{
  "id": 2415065,
  "title": "16 years, no 50-plus stand: Pakistan's opening woes continue in England",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/21/16-years-no-50-plus-stand-pakistans-opening-woes-continue-in-england",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-08-21T18:22:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yahoo Sports",
    "slug": "yahoo-sports",
    "url": "https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/16-years-no-50-plus-182200890.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Pakistan has been unable to produce a strong opening partnership in England for 16 years. In their last 27 Test innings in England, they have never managed to score a 50-plus opening stand. Their last such partnership came in 2010. This issue resurfaced in the first Test against England at Headingley, Leeds. The opening pair struggled once again, failing to get a good start in either innings. In the first innings, Azan Awais was out for a duck by Ollie Robinson from the very first ball of the three-match series. He was followed by Shan Masood, dismissed by the same bowler in his third over. Pakistan suffered further disappointment in the second innings as Imam-ul-Haq was caught for a duck by Jofra Archer. Despite a brief hope in the form of a 91-run stand between Imam-ul-Haq and Abdullah Shafique, Pakistan could not capitalize on their early advantage. They were reduced to 171 all out, with England's pace attack spearheading the charge. Ollie Robinson claimed 5-51, while Josh Tongue added 5-46. England made a strong start to the post-Bazball era as their bowlers dominated Pakistan on the opening day. Joe Root and Jordan Cox helped England post a score of 112-2 by stumps, putting them just 59 runs behind at the close of play. However, Pakistan's long-standing opening problem persists, highlighting the major challenge their openers face.",
  "summary": "The same problem returned in the first Test against England at Headingley in Leeds. In the first innings, Azan Awais was dismissed for a duck by Ollie Robinson off the very first ball of the three-match series. Pakistan's second innings brought more disappointment. Imam-ul-Haq was dismissed for a duck by Jofra Archer, leaving Pakistan without another 50-plus opening stand.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}