If this was the deciding day in the series, then all credit should go to Shakeel, who played an innings reminiscent of the late Graham Thorpe. England must also be fed up with Noman and Sajid, who have breathed new life into Pakistan with their wickets and have now played crucial knocks with the bat.

As on the first day, the pitch was painfully slow and there was less trickery in terms of spin and bounce for the older ball. Even with the new ball, England had only a fleeting threat.

For once, Ben Stokes’ tactics were questionable. Ahmed bowled just one over of the first 47 in the Pakistani innings. England were passive in the field, with boundary riders conceding single after single.

When Sajid arrived to clarify Pakistan’s position, England had no answers. Gus Atkinson was ignored until the second new ball was 15 overs old and was the man to remove Shakeel, while Stokes didn’t bowl himself at all.

The concern was that England would go too hard against the new ball and repeat the mistakes of slumping to 118-6 on the first day. Pakistan’s total was what England should have reached after winning the toss, instead of their 267.

As it turned out, their defense was breached as Noman and Sajid got more out of the field than the England spinners. The tourists at least have the advantage of bowling last, but need the runs to make it count.