England complete 3-0 Test whitewash

Joe Root (62*) and Jordan Cox (59*) enable England chase 130-run target with enviable ease

CRICKET:

England overcame a major wobble to beat Pakistan by eight wickets in the third Test at Edgbaston on Saturday, sealing a 3-0 series sweep.

The home team, chasing just 130 to win, were in deep trouble when openers Ben Duckett and Emilio Gay were dismissed in the first over, bowled by Mohammad Abbas.

Joe Root, England's record runscorer, edged his first ball, bowled by Razaullah, through the slips for four in a nervy start but settled and scored quickly to take the sting out of the situation.

The skipper was given a huge reprieve when he chopped onto the stumps off Mohammad Ali, only for the umpire to signal a no ball, leaving the bowler distraught.

Root, with Jordan Cox at the other end, had another let-off when he edged an Abbas delivery between first and second slip, with neither fielder moving.

But he reached his half-century off 57 balls with a cut for four and Cox matched him shortly afterwards.

England reached their target in the 25th over, with Root unbeaten on 62 and Cox 59 not out.

Root capitalised on the reprieve, bringing up his 69th Test half-century in the 19th over and reaching 1,000 Test runs at Edgbaston.

Cox followed him to fifty three overs later, striking Saim Ayub through deep midwicket for four to register his third half-century of the series and his fledgling Test career.

The pair sealed the victory when Cox drove Mohammad Imran through the covers for a single.

Abbas was Pakistan's only successful bowler in the innings, finishing with 2-44, while the other bowlers went wicketless.

England's victory completed a dominant series. They won the opening Test by an innings and 103 runs at Headingley and the second by 194 runs at Lord's.

Pakistan's second innings had been rescued by debutant fast bowler Razaullah, who produced one of the most remarkable knocks of the series.

The 21-year-old smashed 81 from 63 balls, including nine sixes, after coming to the crease with Pakistan 318-8 and still two runs behind England's first-innings total.

Razaullah shared a ninth-wicket partnership of 121 with Abbas, who made 42. The youngster's nine sixes equalled Ben Stokes' record for the most sixes in a Test innings in England, set against Australia in 2023.

"I just had to bat, you are the ones who got to enjoy it," Razaullah told Sky Sports. "I was planning to take it longer and deeper -- 81 runs is not bad though."

Pakistan were eventually dismissed for 449, leaving England a target of 130.

Earlier, Shan Masood narrowly missed a century, scoring 95, while Babar Azam made 76 as Pakistan finally passed 200 in the series.

Azan Awais scored 59 and shared a 125-run opening partnership with Masood before falling to Dan Lawrence.

Masood was dismissed by Gus Atkinson after Lawrence produced a superb slip catch, while Babar edged Josh Tongue to Cox.

Saud Shakeel made 29 before falling to Jofra Archer, while Ghazi Ghori and Mohammad Imran were also dismissed.

Pakistan's late fight extended the match into a fourth day, but could not prevent another defeat.

The visitors had already made sweeping changes following their second-Test loss, releasing seven players and removing head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed and assistant Umar Gul.

England, meanwhile, completed a comprehensive series victory and maintained their dominance throughout the three-Test campaign.