MANCHESTER, July 23: Joe Root’s unbeaten double century took England to 533 for six at tea on the second day of the second Test against Pakistan at Old Trafford today.
Root, who had batted for 10 hours, was a Test-best 226 not out.
That meant the England vice-captain had surpassed his previous highest score at this level of 200 not out against Sri Lanka at Lord’s two years ago.
Root’s Yorkshire colleague Jonny Bairstow was 32 not out.
England resumed on their overnight 314 for four, with Root 141 not out after he had shared a second-wicket stand of 185 with skipper and fellow senior batsman Alastair Cook (105).
But although sent in as a nightwatchman, Warwickshire all-rounder Chris Woakes showed his batting class during a boundary-filled fifty on Saturday.
Woakes was the dominant partner in a fifth-wicket stand of 103 with Root.
Two not out overnight, Woakes — who has scored nine first-class hundreds — was soon demonstrating a fundamentally orthodox batting technique.
When Rahat Ali, one of Pakistan’s trio of left-arm quicks along with Mohammad Amir and Wahab Riaz, dropped short, he was cut for four by Woakes.
Next ball, when Rahat over-pitched, Woakes cover-drove him for another boundary.
There was a brief hold-up when Woakes was struck on the right arm by Rahat.
But when Amir, who appeared to be struggling with a niggling injury, dropped short outside off stump, Woakes uppercut him for six high over third man.
Meanwhile a single off Rahat saw Root to 150 in 269 balls including 18 fours.
The Yorkshireman had batted for six hours without giving a chance on Friday but on 155 he had a reprieve when an outside edge off leg-spinner Yasir Shah just carried to slip.
But Younis Khan was slow to react to the difficult low catch.
Woakes’s 104-ball innings, which included eight fours and a six, ended when he chipped a return catch straight back to Shah to leave England 414 for five.
That gave Shah then-innings figures of one for 139 in 38.4 overs — a marked contrast to his man-of-the-match return of 10 for 141 during Pakistan’s 75-run win in the first Test at Lord’s last week. (PTI)
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