Tongue strikes twice in two balls but Shahzad denies the hat-trick at Headingley
Josh Tongue came within one delivery of a hat-trick on the opening morning of the first Test between England and Pakistan at Headingley, only for Khurram Shahzad to smash the third ball to the boundary (BBC Sport).
Tongue, the Nottinghamshire fast bowler, dismissed Salman Ali Agha and Ali Usman in consecutive deliveries — two wickets from two balls, the rarest pressure a bowler can apply in Test cricket. A hat-trick — three wickets from three consecutive balls, a feat achieved only a handful of times in the format's long history — was on the table when Shahzad walked to the crease. He lasted one ball, dispatching it emphatically for four and breaking the spell (BBC Sport).
The burst came on day one of the opening match of a three-Test series, branded the Rothesay Tests, which began at Headingley on Wednesday 19 August (ECB). England had won the toss and chosen to bowl first — a decision that handed their seamers the new ball under whatever cloud cover Leeds could offer (ESPNcricinfo). The attack was entirely pace-based, with Tongue and Gus Atkinson among those entrusted to exploit the conditions (Washington Post). No specialist spinner featured — a bold statement of intent from a side backing raw speed and movement to do the job.
Pakistan, meanwhile, were led by Salman Ali Agha, deputising as captain in the first Test (ESPNcricinfo). His own dismissal at Tongue's hands added a layer of personal misfortune to a difficult morning for the stand-in skipper, who fell with the team already under pressure after England's decision to bowl first.
Tongue's inclusion in the squad for the first two Tests was confirmed earlier in August, the Nottinghamshire quick rewarded for his county form with a place in the pace battery (ECB). The Headingley surface and overhead conditions suited his style — genuine pace, a steep bounce that troubles batters shouldering arms, and the ability to string together a spell of hostile, targeted deliveries.
For cricket watchers, back-to-back wickets are the sort of moment that shifts the whole feel of a session. The field converges, the crowd sharpens, the bowler runs in knowing the next ball carries history. Shahzad's boundary flicked that tension away in a single shot — cricket's capacity for deflation is as swift as its capacity for drama. The series, though, is only one match old. Two more Tests follow, and Tongue has already given England's selectors reason to feel their all-seam gamble was the right one.
