England v Pakistan Lord’s Test: Archer removes Masood after England dismissed for 290

By Jack Shaw · Lord’s, London · Published: 13:20 BST

• England were dismissed for 290 in their first innings on the second morning at Lord’s, adding 42 to their overnight 248 for 9.
• Jofra Archer struck with the new ball, combining with Jamie Smith to remove Pakistan captain Shan Masood for 1 and leave the tourists 5 for 1.
• Pakistan had rebuilt to 14 for 1 after nine overs, with Abdullah Shafique and Azan Awais at the crease.

England have turned a first innings that looked broken on Thursday morning into something they can bowl at: dismissed for 290 on day two of the England v Pakistan Lord’s Test, they then struck inside the opening overs of the reply, Jofra Archer having Shan Masood caught by Jamie Smith for a single to leave Pakistan 5 for 1.

England v Pakistan Lord’s Test: how the morning unfolded

England closed a rain-shortened opening day on 248 for 9, a total dragged out of the wreckage of 36 for 3 by Jamie Smith’s 61 and Jordan Cox’s 55 after Mohammad Abbas (4-56) and Mohammad Ali shared seven wickets. Pakistan needed one more wicket on Friday morning and got it — but only once England had added 42 to reach 290.

The reply began badly for the tourists. Archer, dismissed himself by Abbas in the final act of day one, returned with the ball and had Masood edging behind to Smith for 1. By the ninth over Pakistan had reached 14 for 1, Azan Awais on 7 and Abdullah Shafique on 4, with Ollie Robinson holding the other end. For the full ball-by-ball timeline, follow the rolling coverage at ReadCricket.

Expert angle: why 290 changes the shape of this Test

Two hundred and ninety is not a big score. It is, on this pitch, a completely different Test match to the one England were staring at 24 hours ago. When you are 36 for 3 under heavy cloud at Lord’s, the realistic floor is a two-day defeat. Getting to 290 means Pakistan have to bat properly on a surface that has already rewarded disciplined seam bowling far more than it has punished it — against an attack with Archer running in fresh.

Archer’s early breakthrough was no fluke of conditions; it was the natural consequence of genuine pace attacking a captain who had not yet faced a ball. The trap on this ground is at the other end. Stuart Broad, on commentary during the Guardian’s over-by-over coverage, made exactly that point about Robinson: “He could easily get carried away with what Jofra’s doing at the other end, but he’s just doing his own thing.” That is the whole game. Lord’s rewards patience, not theatre — Abbas proved it on day one by hitting the same length until England’s top order made the mistakes for him.

The honest read on day two: England are not ahead, because 290 is rarely enough to bat once and win. But they are back in a contest they had comprehensively lost by tea on Thursday, and the next two sessions — and whether Archer sustains that pace across a second and third spell — decide whether this is a scrap or a procession.

Wrap-up

Pakistan will fancy a first-innings lead; England will settle for parity and a fourth-innings chase. Is 290 a platform, or have England simply delayed the inevitable at Lord’s? For the full story of how they got here, read our report on Abbas rocking the England top order before Smith and Cox fought back on day one.