RAWALPINDI: Pakistan spinner Sajid Khan took six wickets as England were all out for 267 after electing to bat on the opening day of the series-deciding third Test in Rawalpindi on Thursday.
Sajid finished with 6-128 and Noman Ali grabbed 3-88 after a rearguard 89 by Jamie Smith enabled England to get past 250 after they stuttered to 110-5 at lunch.
Smith smashed six towering sixes and five boundaries in his 119-ball knock before he was caught off a miscued slog against spinner Zahid Mahmood in the last over before tea.
After tea, Sajid removed Rehan Ahmed for nine to complete his third five-wicket haul before also dismissing Jack Leach for 16.
England lost captain Ben Stokes in the third over after the break, caught Sajid for 12 but Smith, who reached his fifty off 94 balls, and Gus Atkinson (39) added 105 for the seventh wicket.
The morning session was dominated by Sajid and Noman Ali who bowled unchanged for 42 overs.
After England won the toss and batted, Pakistan gave the new ball to Sajid and Noman who benefited from the parched pitch offering spin and low bounce from the first ball.
Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett raced to 56 in a confident start but England lost Crawley (29), Ollie Pope (three) and Joe Root (five) in the space of just 24 runs.
Noman had Crawley caught off a miscued drive while Sajid removed Pope and Root leg before.
Duckett, who completed a half-century off 76 balls, was trapped leg before by Noman for 52 after hitting four boundaries and a six.
First Test triple centurion Harry Brook lasted for 14 deliveries before being bowled behind his legs by Sajid for five after he failed to connect on a sweep.
Both the teams included three spinners on a grassless pitch which the hosts dried with fans and heaters in the build-up.
Sajid and Noman shared all 20 wickets in Pakistan’s second Test win to level the series at 1-1 after England won the first by an innings, with both matches taking place in Multan.
Sajid takes six as England dismissed for 267 in third Test
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Sajid takes six as England dismissed for 267 in third Test
- Sajid Khan finishes with 6-128 as Noman Ali grabs 3-88 to skittle England on spin-friendly track
- Both teams have three spinners on grassless pitch which hosts dried with fans and heaters
Stinger Golf Club rebrands as Southern Guards GC
- South Africa’s LIV Golf team unveils new identity ahead of 2026 home debut
NEW YORK: LIV Golf has announced that South Africa’s Stinger Golf Club has rebranded as Southern Guards GC, just months before the league tees off on African soil for the first time.
At the heart of the Southern Guards’ brand identity is an emphasis on culture, unity and resilience, inspired by the principle of Ubuntu, under the slogan: “I am because we are.”
Also central to the team’s new identity is the rhino, which has considerable symbolic meaning in South African culture.
The rebrand comes ahead of LIV Golf South Africa at Steyn City, Johannesburg, from March 19 to 22. With more than 70,000 tickets already sold, interest continues to grow.
Richard Glover, general manager of Southern Guards GC, said: “This has been an emotional and considered decision, but we felt the time was right to embrace a name and visual identity that more authentically reflects who we are and where we come from.
“Southern Guards GC reflects the responsibility we carry in representing South Africa on a global stage. With LIV Golf coming to the country for the first time, the timing couldn’t be more fitting for us to represent our heritage with pride.”
Southern Guards GC will continue into the 2026 season with the same all-South African lineup that has become synonymous with the team’s identity.
The team members are Louis Oosthuizen, Branden Grace, Dean Burmester and Charl Schwartzel, four of the country’s most accomplished golfers.
