England moved a giant step closer to a 3-0 series sweep over Pakistan after bowling the tourists out for a paltry 133 on the opening day of the third and final Test at Edgbaston in Birmingham, which began on September 9, 2026. Seamer Josh Tongue was the chief destroyer, returning figures of 4 for 42, while Ollie Robinson and Jofra Archer chipped in with three wickets apiece to leave Pakistan’s innings in ruins inside two sessions. By the close of day two, England had built a commanding position, extending their reply well past Pakistan’s total on the back of a fine middle-order stand.
Pakistan’s Top Order Capitulates
Put in to bat after Joe Root won the toss, Pakistan endured a nightmare start from which they never recovered. For the first time in the match, all five of Pakistan’s specialist top-order batters were dismissed for single-figure scores, a statistic that underlined just how one-sided the conditions and the bowling proved on a lively Edgbaston surface. Tongue struck early to have Babar Azam caught behind, and the pressure from that dismissal never relented. Only Saud Shakeel offered meaningful resistance, compiling 43 before he was eventually undone, an innings that included a life when Ben Duckett shelled a straightforward chance at first slip.
Debutants Thrown Into the Fire
Pakistan’s team management handed debuts to Ghazi Ghori and Mohammad Imran for the tour finale, but both found the transition to Test cricket brutally difficult against a rampant England attack. Tongue accounted for both newcomers as he continued to attack the stumps with full, straight deliveries that repeatedly beat the inexperienced pair’s defensive technique. The lower order lasted barely more than a handful of overs once the recognised batters had gone, and Pakistan were bowled out in a little over 40 overs, a collapse that will prompt serious questions about the tourists’ batting depth heading into a rebuilding phase.
Gay and Brook Punish a Tired Attack
England’s reply began shakily, with the hosts losing both Ben Duckett and Jordan Cox inside the first hour to slip to 35 for 2 at tea on day one. From there, however, Emilio Gay and Harry Brook combined for an authoritative 104-run partnership for the fourth wicket that swung the momentum irreversibly in the home side’s favour. Gay made a composed 60, continuing an encouraging run of form in the middle order, while Brook remained unbeaten on 52 as England closed the opening day on 156 for 4, already within touching distance of Pakistan’s total with wickets in hand.
A Series Already Decided, But Pride at Stake
With England having already sealed the three-match series 2-0 courtesy of victories in the opening two Tests, this Edgbaston finale carries the flavour of a dead rubber for the scoreline but remains anything but for reputations. Pakistan arrived in England looking to salvage some credibility after a difficult tour, and instead find themselves facing the prospect of a first-innings deficit that could balloon into an innings defeat if England’s lower order adds meaningful runs on day three. For the home side, a clean sweep would cap what has been a dominant home summer under Joe Root’s captaincy.
Root’s Tactical Gamble Pays Off
Joe Root’s decision to bowl first on winning the toss carried an element of risk given Edgbaston’s reputation for flattening out once the new-ball shine wears off, but the England captain’s read of overcast conditions and a grassy surface proved spot on. Root rotated his four-pronged seam attack in short, sharp spells rather than allowing any one bowler to settle into a long rhythm against set batters, a tactic that kept Pakistan’s top order permanently under pressure and denied Shakeel, the one recognised batter to find any fluency, a reliable partner at the other end for any sustained period. It was the kind of disciplined, patient captaincy that has characterised England’s home summer and reinforced why the hosts have not lost a Test on this ground in several years.
What It Means Going Forward
For Pakistan, the collapse at Edgbaston is likely to intensify scrutiny on the composition of their top order ahead of a busy assignment schedule, with selectors expected to review the roles of both debutants and established names like Babar Azam, who continues to search for red-ball form overseas. Team management will also face pointed questions about the timing of handing two players their debuts in a series finale already lost, rather than blooding them earlier when the pressure of a live series was not compounding the difficulty of facing a rampant home attack. For England, the emergence of Gay as a genuine middle-order option alongside the increasingly reliable Tongue with the new ball offers selectors welcome depth heading into a winter that will test their squad on unfamiliar surfaces in the subcontinent. The remainder of this Test will determine whether England complete a whitewash or whether Pakistan, needing something close to a miracle rearguard from Shakeel and the tail, can salvage a shred of pride from a tour that has otherwise gone almost entirely to plan for the home side.