Harmison produced some uncomfortable
moments with his rising deliveries to Mohammad
Yousuf, but the track wasn't quick enough to be
dangerous. Pakistan went safely to lunch at 331
for 2 with 129 scored in the 31 overs bowled
this morning. Mohammad Yousuf had taken his
score to 160 and Younis Khan was on 122.
After lunch, Steve Harmison got the much needed
breakthrough by bowling a short one onto
Yousuf's body and even though the batsman was on
192, it was tough to handle that delivery and he
gloved it to the wicket keeper down the legside.
England finally got the breakthrough after a
long wait of almost 84 overs! Mohammad Yousuf's
192 had come in just 265 balls with 25 fours and
two sixes. Inzamam joined Younis and showed his
intentions of going for the quick runs, but
somehow couldn't sustain that and England bowled
a few tight overs to pull the run rate down. It
was in the 113th over that the Test match looked
to have got a twist with Younis Khan run out by
a direct throw from Sajid Mahmood to end his
innings at 173. Younis had played 285 balls for
that and his innings was studded with 22
boundaries. The very next ball after Younis'
wicket, Faisal Iqbal got struck low on his pads
in his backfoot defence to Paul Collingwood's
inswinger and all of a sudden England were
pumped up. Incidentally Faisal Iqbal became the
first scalp for Paul Collingwood in Test
Cricket. In the very next over, which was bowled
by Monty Panesar, came the moment of this season
with Inzamam falling over his own stumps! The
Pakistani Skipper got onto his knee to play the
sweep and couldn't connect that and in his
follow through lost his balance and his big body
fell over the innocent stumps. Inzamam got out
for a 52-ball 26 and his innings had started off
in a terrific fashion by pulling and cutting
Harmison's quick and short deliveries. It was
Tea with the fall of Inzy's wicket and Pakistan
had lost three wickets for 4 runs in the space
of nine deliveries and the score was 451 for 6
with just Kamran Akmal being the lone recognized
batsmen.
After Tea, Kamran Akmal (20) couldn't break free
and he went for a rash cut shot off Sajid
Mahmood to nick it behind to first slip to leave
Pakistan 57 runs short of England's 515. The
tail wagged for an appreciable amount of time
with Shahid Nazir holding up one end with his
solid defence. The last three wickets for
Pakistan put on a crucial 57 runs to help
Pakistan get ahead of England. Danish Kaneria by
taking a few chances got to a new career highest
score of 29. England bowlers had to bowl almost
142 overs in this innings and Monty Panesar
bowled 47.4 overs out of that taking 3 wickets.
Steve Harmison, Sajid Mahmood and Monty Panesar
conceded more than hundred runs in their
bowling. England got to bat two overs before the
scheduled close and they did it without losing a
wicket although Trescothick played a touch
nervously in the 1st over from Sami.
So the Test match is interestingly poised and it
can head towards a draw or a win for anyone. If
England get off to a good start, then the
pressure would be on Pakistan to save the series
from being sealed 2-0 and their batting could
crumble under pressure as seen at Old Trafford.
The pitch has remained good for the batsmen and
it is the swing bowlers who can be effective in
these conditions, but there hasn't been a bowler
who has perfectly exploited the conditions.
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