England suffer as Masood and Shafique turn up heat

For weeks Pakistan teased England with talk of green pitches and seamer-friendly conditions, and then in the final hours before the opening game they peeled off the covers, shaved off anything betraying any evidence of chlorophyll, gave the heavy roller a final, deathly spin and, once the coin had fallen in their favour, told the tourists to do their best.

- Simon Burnton Multan Cricket Stadium

What followed was a bowling performance that, at least until they took three wickets for 95 in the final session, was as flat as the surface the bowlers were forced to toil on, and an opportunity for a Pakistan lineup that has struggled for form.

Pakistan finished on 328 for four after centuries from Shan Masood and Abdullah Shafique carried them to a position of dominance - though given they started their last series by scoring 448 for six declared across the best part of two days against Bangladesh and still managed to lose the game, it is still not one that feels particularly secure.

It is hard to see how the presence of Jimmy Anderson, England's fast bowling coach, would have improved matters but this was certainly not a day that made his decision to start the series on a Scottish golf course appear any wiser.

For all their toil the seamers all had their moments: Chris Woakes's best spell came late in the day, under floodlights and with the second new ball, during which he trapped Babar Azam lbw, Brydon Carse bowled with pace and as much venom as it was possible to extract from the surface, and Gus Atkinson took two wickets.

The first of those gave England early hope, Pakistan's opening partnership broken for what was both a terrible score and also their best for nine months.