Pakistan v New Zealand: Magical Yasir Shah rips through Kiwis with record haul

Waseem Ahmed 18:03 26/11/2018
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  • An extraordinary show by Yasir Shah.

    Pakistan tightened their grip on the second Test against New Zealand at Dubai on a remarkable third day in which 12 wickets fell.

    Having declared their first innings at 418-5, Pakistan wiped out the visitors for just 90 runs in their reply to enforce the follow-on. Armed with a 328-run lead, Sarfraz Ahmed and his men reduced the Kiwis to 131-2 before stumps were drawn on Monday.

    With Pakistan firmly in the driver’s seat heading as the Test veers towards its conclusion, we look at the key talking points from day three at Dubai.

    YASIR UNSTOPPABLE

    New Zealand’s opening pair of Jeet Raval and Tom Latham started well in the morning session. The pair brought up the 50-run partnership between thems as Pakistan’s pacers Mohammad Abbas and Hasan Ali were kept at bay.

    However, that all changed with the introduction of Yasir Shah into the attack with the leg-spinner breaking the partnership after Raval played on to his stumps. While that wicket might have been a tad lucky with the batsman at fault, there was no luck involved in the penultimate over before lunch bowled by Shah which fetched three wickets.

    The leggie had Latham caught at short-leg to start things off before shattering the off-stump of Ross Taylor with a ripping delivery that pitched on leg stump before spinning past the batsman’s outside edge. In the very same over, Shah bowled another unplayable delivery to left-hander Henry Nicholls with the ball spitting off the surface before crashing into the stumps.

    Post lunch, the leg-spinner blew away New Zealand’s tail in a destructive burst that saw him end with figures of 8-41, the third-best returns by any Pakistan bowler in history.

    Yasir Shah was literally unplayable on the day.

    Yasir Shah was literally unplayable on the day.

    WILLIAMSON WAGES A LONE BATTLE

    While the rest of New Zealand’s batsmen got trapped in Shah’s spin web, skipper Kane Williamson was playing a lone hand for the tourists. The Kiwi captain looked to be batting on a different pitch altogether as he showed why he is considered one of the best Test batsman going around.

    The classy right-hander looked largely untroubled on a spinning track but he could only watch on as Shah sent back one New Zealand batsman after the other.

    In the end, Williamson would remain stranded as his side lost 10 wickets for just 40 runs in one of the most extraordinary collapses. Excluding the top three, the rest of the Kiwi batsmen contributed a measly five runs with the bat with as many as six of them being dismissed for ducks.

    The Kiwi skipper ran out of partners in the end.

    The Kiwi skipper ran out of partners in the end.

    YASIR CREATES HISTORY

    Pakistan skipper Sarfraz Ahmed had no problems in making New Zealand follow-on in the second innings after attaining a mammoth 328-run lead and his decision was vindicated with Shah wasting no time in getting into the act once again.

    For the second time in the day, the Pakistan leg-spinner sent Raval packing, this time via a stumping. Williamson was digging in once again and looked to be in good touch before another unplayable Shah delivery cut his innings short at 30. That scalp created further history for the spinner who became the first Pakistan bowler to pick up 10 wickets in a single day of Test cricket.

    However, if Pakistan thought that another Kiwi collapse would follow, they were proven wrong by a determined Latham and Taylor. Latham made full use of his sweeping prowess to negate Shah’s wizardry while Taylor was more enterprising in his approach in what was a counter-attacking innings.

    The two batsmen added an unbeaten 65 runs for the third wicket as they neared their respective half-centuries but they still have a mountain to climb on the penultimate day if the Kiwis are to salvage anything from the second Test.

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