Last Updated on 15 seconds ago by Charbel Coorey
An incredible 81 off 63 balls by debutant Razaullah has given Pakistan hope of achieving a miracle win over England in the third Test at Edgbaston.
Razaullah, batting at nine, walked to the crease with Pakistan still trailing by eight runs. The eighth wicket fell soon after with Pakistan still two behind. A simple England victory looked inevitable.
But, Razaullah combined with Mohammad Abbas (42) for a 121-run stand on what was easily Pakistan’s best day of the series. The former missed out on what would have been a remarkable century, but his innings will have Pakistan believing they can produce the impossible on day four.
Razaullah smashes 81 (63) on memorable debut to leave England needing 130 for victory
Razaullah smashed nine sixes, hitting the ball so hard that he broke two bats in the process. He hit three off one Gus Atkinson over, two in a row off Jofra Archer and hammered one way into the construction site off Dan Lawrence. It was some display of fearless and clean hitting in a time of desperation for Pakistan.
“I enjoyed the standing ovation,” Razaullah said at the press conference, as quoted by Cricinfo. “I like to enjoy life and I was relishing the moment.”
The 21-year-old then shed light on his mentality. He said his favourite delivery to face is the short ball, and that there is nothing to fear when playing for your country.
“I was being selective with which balls to slog, but they all seemed within range. I wanted to take it as deep as possible,” he said.
“I wasn’t scared of pace. I wanted to punish the balls from Archer that landed on a hard length. There’s nothing to be scared of when you’re playing for your country. I was just enjoying myself.
“My favourite ball [to face] is the short ball. I just believed in myself. I thought if I played 50 balls, I’d get a positive result. And thankfully that happened.”
Razaullah’s nine sixes is the equal-highest in a single Test in England, along with Ben Stokes. He also went level with South Africa’s Corbin Bosch for the most runs in an innings by a number nine on Test debut.
Pakistan, after failing to reach 200 in each of their previous five innings on tour, finished with 449 in their second innings. England are still favourites to win the Test, but Pakistan have something to look forward to thanks mainly to Razaullah’s brilliance along with Mohammad Abbas’ highest First Class score.
