MULTAN: Kamran Ghulam hit a superb century on his debut to guide Pakistan to 259-5 on the opening day of the second Test against England in Multan on Tuesday.
The 29-year-old replaced out-of-form Babar Azam at number four and foiled England’s aggressive bowling and fielding to score 118.
At close of an even day’s play, Mohammad Rizwan and Salman Agha were unbeaten with 37 and five respectively.
The day ended Ghulam’s frustrating long wait for a place in the Pakistan team after he smashed a national record 1,249 runs in the 2020 domestic season.
Ghulam led a fightback after the hosts, who won the toss, were struggling at 19-2 with England spinner Jack Leach striking twice in the first hour.
Ghulam added 149 for the defiant third wicket with Saim Ayub, who hit a career-best 77, and another 65 for the fifth wicket with Rizwan.
He reached three figures with a boundary off spinner Joe Root, taking 280 minutes and becoming Pakistan’s 12th batter to score a century in his first Test.
With just half an hour before stumps, Ghulam was bowled by spinner Shoaib Bashir, ending a resolute 323-minute knock spiced with 11 fours and a six.
Ghulam said his century was a reward for his wait.
“It is delightful to score a hundred and that too as a replacement for Babar Azam, who has been a great player for Pakistan,” said Ghulam, who had a big letoff on 79 when Ben Duckett failed to get a difficult chance off Leach.
“I saw that with a bated breath but Almighty was so kind on me,” said Ghulam.
“I just took it as a normal first-class match and never took the pressure of a bad start to the team’s innings.”
One of a dozen brothers, Ghulam said his century will be celebrated among his big family in the northwestern city of Peshawar.
One brother was there in person.
“It is a family occasion now with my younger brother watching in the stadium, so I am proud of the feat,” he said.
England too will be satisfied after an absorbing day’s play.
They employed a short mid-off and two mid-wicket fielders to get wickets after lunch but the Multan pitch — the same used for the first Test — gave very little help to the spinners after some early promise.
Skipper Ben Stokes, one of two changes from England’s thumping innings win in the first Test, bowled five overs and showed no signs of the hamstring injury that forced him to miss the first Test.
Matthew Potts ended Ayub’s knock when the batsman patted to Stokes at short mid-off while Brydon Carse removed Saud Shakeel for four, the dismissals coming either side of the tea interval.
Leach has figures of 2-92 while Bashir, Carse and Potts have a wicket each.
Abdullah Shafique was bowled by Leach for seven in the eighth over of the morning with the score on 15.
In his next over, the left-arm spinner had skipper Shan Masood caught low at short midwicket by Zak Crawley for three.
England lead the three-match series 1-0.
Pakistan’s heavy defeat last week — their sixth in as many Tests — prompted the selectors to make wholesale changes, with Azam, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah and Abrar Ahmed dropped.
Other than Ghulam, Pakistan also brought in the spin trio of Sajid Khan, Zahid Mahmood and Noman Ali, leaving them with only one fast bowler in Aamer Jamal.