Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes had underscored their philosophy several times over: England will risk defeat in order to win Test matches. And so it proved in Rawalpindi. The visitors offered a brave declaration of their second innings, asking Pakistan to chase 342 for victory with about 100 overs left in the game, light permitting. At the end of another truncated final session, Pakistan had whittled down 80 runs from their target but lost two of their first-innings centurions Abdullah Shafique and Babar Azam along the way while experienced batter Azhar Ali had to retire hurt with a finger injury.

Thankfully for the hosts, their other centurion from the first dig, Imam-ul-Haq, survived England’s bouncer plan and moved along to 43 and added 55 runs for the third wicket in the company of Saud Shakeel. It was a tricky 20 over period for Pakistan before bad light ended play early once more. They were chasing leather for much of the day before Stokes and McCullum dangled the fourth-innings carrot. Given the pitch had continued to remain benign deep into the fourth day, a chase at a rate above three runs to the over wasn’t going to be difficult. But, in it was England’s best chance to force mistakes out of their excitable opponents.

Stokes also began the final session by inverting all usual conventions. Test cricket’s most prolific fast bowler, James Anderson, was not handed the new ball and instead Ollie Robinson and Stokes took it upon themselves to test out areas half-way down from the batters. The bouncer ploy worked. Shafique miscued a pull and was caught by Harry Brook at deep square leg. Ollie Robinson then around the stumps and got a ball to climb awkwardly on Azhar Ali and pinged him on the fingers, forcing the senior batter into retiring hurt. In walked Babar at No.4. He slapped one short ball over the off-side for four but then was caught in two minds against a Stokes short ball and inside-edged a ball to the ‘keeper.

At 25/2, Pakistan were wobbling. But the pair of Imam and Shakeel managed to work their way out of trouble. It helped that the ring of attacking fielders stationed by Stokes allowed for ready boundary opportunities. Jack Leach, for instance, when introduced into the attack bowled with a pair of catching mid-wickets, a slip, a forward short leg and a silly point. That meant Shakeel could simply chip the ball towards mid-on for a pair of boundaries. There was one nervy moment for Pakistan when a Shakeel clip went straight to Keaton Jennings at short leg but the reflex catch didn’t ‘stick’ and Pakistan could go into the final day with no further damage and still with a realistic chance of victory.

It is an intriguing place for them to find themselves having conceded 657 in the first innings and then again 264 in less than 36 overs on the fourth day. When it was their turn to bat, England’s batters were in no mood to allow the game to peter out. Zak Crawley, Joe Root and Harry Brook all hit fifties at faster than a run a ball.

The signs were not hard to read in that second session. Crawley, who was on 24 at Lunch, began with an on-drive and a square drive while Root played an audacious reverse scoop off Naseem Shah for a boundary of his own. Almost immediately after getting to a half-century to go with his first-innings ton, Crawley was strangled down the legside attempting to put away a short ball from Mohammad Ali. The umpires didn’t pick up the glove and the opener himself appeared to suggest the ball had hit his shoulder but Pakistan’s ring fielders were convinced enough to ask for the DRS aid and get their third wicket.

Brook joined Root with the former captain seamlessly taking over as the tempo setter. He continued to play with the field, pushing the ball into gaps and running twos or using his famous dab to run the ball down to third man. Despite hitting only four boundaries, Root had a 48-ball 50 of his own.

Babar Azam, already hamstrung by the loss of Haris Rauf to an injury, brought the spinners on with the strategy to bowl from round the stumps and into the right-handers’ blindspot. To counter and continue with his run-making ways, Root turned into a left-hander for a ball and then abandoned that move in favour of the reverse sweep. Boundaries continued to flow as Root raced into the 70s. Eventually, Zahid Mahmood and Pakistan’s persistence paid off when Root eventually miscued a sweep and was caught at short fine. Ben Stokes followed his former skipper into the dressing room in the same over, miscuing a shot to sweeper cover.

Brook took over from there and launched an all-out offense on debutant legspinner Mahmood, repeatedly slogging him over mid-wicket or stepping out and hitting him over his head. Will Jacks, promoted above the injured Liam Livingstone, hit three sixes off his own in a 13-ball knock of 24. It was Brooks, however, who was marched on rapidly towards a second hundred of the game before he was out on the cusp of the Tea break, bowled off Naseem Shah while trying to swipe across the line. His 11 fours and three sixes, however, was perfect for England to set up a brave declaration.

More earlier in the day, Jacks finished with a six-fer on debut, having known of his participation in the Test merely minutes before the start of the game. Pakistan had begun the day, trailing England by 158 in the first innings and had Agha Salman to thank for eating into his deficit by farming the strike with the tail. Salman though edged Jacks to first slip and the offie went on to dismiss Mahmood and Rauf for figures of 6 for 161. Little would he have known then that he would be needed to produce another strong show on the final day for that first-innings performance to not end up on a losing side.

Brief scores:

England 657 and 264 for 7 decl. (Harry Brook 87, Joe Root 73; Mohammad Ali 2-64)

Pakistan 579 and 80/2 (Imam-ul-Haq 43n.o.)