Alastair Cook and Joe Root repair early damage as England end first innings on 182-3 in second Test against Pakistan  

• England reached 182-3 before play was stopped in the second Test
• Pakistan were bowled all out for 378 in their first innings on day one
• Alastair Cook (65) and Joe Root (76 n/o) starred from the crease while Moeen Ali (1) and Ian Bell (4) disappointed 
• Pakistan's Asad Shafiq required treatment after being struck on the knee
• See more of the latest England cricket team news, fixtures and scores

By Paul Newman for the Daily Mail

Published: 08:45 EST, 23 October 2015 | Updated: 16:31 EST, 23 October 2015

It was beginning to look like nothing would dislodge Alastair Cook until out of nowhere came the moment that could yet decide this second Test and the series.

Nothing appeared more certain than another century for an England captain who has rarely looked so commanding, particularly after lady luck had smiled on him and a ball from Zulfiqar Babar hit his stumps without disturbing the bails.

Yet along came Yasir Shah, the leg-spinning sensation who had been failing to live up to his advanced star billing, to strike his first, and potentially huge, blow in a Test against England.

England captain Alastair Cook and Joe Root led the way for England during their first innings

Cook salutes his half century in a partnership with Root that reached 113 before he was dismissed

England opener Cook made 65 runs off 117 balls after Pakistan had been bowled out for 378

Cook was fortunate not to be dismissed earlier when the ball hit is stumps without spilling the bails

Pakistan bowler Yasir Shah leaps in the air to celebrate taking the wicket of England's captain

Ashes hero Joe Root was once again England's star performer, finishing the day on 76 not out

Root raises his bat after reaching a half century at the Dubai Cricket Stadium

Cook had been taking the attack to Pakistan in company with the equally assured Joe Root in a stand of 113 that had gone a long way towards repairing the damage caused by the early loss of Moeen Ali and Ian Bell.

If he had made it to the close England would have claimed the honours, emphatically, from a second day of this second Test that began with them taking six wickets to end Pakistan’s innings with a flourish.

But the man who took 61 wickets in his first 10 Tests bowled a routine leg-break that Cook could only turn into the hands of leg-slip for 198 fewer runs than he managed in his marathon 14-hour stint in Abu Dhabi.

Moeen Ali (centre) trudges off the pitch having made just a single run after being moved to the top order

Pakistan bowler Wahab Riaz (centre) celebrates with teammates after dismissing Ali

Ian Bell leaves the field after making a disappointing total of four runs as Ahmed celebrates in the background

The struggling England batsman holds his head in his hand as he leaves the pitch

Stuart Broad is congratulated after taking the wicket of Pakistan captain Misbah-ul Haq

Cook could barely believe what he had done after an assertive stand with Root had stopped Yasir from settling into a groove from where he could pose the problems England have suffered against wrist-spin.

Only that escape when he was on 27 — how the bails stayed put Pakistan will never know — and the occasional dab through slips had betrayed any hints of vulnerability about a man who now has more Test runs than any other opener bar Sunil Gavaskar.

Thankfully Root again marched on and when the umpires, barely believably, again brought play to a close 15 minutes early because of bad light —as floodlights shone down — England had moved on to 182 for three, still 196 behind.

Misbah leaves the field having contributed 102 runs to Pakistan's cause

Pakistan's Asad Shafiq suffers an injury after being struck by a delivery from England's Mark Wood

The moment of impact is shown on slow motion replays as the ball hits Shafiq above the knee 

Shafiq received treatment on the pitch but bravely continued only to be caught out by Root three balls later

‘First-innings runs are everything,’ said Stuart Broad afterwards. ‘If we can get 50 or more ahead the pressure really shifts to their side. If Joe Root is the guy we bat around then we should get 400 plus.’

How Cook and Root were needed by England after Moeen had fallen to an outstanding catch at short-leg off the fiery Wahab Riaz and Bell had perished infuriatingly by pushing at a ball outside off-stump he could have left alone.

Bell is a worry for England. He considered retirement at the end of the summer and how he must now be wondering whether he should have gone out on the high of his fifth Ashes success against Australia.

England bowler Mark Wood celebrates taking Shafiq's wicket - one of three he collected on day one

Ali, pictured celebrating the wicket of Ahmed Shehzad performed better with the ball, taking three wickets

James Anderson collects a catch to dismiss Wahab Riaz as England made light work of the tail end

It was only in the first Test, of course, that he made a battling half-century to add to the three he had made in the Ashes and there is no question that England will give him the whole of this series before even considering calling time on him.

Yet James Taylor continues to wait for his chance and the situation is looming where England will fail to play him here, where his game looks perfectly suited, before bringing him in against South Africa where perhaps it is not.

There is no such uncertainty about an England bowling attack that excelled itself in ending the Pakistan innings far more quickly and inexpensively than they could have imagined when Misbah-ul-Haq raced to his century on Thursday.

Adil Rashid (right) trades high fives with Anderson (left) after bowling Yasir Shah out

From the moment Broad thudded his fifth delivery of the day into Misbah’s pads and earned an lbw that could have gone the other way, Pakistan wasted their chance to again score 500 plus and pile the pressure on England.

Pakistan certainly played a part in their own downfall. Both Sarfraz Ahmed and Wahab imploded while trying to launch Moeen out of the ground while Yasir gave his fellow leg-spinner Adil Rashid his first wicket in a Test first innings. But it was Mark Wood who stood head and shoulders above the rest, bowling with pace and hostility to dismiss Babar — who comically ducked into a ball that would strike him just below the knee — and Asad Shafiq to end with three wickets.

England all-rounder Ben stokes enjoys a water break under the searing sun in Dubai

The final six batsmen had fallen for 92 and England had the chance to build towards the substantial lead that will be integral to their chances of pulling off a shock victory here.

They are still a long way off that but Jonny Bairstow overcame his uncertainty against Yasir to play positively, striking Babar long and high for six, and Root looked as imperious as ever in moving on to an unbeaten 76.

A compelling second day — and poor over-rates were as much to blame as the umpire’s bad light folly for 10 overs going unbowled — ended with the stage set for a third that will be pivotal to the series. If only the captain had remained it would have been a near perfect one for England.

ALASTAIR COOK PASSES 1,000 RUN LANDMARK AGAINST PAKISTAN 

Alastair Cook became only the second England batsman to pass 1,000 Test runs against Pakistan – though he still trails David Gower, who made 1,185 at 49. Cook now has at least 1,000 runs against six of the eight Test teams he has played against. Only South Africa (811 runs) and Bangladesh (401) have eluded him.

Only Sunil Gavaskar has now scored more Test runs as an opener than Cook’s 9,080. India’s original Little Master finished with 9,607 at 50. Cook has scored 578 of his Test runs at No 3.

Captain Cook became only the second England batsman to score over 1,000 Test runs against Pakistan

Ian Bell’s record at Dubai took a turn for the worse when he was caught behind off Imran Khan for four. In five Test innings here, he now has 23 runs at an average of 4.6 – the worst ground in the world at which he has batted at least twice.

Bell’s overall average has dropped below 43 for the first time in over five years.

When Moeen Ali claimed his 50th Test wicket, his strike-rate was a shade under 58. That is the lowest of the 17 English spinners to have reached the 50 mark since the war.

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