OH DUCKETT

Pope falls to wonder catch as injured Ben's stand-in

- RORY DOLLARD

BRYDON CARSE claimed “you couldn’t write it” after watching England captain Ollie Pope fall to a jaw-dropping catch moments after volunteering to take one for the team as a makeshift opener in Multan.

England spent more than five sessions and 149 gruelling overs in the field as Pakistan piled on 556 in the first Test, only for a pair of cruel blows to rub salt into their wounds either side of the changeover.

Opener Ben Duckett took the slip catch that finally ended the home side’s marathon innings but in doing so sustained a painful thumb injury that prevented him from strapping on the pads and kickstarting England’s reply.