﻿{
    "id": "203178",
    "author": "26",
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    "title": "England V Pakistan Second Test: 3 Talking Points",
    "lang": "en",
    "series": "720",
    "cup_year": "2026",
    "article_type": "General",
    "excerpt": "England thrashed Pakistan by 194 runs to win the second Test at Lord's on Sunday and so take an unbeatable 2-0 lead in a three-match campaign. Below AFP Sport looks at three talking points that emerge",
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    "editor1": "<p>England thrashed Pakistan by 194 runs to win the second Test at Lord&#39;s on Sunday and so take an unbeatable 2-0 lead in a three-match campaign.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Below AFP Sport looks at three talking points that emerged as England completed their first multi-match Test series win in over a year.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p><strong>Relentless Robinson<\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>The present England management have sometimes given the impression the only thing that matters in a pace attack is sheer speed.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>But Ollie Robinson has demonstrated the importance of accuracy and movement as well.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Robinson lacks the express pace and physical threat of Sussex and England team-mate Jofra Archer.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>But the seamer&#39;s range of skills were on display at Lord&#39;s where, albeit helped by a green-tinged pitch, Robinson was named player-of-the-match for a haul of 8-35 that included a remarkable 4-11 in 13 overs during Pakistan&#39;s first innings.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>While concerns over his fitness and questions regarding some social media posts have threatened to derail his England career, there have rarely been any doubts over the 32-year-old Robinson&#39;s talent.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>In his three Tests this season the Sussex captain has taken 23 wickets at a stunningly low average of 8.34, with England skipper Joe Root saying on Sunday Robinson was &quot;horrendous (to face) in these conditions.&quot;<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p><strong>Pitch problems a worry for Lord&#39;s<\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>The way England opener Emilio Gay fell lbw for 31 to a &#39;pea-shooter&#39; delivery from Pakistan paceman Mohammad Abbas was the kind of dismissal that really should not happen on the third day of a Test and certainly not at a ground that styles itself as the Home of Cricket.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>For Gay, struggling to cement his place in the England side, it was a particularly cruel exit as what should be a game of skill was turned into a lottery by uneven bounce.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>It was also a worrying sign for Marylebone Cricket Club, the owners of Lord&#39;s.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>The pitch for the previous Test at Lord&#39;s, against New Zealand, was rated as &quot;unsatisfactory&quot; by the International Cricket Council, with next year&#39;s World Test Championship final relocated across London to the Oval partly as a consequence.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>And while previous surfaces at Lord&#39;s, renowned for its steep slope across the ground, faced criticism for being bland and too much in favour of the batsmen, clearly there are limits.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>MCC recognised they had an issue after the New Zealand match, announcing the creation of &quot;an agronomy advisory group&quot; and a &quot;phased pitch-relaying programme&quot;, although any benefits from may not be seen for several years and are unlikely to be of much consolation to Gay.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p><strong>Shakeel salvages some batting respect for Pakistan<\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Pakistan have yet to make 200 so far this series, with the tourists dismissed for 171 and 135 during an innings and 103-run defeat in the first Test at Headingley before managing 110 and 194 at Lord&#39;s.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>But that Pakistan, already bottom of the World Test Championship table before this latest thumping loss, at least got close to a benchmark total on Sunday was largely down to Saud Shakeel&#39;s enterprising 97.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Coming in with Pakistan in dire straits at 14-3, he initially scored briskly without taking undue risks before a flurry of thrilling boundaries, including two superb hooked sixes off fast bowler Josh Tongue took him to within sight of a hundred.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Shakeel fell just short of what would have been his fifth century in 25 Tests when he holed out off Tongue, the left-hander failing to join Abbas on the Lord&#39;s honours boards following the veteran seamer&#39;s five-wicket haul earlier Sunday.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<h5><b>Also Read: <\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cricketnmore.com\/cricket-special\">Special Cricket Stories<\/a><\/h5><p>&quot;In the batting, we weren&#39;t up to the mark (in the first innings),&quot; said Babar Azam, the Pakistan captain. &quot;Saud Shakeel showed his class and dedication in the second innings.&quot;<\/p>\r\n",
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    "seo_desc": "England thrashed Pakistan by 194 runs to win the second Test at Lord's on Sunday and so take an unbeatable, England V Pakistan Second Test: 3 Talking Points.",
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    "created": "2026-08-31 11:29:19",
    "updated": "2026-08-31 11:29:19",
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