England vs Pakistan Edgbaston Day 2, 2026: Razaullah Learns Test Cricket’s Second Lesson

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

• England were bowled out for 453, a 320-run first-innings lead, with five batters reaching fifty including a stunning 50 off 47 balls from bowler Ollie Robinson
• Debutant Razaullah finished with 4 for 148, still Pakistan’s most successful bowler despite going for plenty after his economical Day 1 spells
• Pakistan slumped to 0 for 2 in four balls of their second innings before rain saved them at 52 for 2, still 268 runs behind

Ollie Robinson took the headlines with bat and ball, but the more revealing story of Day 2 at Edgbaston was what happened to Razaullah. On debut a day earlier, he had looked like a genuine discovery, tight lines, real pace, two big-name wickets at almost no cost. On Day 2, England’s batters had seen enough of him to start taking him apart.

Razaullah finished with 4 for 148 from 23 overs, still Pakistan’s leading wicket-taker in the innings, but at an economy more than double what he’d shown the previous day. Dan Lawrence hit back-to-back fours off him. Jamie Smith punched him through the covers for a fifty. He still got both of their wickets in the end, but not before both had made him pay first.

What Changes Between a Bowler’s First and Second Spell

This is the part of a fast bowler’s development that doesn’t show up in a highlights reel. Day 1, batters are seeing you for the first time, cautious, working out your pace and angles. Day 2, they’ve watched the footage, discussed you in the dressing room, and know exactly what to look for.

Lawrence and Brook put on 73 in the first hour of the morning session, conditions considerably kinder for batting than the overcast opening day that had produced 14 wickets. Lawrence, in particular, targeted Razaullah directly, cutting him with venom through backward point and finding the boundary through midwicket. He eventually fell for 65, his third fifty of the series, chopping a length ball from Mohammad Imran Randhawa onto his own stumps in visible frustration.

Jamie Smith, playing through a finger injury from standing up to Robinson the previous day, showed no discomfort at all, launching a six off Ayub and reaching his fifty off 54 balls before Razaullah eventually had him caught off a leading edge, a simple return catch that ended an innings of 69. Robinson, promoted by circumstance into a genuine batting weapon, then took Razaullah for a six into the stands before the same bowler picked him out at cover to end England’s innings on 453.

Getting Smith and Robinson in the same spell is a real result for a 21-year-old. Conceding the runs it cost to get there is the lesson every fast bowler has to learn eventually. Razaullah just had to learn it in his second Test innings rather than his fiftieth.

Ollie Robinson’s Extraordinary All-Round Day

None of this is to undersell what Robinson did. He top-scored for England with 50 off 47 balls, one of five England batters to pass fifty in an innings that recovered from 39 for 3 on Day 1 to 453 all out. He remains the leading wicket-taker in the entire series with 21 at an average of 6.66, and he opened Pakistan’s second innings with a double-wicket maiden, his fourth first-ball wicket in 13 spells this series, removing Saim Ayub and Abdullah Shafique in the space of four balls to leave Pakistan 0 for 2 before either had scored.

Robinson finishing an innings, then starting the next one with a wicket off the very first ball, is the kind of day that defines a series, and this one has increasingly become his.

Pakistan’s Second Innings: Saved by Rain, Not Form

Saim Ayub chased Robinson’s first ball of the innings and was caught at second slip for a pair. Three balls later, Abdullah Shafique edged behind to give Pakistan a start of 0 for 2 after four deliveries. Rain arrived around 5:30pm with Pakistan on 52 for 2, Azan Awais unbeaten on 29 and Shan Masood on 21 after an unbroken stand of 52, still 268 runs behind England’s first-innings total.

Masood survived a dropped catch on 13, Ben Duckett’s third missed chance in the cordon this match, a tough opportunity but a missed one nonetheless. Whether that reprieve matters much against a 320-run deficit is a question Day 3 will answer.

Scorecard: England First Innings, 453 All Out

Batter	Dismissal	Runs
Ben Duckett	c Babar b Mohammad Ali	11
Emilio Gay	b Razaullah	60
Jordan Cox	lbw b Abbas	4
Joe Root (c)	lbw b Razaullah	8
Harry Brook	run out (Masood/Ayub)	75
Dan Lawrence	b Mohammad Imran	65
Jamie Smith (wk)	c & b Razaullah	69
Gus Atkinson	b Mohammad Imran	19
Ollie Robinson	c Masood b Razaullah	50
Jofra Archer	not out	32
Josh Tongue	c Ghori b Mohammad Ali	15

Bowling: Razaullah 4-148, Mohammad Ali 2-92, Mohammad Imran 2-47, Mohammad Abbas 1-95, Saim Ayub 0-41

Pakistan Second Innings: 52-2 (12.4 overs, rain-affected)

Saim Ayub 0, Azan Awais 29*, Abdullah Shafique 0, Shan Masood 21*

Frequently Asked Questions

What was England’s total in the first innings at Edgbaston? England were bowled out for 453, taking a first-innings lead of 320 runs over Pakistan’s 133.

How many wickets did Razaullah take on Day 2? Razaullah finished with 4 for 148 from 23 overs across the innings, remaining Pakistan’s leading wicket-taker despite going for more runs than his economical Day 1 figures.

How did Pakistan’s second innings start? Pakistan slumped to 0 for 2 in the first four balls, both Saim Ayub and Abdullah Shafique dismissed by Ollie Robinson.

What is Pakistan’s target or deficit heading into Day 3? Pakistan trail by 268 runs at 52 for 2, needing to bat out significant time to avoid an innings defeat.