Pakistan Fight Back With 3 Wickets In 2nd Session After Centuries By Crawley, Duckett

At tea, England were 332-3 with Ollie Pope (48) and Harry Brook (22) at the crease against Pakistan

Cricket Image for Pakistan Fight Back With 3 Wickets In 2nd Session After Centuries By Crawley, Duck (Image Source: Twitter)

Pakistan grabbed three quick wickets after lunch Thursday to halt England's charge following hundreds from openers Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett on the opening day of the first Test in Rawalpindi.

At tea, England were 332-3 with Ollie Pope (48) and Harry Brook (22) at the crease after the visitors -- who won the toss and batted -- raced to 174-0 by lunch on a flat and slow Rawalpindi Stadium pitch.

Crawley (122), Duckett (107) and Joe Root (23) were dismissed in the space of 53 runs in the second session, with debutant leg-spinner Zahid Mahmood taking 2-127.

Duckett, who hit his maiden hundred after being recalled to the Test side following an absence of six years, was the first to go when he missed a reverse sweep off Mahmood and was trapped leg-before.

West Indian umpire Joel Wilson initially ruled it not out, only to change his decision on Pakistan's review.

Duckett, who hit 15 boundaries in his knock, put on 233 for the first wicket with Crawley -- an England record for the first wicket against Pakistan.

It beat the 1962 stand of 198 between openers Geoff Pullar and Bob Barber in Dhaka, then East Pakistan.

Crawley was bowled off a sharp incoming delivery by Haris Rauf in the next over -- a first wicket for the Test debutant.

The lanky Crawley hit 21 boundaries in his quickfire 111-ball innings, his third Test hundred.

Former skipper Root also fell leg-before to Mahmood, unsuccessfully challenging the decision.

In the first session Crawley and Duckett continued England's recent freewheeling approach to batting, dubbed "Bazball" after the nickname of head coach Brendon McCullum.

Crawley showed his intent right from the start, hitting three boundaries off Pakistan fast bowler Naseem Shah's first over of the match, and bringing up his half-century off just 38 balls.

Crawley could have become the first England batter to score a century before lunch on day one of a Test but was left nine short.

England's robust batting was the ideal start to the three-Test series -- their first in Pakistan for 17 years -- after the start hung in the balance Wednesday when several of the squad came down with a mystery virus.

Rauf, Ali, Mahmood and Saud Shakeel made debuts for Pakistan, while England gave Liam Livingstone and Will Jacks Test caps.