Wahab Riaz's double-strike gives Pakistan the early honours

Alastair Cook spoke at the toss about the importance of negotiating the first hour of play after opting to bat in tricky conditions at The Oval in the final Test and also revealed that 'a lot of thought' had gone into his decision. Quite surprisingly, the runs flew thick and fast from the outset, aided by Pakistan's indiscipline with the ball and in the field. The visitors, however, seized control of the session in a superlative second hour of

play as England slipped to 92 for 4, with the cream of the batting back in the dressing room. Alex Hales was dismissed for a paltry score yet again by Mohammad Amir but was not convinced by the decision. Yasir Shah claimed a low catch which was then referred to the third umpire. Poor camera angles combining with the umpire's soft signal didn't do Hales any favour. The wicket didn't hamper England though as the runs flowed from the bat of Cook and Joe Root.

Root started off in edgy fashion, picking up boundaries off an inside edge and an outside edge but soon found his touch. Cook, who was almost scoring at a strike rate of 80, then perished while attempting a pull off Sohail Khan. The ball cannoned onto his stumps after taking an inside edge. Just eight balls earlier, he was handed a reprieve by debutant Iftikhar Ahmed at first slip but the England captain failed to make it count.

England suffered their biggest blow in the session six balls after Cook's dismissal when Root's indecisiveness cost his wicket. Wahab Riaz finally had his reward as the right-hander tickled one to Sarfraz Ahmed. The momentum had completely changed ends with the visitors firmly stamping their authority on the proceedings.

The procession didn't stop though. James Vince, who has failed to register a single half-century so far in his short Test career, joined forces with Gary Ballance to see off the last few overs before lunch only to become Wahab's second victim. Jonny Bairstow hit three boundaries before the break with the hosts dearly seeking another rescue act from their in-form keeper to achieve a total of respectability.

Brief scores: England 92/4 (Alastair Cook 35; Wahab Riaz 2-26, Mohammad Amir 1-28) vs Pakistan