Joe Root’s second stint as England captain is off to a flying start as his side cruised to a 194-run win over Pakistan at Lord’s to seal the series, going 2-0 up with a game to go.
On a pitch that was heavily weighted towards the bowlers, England advanced their lead by 32 runs on day four to set Pakistan a huge total of 389 to win.
Mohammad Abbas tore through England's tail order on Sunday, taking a haul of five wickets, as the hosts were bowled out for 208 runs.
Pakistan were unable to surpass the hosts' lead, with a ruthless Ollie Robinson, back at his happy hunting ground at Lord's, taking four wickets on Sunday to bring up a match haul of eight as the hosts rattled their way through the visitors' batting line-up.
"I think the guys have shown great adaptability," Root said. "We've overcome some difficult situations when we were at 80-4 to get the total that we did.
"We showed great maturity and an element of problem-solving. It doesn't always have to be the top order that gets you runs.
"I thought the way the guys played towards the back end was excellent. If our tailenders can eke out 50 to 80 runs, that can be the difference in a Test match.
"I think the way we went about it with the bat, in very tough conditions, has been outstanding."
While it had seemed England would rattle their way to victory on Sunday, Saud Shakeel (97) showed a lot of heart and made life difficult for the home side's bowlers, swiping away 13 fours and two booming sixes.
Agonisingly, as he attempted to slog the England bowlers, he pulled Josh Tongue out to the boundary at deep point, where Harry Brook was waiting to snaffle up the catch.
Pakistan were bowled out for 194 on Sunday, with Player of the Match, Robinson, taking the wickets of Pakistan's Azan Awais (7) and Abdullah Shafique (0) in the space of four deliveries, before also snaring Mohammad Rizwan (1) and Abdullah Shafique (0).
Jofra Archer also impressed, again showcasing his lightning pace to take figures of 2-73, while Josh Tongue returned 3-46.
Robinson took seven wickets during England's defeat to New Zealand at Lord's in June, and outdid that total on Sunday at Lord's.
Rather remarkably, the Sussex bowler, who has won the Player of the Match award in all three of his three Test starts this summer, took remarkable match figures of 8-35 from 27 overs.
While it was much brighter at Lord's on day four, clouds continued to roll over The Home of Cricket, and Robinson still managed to extract plenty of movement out of the wicket, as he removed both Awais and Shafique in the same over.
"The way we've operated with the ball has been excellent," Root said. "We've got great contrast and variety in our attack.
"Obviously Ollie [Robinson] has been outstanding and is well complemented with three other 90mph bowlers that ask different questions."
Archer left Pakistan reeling at 3-14, playing a brutal bouncer to Babar, who swung wildly and edged the ball to Jordan Cox, waiting at third slip.
England then struggled before lunch. Shan Masood (26) and Shakeel dug deep to bring up a fourth-wicket partnership of 97 off 139 deliveries, before rain put a brief pause on proceedings.
The pair batted beautifully, with Shakeel smashing shots all around the ground, but as Pakistan reached 111 - or, more superstitiously, a Nelson - Robinson clattered the ball into his front pad. The umpire rejected England's appeals, prompting Root to review.
Hawk-Eye showed the ball hitting Masood's leg stump, and the umpire was overruled. It was the third time England had successfully challenged an umpire's decision off a Robinson delivery during the match.
Three overs later, Robinson had Rizwan (1) lbw, before Archer skittled Ali Usman (16).
Tongue would claim the final two wickets, bowling Khurram Shahzad (9) and Mohammad Ali (8), as England sealed victory.
Imam-ul-Haq would not turn out to bat due to a calf injury.
After striking a superb half-century on day three, Dan Lawrence (54) returned to the crease alongside Ollie Robinson (8), but both were soon sent walking within six overs by Abbas.
On day three, Abbas dismissed both of Emilio Gay (31), Harry Brook (34) and Jamie Smith (7), and he got straight back to work on day four, taking out Lawrence's leg stump with a beautiful nip-back delivery, after the England batter had brought up his second half-century in as many games on Saturday.
Noting how much Abbas was getting the ball to jag, Rizwan once again stood up to the stumps and it paid off, with Robinson walking next with England 187-9 after 51.1 overs.
The England bowler, pinned back in his crease, edged Abbas behind to Rizwan, after the Pakistan bowler nipped a ball back to his off stump.
After securing his fifth wicket, Abbas dropped to the ground, overcome with emotion as he celebrated his milestone.
Pakistan's fielding has been called into question multiple times during the first two matches of this series, but their captain, Babar, set the standard on Sunday morning, producing a sensational direct hit from the covers to remove Josh Tongue (12).
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