Pakistan's first innings ends at 366 in second Test against England

Pakistan was bowled out for 366 in their first innings on day two of the second Test against England in Multan on Wednesday. Debutant Kamran Ghulam led the hosts with an impressive 118, while Saim Ayub added a solid 77.

For England, spinner Jack Leach claimed 4 wickets for 114 runs, and seamer Brydon Carse took 3 for 50, helping England maintain a 1-0 lead in the three-Test series.

Aamer Jamal and Noman Ali displayed the resilience of Pakistan's lower order, guiding the team to 358 for eight at lunch on the second day. Mohammad Rizwan and Salman Agha resumed play at 37 and 5, respectively, with Pakistan at 259-5. However, Rizwan was dismissed by Carse for 41, as England dominated the opening hour of play.

Rizwan had survived a strong lbw appeal from Matthew Potts just before he edged a delivery to wicketkeeper Jamie Smith. Agha contributed 31 runs but could not convert his start into a significant innings, falling to a catch behind after Potts extracted extra bounce from a seemingly docile pitch.

Jack Leach took out Sajid Khan for just 2 runs, but Jamal managed to frustrate England despite struggling for runs and requiring on-field treatment. As the only specialist seamer in Pakistan's spin-heavy attack, Jamal's fitness is vital for the home side's chances of leveling the series.

Earlier, Ghulam, 29, scored a superb century on his debut, helping Pakistan recover from a precarious 19-2 after winning the toss. He formed a resilient partnership of 149 runs for the third wicket with Saim Ayub and added 65 runs for the fifth wicket with Rizwan. Ghulam reached his century with a boundary off spinner Joe Root, completing the milestone in 280 minutes and becoming the 12th Pakistani batter to score a century in his first Test.

Just half an hour before stumps, Ghulam was bowled by spinner Shoaib Bashir, concluding a determined 323-minute innings that included 11 fours and a six. 

Ghulam expressed his joy at scoring a hundred, especially as a replacement for Babar Azam, stating, "It is delightful to score a hundred, and that too as a replacement for Babar Azam, who has been a great player for Pakistan." He acknowledged a significant let-off on 79 when Ben Duckett missed a challenging catch off Leach.

After lunch, England implemented a short mid-off and two mid-wicket fielders to take wickets, but the Multan pitch, used in the first Test, offered minimal assistance to the spinners after an initially promising start. Captain Ben Stokes, who returned after missing the first Test due to a hamstring injury, bowled five overs without any visible issues.

Matthew Potts ended Ayub's innings when he edged a ball to Stokes at short mid-off, while Brydon Carse dismissed Saud Shakeel for 4 runs, with both wickets falling either side of the tea break. Leach's figures stood at 2 for 92, while Bashir, Carse, and Potts each claimed one wicket. Abdullah Shafique was bowled by Leach for 7 runs in the eighth over, with the score at 15, and shortly after, Leach had skipper Shan Masood caught for 3 runs at short midwicket.

England currently leads the three-match series 1-0.

**Pakistan Playing XI:** Saim Ayub, Abdullah Shafique, Shan Masood (captain), Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel (vice-captain), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Salman Ali Agha, Aamir Jamal, Noman Ali, Sajid Khan, Zahid Mehmood

**England Playing XI:** Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (captain), Jamie Smith (wk), Brydon Carse, Matt Potts, Jack Leach, Shoaib Bashir