Shoaib hits double ton as Pakistan dominate England on Day two

Johannesburg: Shoaib Malik marked his return to the Test fold after a long gap of five years with a gritty double century as Pakistan maintained a complete stranglehold over England in the second day of the first Test in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.

Pakistan had declared their first innings on 523-8 before openers Alastair Cook (39) and Moeen Ali (15) batted solidly to take England to 56-0 at the draw of stumps at Sheikh Zayed Stadium.

England face an uphill task on Thursday as they are still trailing by 467 runs, with the pitch expected to change its nature in the coming days, Sport24 reported.

Malik smashed his best score in Test cricket by notching up 245 and in process went on to construct a solid 248-run partnership with Asad Shafiq (107) after resuming the day at 286-4.

Ben Stokes was the pick of the bowlers for England with figures of 4-57, while James Anderson took 2-42. (ANI)