Rawalpindi, Pakistan

Pakistan spinner Sajid Khan says that misguiding England's Urdu-speaking spinners helped him score 48 in the third Test against England in Rawalpindi. Sajid scored 48 not out in the first innings with the bat and added very important 72 runs for the ninth wicket with Saud Shakeel.

Advertisment

Thanks to the partnership, Pakistan took a crucial 77-run lead in reply to England's 267 in first innings on day 2 (Oct 25) of the Test which eventually helped them win the Test and the series.

Also Read: ‘We love Davey but he’s retired’ - Pat Cummins shuns David Warner’s comeback proposal for India Tests

"We were only doing that [speaking loudly in Urdu] to deceive the bowlers. Rehan and Shoaib understand Urdu, so to fool them, we wanted them to hear we were only looking for the single. When we did that, they brought the field up and the bowlers flighted it. Saud told me once they do, no half measures: just go for the big shot as hard as you can," Sajid said after the day's play on Friday (Oct 25).

Advertisment

England spinner Rehan Ahmed, however, didn't buy any of the Sajid's claims and said: "He didn't fool me at all, he just said it for the media. I didn't even hear him. He said something like he's going to run down this ball and I knew he was going to try and scoop me, and it didn't really work. I think he batted well, and he hit some big blows, but he didn't really fool me or Bash."

Pakistan finished the day 2 with England at 24/3 before bowling them out on 112 on Saturday (Oct 26), leaving hosts with a target of 36 runs.

Pakistan chased down the target in just 3.1 overs with skipper Shad Masood scoring 23 not out off just 6 balls to finish things quickly.  With the win, Pakistan bagged the three-Test series 2-1 despite losing the first Test  in Multan.