Rawalpindi: Rehan Ahmed’s three quick wickets turned an evenly poised deciding third Test England’s way on Friday, leaving Pakistan teetering on 187-7 in Rawalpindi.
The 20-year-old knocked over Mohammad Rizwan (25), Salman Agha (one) and Aamer Jamal (14) to enter the lunch break on day two with figures of 3-25. England still lead by 80 runs.
Pakistan’s batting was held together by Saud Shakeel’s unbeaten 72.
He was accompanied by Noman Ali on six not out after no other batter from the home team managed to cross 30.
Pakistan added 114 runs in the extended two-and-a-half-hour session due to Friday prayers.
Shakeel, who reached his eighth Test half-century off 132 balls, has so far hit four boundaries in his fighting knock.
England’s frontline spinners Jack Leach and Shoaib Bashir could not extract the same sharp turn from the pitch as rival Sajid Khan, who took 6-128 to dismiss the visitors for 267 on Thursday.
Pakistan resumed the day at 73-3 in search of a lead to press for a series win.
But Shakeel was the only batter able to press on after reaching double figures. He added 53 for the fourth wicket with captain Shan Masood who fell to Bashir for 26.
It was England’s first breakthrough, as Masood edged to slip. Pakistan looked to be getting their innings back on track as Rizwan joined Shakeel and the pair put on 52 for the fifth wicket.
But the introduction of Rehan into the bowling attack derailed their innings.
He trapped Rizwan and Agha leg before in successive overs and then bowled Jamal to give England the edge.
The three-match series is tied at 1-1.

PESHAWAR: Ten police were shot dead at a check post near the Afghan border, officials said Friday, in an attack claimed by the Pakistan Taliban.

“The intense exchange of fire lasted for nearly an hour. Ten Frontier Constabulary personnel were martyred, and seven were wounded during the attack,” a senior intelligence officer told AFP on condition of anonymity.

About 20 to 25 militants launched a heavy assault on a post of the Frontier Constabulary, a police assistance force, in the Dera Ismail Khan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

Pakistan has seen an increase in militancy since the Afghan Taliban returned to power in 2021, with the Pakistani chapter of the movement carrying out attacks mostly targeting security forces.

A senior official from the Frontier Constabulary also confirmed the details on the condition of anonymity.

The attack was around 70 kilometer (around 43 miles) east of Afghan border.

One policeman was killed in a separate attack carried out on Thursday night, also close to the Afghan border in Khyber district.

Last month a police convoy escorting foreign ambassadors was targeted in road side blast that left a policeman dead.

The Pakistani Taliba historically has roots in Afghanistan and shares the same ideology as the Afghan Taliban.

Islamabad says such attacks are being launched from neighboring Afghanistan by various militant groups, many linked to the TTP, which the Taliban authorities in Kabul deny.