Keshav Maharaj claimed 7/102 to help dismiss Pakistan for 333 shortly before lunch on the second day of the second test at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Tuesday.
The left-arm spinner, who didnt play in the first test in Lahore as he was coming back from a groin injury, picked up his third seven-for in tests and his 12th five-wicket haul to go with his career-best 9/129 against Sri Lanka in Colombo in 2018.
Resuming at 259 for five, the Pakistan pair of Saud Shakeel and Salman Agha looked fragile against Kagiso Rabada and Maharaj, bowling with the second new ball that was only seven overs old. But while both bowlers applied pressure, the batters exploited every opportunity to score with Shakeel reaching his 10th test half-century in the fifth over of the morning. The pair reached their 50 partnership in 108 balls and the home team threatened to go deep into the 300s.
But, on the stroke of drinks after an hours play, Maharaj made a vital breakthrough when he trapped Agha leg before with his arm ball. He and Shakeel had added 70 in 127 balls for the sixth wicket, building on the foundations created by Abdullah Shafique 57 and Shan Masood 87 before them.