England’s Seamers Dominate as Tongue’s New Weapon Shines

England’s four-man pace pack did what it has done all series: hunted as a unit and tore through Pakistan. This time it was 133 all out at Edgbaston, another sub-200 total, another day when the ball felt like a live wire in English hands.

By stumps, England were 156 for four and already 23 runs ahead, with Harry Brook unmoved and in control. The game, both camps insisted, is still poised. The numbers, and the mood, say England’s quicks are in charge.

Tongue’s wobble seam pays instant dividends

Josh Tongue stood at the heart of it. Four wickets, all muscle and method, and a new trick up his sleeve.

He has been tinkering away from the spotlight, working on a wobble seam delivery with Ollie Robinson. Not theory. Repetition, feel, and the kind of quiet graft that turns a good bowler into a dangerous one.

“I’ve spoken to Robbo quite a bit about it,” Tongue said. Robinson’s mastery of that subtle deviation has been a feature of the series, and Tongue has been a keen student. A couple of trials in training, a first outing in the middle – and immediate payoff. One ball, one edge, one wicket. A skill born in the nets, blooded in the arena.

“That was the first time I’d bowled it in the game and it got me a wicket, so I’ll be using it again. I want to get more skills under my belt,” he said, matter-of-fact but clearly buoyed.

The figures told the story of a shared assault. Tongue’s four, with the other six split between Robinson and Jofra Archer, underlined how England’s seamers have synced their plans and their lengths. On a surface offering lateral movement and with cloud hanging overhead, they didn’t waste the conditions.

Pakistan’s batting malaise deepens

For Pakistan, the pattern is becoming painful. Five innings in the series, five times dismissed for less than 200. Again they were squeezed, again they never quite broke free.

Saud Shakeel, who top-scored with 43, tried to hold the innings together and then tried to explain it.

“Early on, when we lost the toss, the pitch had some moisture in it and the overcast conditions helped their bowlers as well,” he said. The admission that followed was blunt. “We got some soft dismissals and we couldn’t come back from that.”

This wasn’t a side throwing its hands up. Shakeel stressed the effort, the work, the fight. “We’re working hard, it’s not like we aren’t trying,” he said. The problem lies in a different kind of unfamiliarity: English movement, relentless and late, on pitches that keep the seam alive.

“There’s a lot of lateral movement and we’re not used to facing that, but we are trying our best. I’m not saying our batting group has not struggled, we have accepted that. But the conditions have been difficult. Bowlers have been on top.”

They have. England’s attack has found a method and stuck to it, over after over. Pakistan’s batters have yet to find an answer.

England ahead, but wary of the morning

On the scoreboard, England hold the advantage. Four wickets down, six in hand, Brook set, and the home side already beyond Pakistan’s total. The platform is there for a decisive lead.

Yet inside the dressing room, there was no hint of complacency. Tongue’s assessment of what comes next was sharp and simple. “That first hour tomorrow morning is going to be very crucial. We’ve just got to get through that first bit.”

It is the old Edgbaston truth. Fresh bowlers, a hint of moisture, a new ball still hard enough to talk – mornings can flip a match. Pakistan know it. So do England.

Shakeel, looking for a foothold in the contest, clung to that same window of opportunity. “We started well with our bowling and if we can get them out quickly there’s a good chance we can get back in the game,” he said. The equation is stark: early wickets or a long, punishing day in the field.

Razaullah’s raw pace offers Pakistan hope

If Pakistan needed a shard of optimism, it came hurtling in at high speed. Razaullah, just 21 and in only his ninth first-class match, bowled with genuine menace and a hint of something more – that raw, slightly untamed edge that makes batters hurry.

He removed Emilio Gay, one of England’s two half-centurions alongside the unbeaten Brook, and then Joe Root. Two big scalps, both earned with pace and awkward angles.

Shakeel has faced him only once before in domestic cricket. “I’ve just faced him one time in a domestic first-class game, so I haven’t seen him that much,” he said. The impression clearly lingered. “But he has some raw pace and a difficult action and we’re hoping he will continue bowling like this.”

For Pakistan, Razaullah represents a different kind of resource. Experience can wait; speed cannot. “With express fast bowlers, even if they haven’t played a lot of first-class cricket, it doesn’t matter. Their raw talent and pace is useful, which we saw from him today,” Shakeel added.

On a day dominated by England’s seasoned seam unit, it was the young quick from Pakistan who hinted at a future weapon.

The contest now hangs on that looming first hour. Can England’s batters ride it out and stretch their lead beyond reach, or will Razaullah and his fellow quicks rip open the game and drag Pakistan back from the brink yet again?