Razaullah's Epic Six-Hitting Transforms Edgbaston Test
EDGBASTON – England arrived on Saturday expecting a procession. They left staring at a chase, floored by a 21-year-old No. 9 who only got his first passport last week and then proceeded to treat a rampant home attack like throwdown bowlers.
Pakistan, written off after two humiliations and a first-innings 133 in this third and final Test, roared back with a stunning 449 to seize a lead of 129 and drag the series into an unthinkable fourth day. England now need 130 on Sunday to complete a 3–0 sweep. Suddenly, it feels anything but routine.
From Crisis to Counterpunch
The script at the start of play was simple. Pakistan, 0-2 down in the series and 320 behind on first innings, were supposed to fold. They hadn’t reached 200 once in the first two Tests, hadn’t lasted 50 overs, and had just sacked their head coach while sending seven players home in a mid-tour purge.
England’s bowlers had steamrolled them at Leeds and Lord’s. Joe Root’s side had piled up 453 here. Nobody in the ground seriously believed they’d need to bat again.
Pakistan did.
From 0-2 overnight, they ground, then flowed, then exploded. The pitch eased, the ball softened, and England’s control vanished. The seamers strayed, the fields frayed, and for the first time all series, Root’s captaincy drew pointed looks rather than applause.
By lunch, Pakistan were 184-3. By tea, they were not just alive but snarling. By the final over, they had turned a dead rubber into a live contest.
Masood, Awais and Babar Change the Mood
The fightback began with Shan Masood and Azan Awais, two left-handers who refused to be dictated to. Their 125-run stand dragged Pakistan from 59-2 to respectability and then into genuine contention.
Awais, compact and busy, stroked 59 from 84 balls with 10 fours before a faint edge behind was revealed on review. It was the first time on tour that a Pakistan top-order innings looked like it belonged in this series, not one behind it.
Masood went further. He moved his feet, drove with authority, and survived a sharp chance at point on his way to a half-century from 81 balls. He seemed destined for a cathartic hundred until Gus Atkinson finally broke through, Dan Lawrence clutching a superb ankle-high catch in the slips to dismiss him for 95. Masood walked off five short, but the tone had changed.
Babar Azam then carried it on. Pakistan’s captain, starved of a Test century for 20 matches, looked ready to end the drought. He threaded gaps, rode the short ball early, and pushed England back. On 69 he was caught, only for substitute Theo Wylie to brush the boundary rope and hand him a reprieve. Babar’s luck ran out on 76, Josh Tongue drawing the edge and Jordan Cox completing an acrobatic take just before tea.
The scoreboard, though, had shifted. Pakistan had broken 200, then 300, for the first time on tour. The deficit was shrinking. The murmurs in the stands grew.
England’s Frustration Grows
Saud Shakeel added to the irritation. He nudged and steered, repeatedly dropping the ball just beyond the reach of close fielders while quietly ticking past 2,000 Test runs. His 29 wasn’t large, but it was maddening.
Then came the familiar collapse threat. Shakeel, fending at a Jofra Archer bouncer, departed at 306-6 – Pakistan’s last recognised batter gone. The new men were on debut, the tail exposed. Atkinson, who had just one wicket in the series before this innings, suddenly found rhythm and reward.
He removed Ghazi Ghori at 312 and Mohammad Imran at 318. Pakistan were still two runs short of making England bat again. The earlier resistance looked in danger of being remembered as a brave prelude to an inevitable innings defeat.
Then Razaullah Khan walked out.
The Debut That Blew the Game Open
Razaullah arrived with a first-class hundred to his name and nothing to lose. He left with Edgbaston on its feet and his name etched into England’s record books.
His brief was simple in his own words: “I just had to bat. You were the ones who enjoyed it.” That undersold what followed.
His first six took Pakistan into the lead. From there, he turned a rescue mission into a spectacle. He launched three sixes in a single over off Atkinson, treated Archer’s pace as invitation rather than threat, and reached a 43-ball fifty with his fifth blow over the ropes.
When he thumped Archer again to bring up Pakistan’s 400, the noise around the ground felt more like a home crowd greeting a beloved maverick than a touring No. 9 on debut.
At the other end, Mohammad Abbas played the perfect foil. Known more for his metronomic bowling than strokeplay, the No. 10 produced a career-best 42, laced with two sixes and five fours. Together, the pair added 121 runs from just 123 balls, the highest ninth-wicket stand against England since 1984.
Abbas eventually fell to a standing ovation, his resistance and audacity fully appreciated. Razaullah followed not long after, stumped for 81 from 63 balls, having hammered nine sixes – equalling Ben Stokes’ record for the most in a Test innings in England, set during the 2023 Ashes at Lord’s.
As he walked off, he too received a full-house ovation. From nowhere, Pakistan had found a new cult hero.
England Stagger, Series Reignites
By the time Pakistan were bowled out in the last over of the day, they had scored 397 runs in 84 overs, their first two century partnerships of the tour banked, their self-belief suddenly visible again.
The numbers told one story: 449 all out, a lead of 129, England needing 130 to complete their first three-Test whitewash since 2024, also at Edgbaston. The mood told another. England, who had spent two Tests bullying a fragile batting unit, were now the side under scrutiny.
The pitch had flattened, the ball barely moved, and their discipline deserted them. Questions about Root’s fields and bowling changes grew louder as Pakistan marched past 200, then 300, then 320, then far beyond.
On commentary, Ramiz Raja captured the sense of revelation: “The first time he’s been out for Pakistan ever, and absolutely lights up the show.” Michael Vaughan was just as emphatic: “They’ve unearthed a gem.”
Pakistan, who looked broken a week ago when the board pulled players home and sacked the head coach, suddenly have a different problem – how to harness this wild, fearless energy in every format.
England still hold all the cards in the series. They need only 130. The pitch is benign. Their batting is stacked.
But after a day when a young No. 9 tore up the script and a team on the floor found its voice, one question hangs over Edgbaston: can England really be sure this is over?
