Match overview

Pakistan beat England by 9 wickets at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on 24 October 2024, wrapping up the Test in comfortable fashion after England's second innings fell apart. England had won the toss and elected to bat, posting 267 in their first innings. Pakistan replied with 344, taking a first-innings lead of 77 runs. England's second innings lasted long enough to produce only 112, setting Pakistan a target of 36. They reached it on 37 for 1, losing just one wicket. Saud Shakeel was named player of the match. Nauman Ali was the bowling star across the game, finishing with 9 wickets for 130 runs from 46.3 overs.

England's batting in the third innings was the decisive moment. Losing ten wickets for 112 after a first-innings score of 267 represents a sharp drop in quality, and Pakistan's spinners. Nauman Ali chief amongst them. Exploited whatever the surface was offering. Once the deficit was set at 36, the result was never in doubt.

For Pakistan, this victory was especially welcome. Their recent form coming into the match was mixed: they had beaten England by 152 runs at Multan earlier in the same period, but also suffered losses to Bangladesh, who beat them twice. A nine-wicket win at home, with a player-of-the-match performance from one of their own and a dominant bowling display, will have done considerable good for confidence.

Venue and conditions

Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium has hosted 79 matches in our data, with an average first-innings score of 214 and an average second-innings score of 208. Both sides batted above the first-innings average in this match, suggesting the pitch had reasonable pace and carry early on. The toss winner has opted to field 58 per cent of the time at this venue, though England bucked that trend and chose to bat first.

Chases at Rawalpindi succeed 60 per cent of the time across the ground's history, which is a higher rate than many subcontinental venues. That said, Pakistan were not chasing a meaningful total in this match. The real story is what happened in the middle phases of both England's innings: the powerplay and death-overs data is not split for Test cricket, so the full-innings totals tell the story directly. England's 112 in the third innings came entirely in conditions where spin appeared to grip and England's batters could not find answers.

How to watch

Pakistan vs England Test cricket is broadcast in the UK on Sky Sports Cricket. Streaming options are available through Sky Go for existing subscribers and via NOW TV for those without a full Sky package. For those away from a screen, BBC Radio's Test Match Special provides uninterrupted ball-by-ball commentary across all five days of each Test, and is available on BBC Sounds.

Given this series features matches across multiple cities in Pakistan, UK viewers should check Sky's scheduling for precise start times. Test matches in Pakistan typically begin in the mid-morning local time, which generally means an early-morning UK start.

Recent form

England arrived at Rawalpindi with a mixed run of results. They had beaten Australia twice and lost once in their five preceding matches, alongside one win and one loss against Pakistan in the same period. The loss to Pakistan at Multan by 152 runs will have been a concern, though England did recover to win the next match in that series by 47 runs.

Pakistan's form coming in was inconsistent. Two losses to Bangladesh had preceded this Test series, though they had recorded wins against Ireland and, significantly, against England in Multan. That earlier victory showed Pakistan could produce the conditions and performances to unsettle England's batting-first approach, and Rawalpindi proved they could do it again. Their next assignments will give a clearer picture of whether this is a turning point in their home form or a standalone result against a side that ran into an outstanding spin performance on the right day.