England vs Pakistan 1st Test, Day 3: 5 talking points

The third day of the 1st Test between England and Pakistan at Lord's began with England dismissing Pakistan for 363 which gave the visitors a 179-run lead.

England began their second innings poorly and were struggling at 110/6 before a partnership between Jos Buttler and Dominic Bess took them to 235/6 at the end of the day.

The hosts currently lead by only 56 runs.

With the penultimate day beginning soon, let's take a look at 5 talking points from Day-3.

#5. The early wickets by the Pakistan bowlers put England in trouble

Mohammad Abbas took the priceless wicket of Alastair Cook in just the second over before Shadab Khan rattled the off-stump of Mark Stoneman. The Pakistan bowlers were terrific during the first 40 overs of the England innings as they took 6 wickets to put pressure on the England batsmen.

Joe Root and Dawid Malan tried to stabilize England's innings by adding 60 for the third wicket.

However, the partnership was broken by none other than Mohammad Amir as he got rid of Malan.

A couple of balls later, Amir dismissed Jonny Bairstow for a duck and England were 91/4.

Wickets continued to fall for the hosts as Ben Stokes was sent back to the dressing by Shadab Khan before Mohammad Abbas got the crucial wicket of skipper Joe Root.

These wickets put England at 110/6 and might turn out to be a deciding factor regarding the fate of the match.

#4. The openers disappoint

Cook could not replicate his performance in the first innings

England were coming into the second innings trailing by 179 runs. At this point, they needed their openers to give them a strong start. However, the openers failed miserably to do so.

Alastair scored only a run before a full delivery from Mohammad Abbas trapped him lbw.

Cook's partner Mark Stoneman hit a boundary and batted patiently for 45 deliveries. However, Stoneman could not stay any longer as a terrific delivery from Shadab Khan shattered his off-stump and he departed for just 9.

Both openers, particularly Stoneman will need to perform better in the next match if England are to win it.

#3. Captain Root plays a fine knoc

The skipper scored 68 in the second innings

However, Root produced a much better performance in the second innings. In the first innings, England skipper Joe Root could score only 4 runs before being dismissed by Hasan Ali.

The England captain came out to bat after the early dismissal of Alastair Cook in the second over.

He batted calmly and was taking no risks. Root played some beautiful boundaries through the off-side as he reached his fifty.

Root batted beautifully and reached 68 before being trapped lbw by Mohammad Abbas. Root showed that the first innings disappointment was a setback and will be hoping to produce similar performances in the final Test.

#2. The partnership between Jos Buttler and Dominic Bess

Buttler and Bess kept England in the game

England were off to a poor start but a 60-run partnership between Joe Root and Dawid Malan kept them in a decent position. However, Malan's dismissal was the beginning of a quick falling of wickets as the hosts lost Jonny Bairstow and Ben Stokes early before losing the well-settled Root.

At this stage, England were 110/6 with Jos Buttler and Dominic Bess at the crease. There was a good chance that the hosts might suffer an innings defeat.

However, Buttler and Bess batted calmly and brilliantly. They hit some wonderful boundaries off the Pakistan bowlers and stitched the first century partnership of the match.

Both batsmen reached their fifties and were able to bat for the remainder of the day. Buttler ended with 66 from 130 balls while Bess ended with 55 from 101 deliveries with their partnership at 125 runs.

#1. Pakistan are still ahead in the Test

England still have a very good chance of losing the match

Jos Buttler and Dominic Bess may have added 125 runs for the 7th wicket but England still look in a difficult situation in the match.

With a lead of just 56 with only 4 wickets remaining, England will need their 7th wicket partnership to last much longer and will need to save their wickets for as long as they can.

Buttler and Bess will have to stay at the crease if they are to save the match. Provided one of them gets dismissed, England will need Stuart Broad to deliver with the bat.

Pakistan, on the other hand, are well aware of the fact that another wicket or two will give them the momentum in the match.

To sum it all up, Pakistan are still the favorites to win the match.