DAY 1 REPORT
WHEN ON Thursday morning Babar Azam walked out for the toss under slate-grey skies, his top order would have been cowering on the visitors’ balcony. Undone at Leeds in similarly bleak atmospherics and with England’s bowling cohort of Lord’s specialists lurking, the toss took on extra significance for Pakistan’s punch-drunk batters.
When the coin came down, Babar had no hesitation. England would instead be subjected to an examination from Mohammad Abbas in conditions tailor-made for his guileful brand of medium-pace seamers. The story of day on...
