Eng vs Pak, 2nd Test: Abid, Azhar help Pak off to steady start

At Lunch which was taken early down to showers, Azhar was batting on 20 and Abid was on 33 after the visitors decided to bat first.

Southampton: Skipper Azhar Ali and opener Abid Ali knuckled down against some sharp pace bowling and helped Pakistan reach 62/1 at Lunch on a rain-affected Day 1 here against England on Thursday.

At Lunch which was taken early down to showers, Azhar was batting on 20 and Abid was on 33 after the visitors decided to bat first.

Shan Masood, the centurion in the first test, was trapped in front in just the third over of the day by England's pace spearhead James Anderson for one run. Azhar then joined hands with Abid and the pair dug deep to see the threat of England's veteran new-ball bowlers Stuart Broad and Anderson.

England dropped two presentable chances in the slips, and saw a couple of other edges fall short. The hosts are missing star allrounder Ben Stokes in the second Test. Stokes will fly out to New Zealand and will, therefore, miss England's final two Tests.

England had earlier dramatically won the first Test on Saturday to go 1-0 up in the three-match series.

Brief scores:Pakistan 62/1 (Abid Ali 33 batting, Azhar Ali 20 batting; James Anderson 1/15) vs England