Dan Lawrence aims to secure England spot after half-century in rain-affected second Test vs Pakistan

Dan Lawrence said he was “desperate to establish myself in an England shirt” after taking some solid steps in the right direction on a rain-affected third day of the second Test against Pakistan.

In a chill breeze and with frequent interruptions from the weather, the battle for England’s batting spots heated up in the continued absence of the injured Jacob Bethell. Emilio Gay’s hard-fought 31 was ended by a grubber before Lawrence scored his second half-century of the series – matching Jordan Cox on that metric – to put England in control, 177 for seven at stumps to stand 357 ahead.

“I’ve really tried not to think about that,” Lawrence said about the contest for places, after finishing the day unbeaten on 50. “I’ve tried to just enjoy every day of being here and trying to contribute to the team. It’s pointless looking into the future. I’m just trying to give a good showing of myself and thankfully I think I have done.

“Thoughts creep into your head and I’m desperate along with all the other boys to establish myself in an England shirt. It’s just about trying to take every opportunity you get instead of feeling nervous about the occasion, just have fun and play the cricket that’s got me here this summer.”

Lawrence’s last run in the team, three Tests against Sri Lanka in 2024, came as opener and without great effect, three single-digit scores and three in the thirties. “I got wrapped up in a lot of things and I was thinking about my position and what I needed to do to stay in the team, instead of just enjoying it and realising how lucky I am to play for England,” he said.

“My mentality since coming back has been completely different. Hopefully, we get a good series win and then we’ll see what happens in the coming months and years.”

As a middle-order batter by preference he does not covet Gay’s position as opener – “It has been great fun batting in a position that is a little bit closer to what I’m used to,” he said, after a third outing at No 6 – and certainly took no pleasure in the 26-year-old’s dismissal, trapped lbw by a Mohammad Abbas delivery that kept low. “He played beautifully last night, dug in really hard and fought for the team.

“Hopefully that bit of bad luck he got, he gets all the good luck next week. He can take a lot of confidence in how he played.

“To get off the mark I had a massive big whooshka and edged it over the slips. That could easily have been caught and I’d have looked really stupid.”

Of the four occasions when Pakistan have scored more than 300 runs in the fourth innings to win a Test match, three came against Sri Lanka and only one score exceeded 350. On an awkward pitch and against in-form bowlers their task already seems extremely difficult.

“As far as batting is concerned we can only hope,” said Mohammad Ali. “Until the last ball is bowled in cricket, or the last run is made, nothing is decided. Maybe if we can get them out quickly … Miracles do happen in cricket.”