MULTAN, Pakistan (Reuters) -Harry Brook hit an exquisite a triple century after Joe Root’s double ton as England heaped misery on Pakistan by overhauling their big total to declare their first innings at a mammoth 823-7 on the fourth day of the opening test on Thursday.
England then removed Abdullah Shafique in the first ball of Pakistan’s second innings to leave them at 23-1 at tea with Saim Ayub on 13 and Shan Masood on 10 and trailing by 244 runs.
Resuming on 492-3, the tourists went past Pakistan’s 556 to build a first innings lead of 267 runs at the end of the second session thanks to Brook’s 317 after Root’s 262 as they ground the tired hosts to dust on another hot day.
It was the highest score for both batsmen during a 454 run-partnership – the fourth-highest in tests – on the flat track at the Multan Cricket Stadium before Root departed lbw during the second session to one that kept low from Salman Agha.
Brook was particularly severe in the afternoon as he moved through the gears to score the second-fastest triple ton of all time in 310 balls and he became only the sixth Englishman to achieve the milestone.
His marathon innings finally ended when a miscued sweep off Saim went straight to Shan.
Root, who eclipsed Alastair Cook as England’s top test run-scorer on Wednesday, picked up from where he left off and became the first batsman from his country to make 20,000 international runs in the morning session with a driven boundary.
The former captain was handed a reprieve on 186 when Babar Azam dropped the simplest of catches at mid-wicket, and he made the most of it to reach his sixth double century with a single before celebrating by kissing the badge on his helmet.
In reaching the milestone, Root went past Cook again with only Wally Hammond ahead of him in England’s list with seven double tons.
Brook then became the latest member of the club to delight the travelling English fans, who stayed on their feet to cheer when Root eased to his 250 with a scooped boundary in the same over bowled by Naseem Shah.
Television replays showed that the ball had struck the flap of Root’s back pad but the 33-year-old did not complain and went on to better his previous best of 254 before he went shortly after lunch.
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru; Editing by Christopher Cushing and Christian Radnedge)
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