MULTAN: Left-arm spinner Jack Leach claimed three key wickets to spark a Pakistan collapse on day two of the second Test, ending the hosts' innings for 202 in Multan on Saturday.
Leach dismissed Saud Shakeel (63), Mohammad Rizwan (ten) and Mohammad Nawaz (one) on a turning Multan Stadium pitch, leaving England with a 79-run lead and a golden opportunity to secure an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.
Pakistan lost their last seven wickets for 37 runs after captain Babar Azam fell for 75, with Leach getting sold assistance from Joe Root finished (2-23) and Mark Wood (2-40).
Leach led the England attack with figures of 4-98, having dismissed Abdullah Shafique on Friday, and also reached a landmark 100 wickets in his 31st Test.
After Leach's inroads, Root joined the act with his looping off-breaks, dismissing Agha Salman (four) and Mohammad Ali (nought).
With Lunch extended for the last wicket, Faheem Ashraf (22) and Abrar Ahmed (seven not out) added 23 before Wood broke the partnership.
Earlier, fast bowler Ollie Robinson got the prized wicket of Azam to give England a head start after Pakistan resumed the day's play at 107-2.
The hosts were hoping Azam and Shakeel could give them a first-innings lead but the Pakistan skipper played a loose shot to be bowled by Robinson.
He hit ten boundaries and a six and added 91 for the third wicket with Shakeel.
Leach then lured Shakeel into playing a lofted shot toward mid-on where James Anderson ran towards his left to hold on to a difficult chance, giving the spinner his 100th Test wicket.
Shakeel smashed ten boundaries for his second successive half-century.
Pakistan unable to recover after Babar-Saud partnership snap
Pakistan’s innings never recovered after the 91-run stand for the third wicket between Babar Azam and Saud Shakeel was broken by Robinson.
Faheem Ashraf scored 22 runs in 31 balls and was the last Pakistan batter to be dismissed.
Leach was the pick of the bowlers for England, claiming figures of 4-98. Mark Wood and Joe Root claimed two wickets each.
It must be noted that England were dismissed for 281 in the first innings on the opening day of the second Test.
Pakistan debutant Abrar Ahmed spun a spell over England Friday, grabbing seven wickets.
The 24-year-old — nicknamed "Harry Potter" by friends because he wears glasses similar to those of the fictional boy wizard — produced magic of his own to finish with 7-114.
It was the second-best debut by a Pakistan bowler behind pacer Mohammad Zahid's 7-66 against New Zealand in Rawalpindi in 1996.
Ben Duckett (63) and Ollie Pope (60) were the main run scorers in an England innings that finished at the stroke of tea, after skipper Ben Stokes won the toss and decided to bat.
England, on their first tour of Pakistan since 2005, lead the three-match series 1-0 after winning the first Test in Rawalpindi by 74 runs.
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