England Tighten the Vice on Pakistan at Edgbaston

By the time the sun finally broke through over Edgbaston, this series already felt done. Friday was billed as the only sold‑out day of the third Test; in truth, the real contest had ended long before the crowd filed in. Pakistan’s first‑day implosion set the tone, England’s ruthless reply on day two confirmed it, and now the final act is little more than a formality.

Pakistan will resume on 67 for two, Azan Awais 32 not out, Shan Masood 29, still 253 runs short of making England bat again. They are not so much chasing the game as clinging to it.

Robinson and Archer hunt the last eight

England’s task is brutally simple: eight wickets for a 3-0 clean sweep and a carefree weekend. With the sun out and the pitch flattening, the bowlers have to work, but they are hunting as a pack.

Ollie Robinson, who has spent the summer stitching his name into England folklore, was again the pick of the attack in the early exchanges. Operating around the wicket to the left-handed Azan, he forced the youngster to play more often than he would have liked, the angle dragging him across the crease. One over was a miniature masterclass: Azan beaten three times in six balls, Robinson then switching to around the wicket for the last delivery of a probing maiden. It was the kind of spell that bowlers dine out on for years. His grandkids really will hear plenty about the summer of 2026.

The reward column did not fully reflect the quality. Robinson went past the outside edge repeatedly, drew an lbw shout that was turned down on height, and even watched a leg-side bouncer whistle through for four byes as Azan flailed and Jordan Cox, standing up, had no chance. The scorebook will put those against Jamie Smith’s name, a quirk of the laws that will not trouble Robinson’s conscience.

At the other end, Jofra Archer brought his own brand of menace. His first over of the morning, the second of Pakistan’s final day, included a seaming lifter that beat Masood’s tentative defensive push. Later, he produced an over that summed up the tension of a batter under siege: two plays and misses, a sumptuous drive from Masood for four through mid-off, then an inside-edged pull thudding into the body and dropping short. Archer never quite let him settle.

The most vicious delivery, though, came from Robinson. Banging it in just short of a length, he extracted steep bounce that reared into Azan’s chest. The youngster wore it, literally and figuratively. England’s quicks could smell the finish.

Pakistan’s resistance: admirable, but fragile

For all the pressure, Pakistan’s third-wicket pair did at least restore a sliver of dignity to a tour that has drifted from disappointment to resignation.

Azan, 29 overnight and then 32, showed flashes of composure. He pulled Robinson crisply in front of square for two when the bowler overpitched his aggression, and while he missed more than he hit during some of the better spells, he kept his head still and his bat mostly straight. Masood, meanwhile, unfurled a couple of strokes that reminded everyone why coaches keep picking him. A push off the front foot against Archer, threaded through mid-off for two, was all timing and poise. The numbers – an average of 30 from 50 Tests – still jar with the elegance.

Yet every over felt like a negotiation with fate. Plays and misses stacked up. The ball kissed the air, not the edge. Pakistan’s series average of 15.90 runs per wicket tells the broader story. No side has fared worse against England in a three-Test series or longer since New Zealand were dismantled by Tony Lock and Jim Laker in 1958. That is the company this batting line-up is keeping.

Even their own fans have started to treat the whole exercise with gallows humour. On the second day, one Pakistan supporter wandered the ground with a small blackboard: “Free Imran Khan … and get him in the team,” it read. He stopped by a couple of police officers and, deadpan, announced he wanted to report a crime – “by the 11 players out there on the field.” The officers laughed. The sentiment landed. This tour has felt like a sentence for everyone in green.

England’s batters cash in, but miss out

If Pakistan’s struggles have framed the series, England’s batting on day two wrote the final chapter. Starting at 156 for four, they surged to 453 all out by tea, turning a solid position into a match‑winning one and leaving Pakistan staring at the long road back.

It was not a day of flawless satisfaction, though. Three players walked off with half-centuries and a sense of something missing. Harry Brook ran himself out for 75, a needless dismissal when a hundred looked his for the taking. Dan Lawrence, who has spent much of his England career on the fringes, carved out 65 and felt he was on the brink of something far bigger before he chased a wide ball and chopped on. He later admitted he had been convinced “a really big score” was coming.

Jamie Smith, battling through the pain of a suspected broken finger, grafted and counterpunched his way to 69. His dismissal, too, carried that familiar Test-match ache: the knowledge that a landmark had slipped away, even as the team surged ahead.

The cumulative effect, though, was devastating. Pakistan’s bowlers, already worn down, watched the scoreboard race away. By the time they walked off, they trailed by 401 and knew that any resistance in the second innings would be about pride, not prospects.

Robinson’s summer and Root’s question

This match has also served as another chapter in Robinson’s extraordinary season. His figures – 28 wickets at 7.75 apiece – are the kind that usually belong to sepia‑tinted eras and grainy photographs. The description of his form as “Lohmannesque” is no idle flourish. Every spell seems to carry threat, every over a chance.

Amid the dominance, one small cloud lingers in the English sky: Joe Root’s form. A few observers have begun to wonder, quietly but insistently, how long his lean run can continue. Root’s record buys him time, and he has solved technical puzzles before, yet the pattern of dismissals has started to gnaw at some. One mitigating factor: the keeper will not be standing up as often when South Africa and Australia arrive, and the rhythm of those contests may suit him more. For now, the question hangs, unanswered but unavoidable.

A series drifting to its end

All of this plays out under a bright, almost mocking sun. The forecast is kind, the outfield quick, and there is no weather looming to rescue Pakistan. England’s bowlers have time, and plenty of it. Joe Root’s side need eight more wickets to complete a 3-0 sweep and sign off with lime cordials and backslaps.

Friday may be the only sold-out day of this Test, but whether Edgbaston fills to the rafters is another matter. The jeopardy has gone. The story, barring a miracle of historic proportions, is already written.

Pakistan have two chances left: Slim and none. And Slim, as someone quipped, has already gone home.