Birthday treat for Anderson

Anderson: five-for on his birthday

First Test Match
Trent Bridge - Day Two
England 354 (E J G Morgan 125 no, P D Collingwood 81 no, M Asif 5-77) v Pakistan 147-9 (J Anderson 5-49)

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England took a firm grip on the first Test against Pakistan after wickets tumbled on day two at Trent Bridge.

James Anderson took five for 49 on his 28th birthday, his ninth five-wicket haul in Test cricket, as England pushed towards enforcing the follow-on.

Neither side's batsmen were able to cope with a swinging ball under leaden Nottingham skies, but England's 331 runs on the first day look likely to prove crucial to the outcome of this match.

England were able to add just 23 runs to their overnight total as six wickets fell in quick succession, Mohammad Asif making the most of conditions to finish with five for 77.

But Pakistan's fragile batting order was quickly under pressure, with Steven Finn and Anderson both grabbing three wickets to reduce the tourists to 47 for 6, before Shoaib Malik and Mohammad Aamer finally produced some resistance with a stand of 58 for the seventh wicket.

Captain Salman Butt fell in the 45 minutes before lunch, reaching out past his front pad to edge an Anderson outswinger with just a single to his name.

Anderson produced a near unplayable ball to make Imran Farhat the first victim of the afternoon, bowled by one that was angled into the left-hander from round the wicket only to nip away off the seam and hit off-stump.

Finn made short work of Umar Amin, who fenced a catch to Graeme Swann at second slip - and Umar Akmal went in similar fashion to the same combination.

Kamran Akmal was Finn's third wicket when he fended off a steeply rising delivery straight to gully.

Before then, number three Azhar Ali - who had looked by far the likeliest to keep England at bay - had foregone his decision review system option when he was given out caught behind off Anderson, to one which appeared to flick the hip of his trousers.

Respite

Five wickets fell for only 15 runs but Pakistan achieved some respite as Malik and Aamer pushed the total into three figures.

Anderson ended the partnership when he forced Malik to play at one moving away and first slip Strauss took the catch at the second attempt.

Moments later Anderson had his five-for, Aamer drawn forwards and edging to Swann at second slip.

With the floodlights on, Pakistan were now attempting to reach 155 and avoid the follow on.

Danish Kaneria and Umar Gul got to within eight with a stand of 39 - the highlight Gul's pull off Anderson for six - before Broad nipped one back and bowled Kaneria middle stump through the gate.

Shortly afterwards the umpires took the players off for bad light, setting up what should be a fascinating day three.

Havoc

Earlier, Asif had caused havoc with his wicket-to-wicket seam and swing in a spell of four wickets, all lbw, for eight runs from the Radcliffe Road end.

Overnight centurion Eoin Morgan and Paul Collingwood could add only six between them to the 213 they had racked up together by stumps on Thursday.

Morgan had an early let-off when Aamer (three for 41) had him edging to first slip - where Farhat put down a straightforward catch.

There was to be no reprieve for Collingwood, though, when Asif pinned him lbw just on off-stump.

Asif bowled Morgan four overs later, getting a ball to straighten dramatically off the pitch.

The double departure left a decidedly awkward task for Matt Prior and Swann to try to get England up towards 400, with Asif already in full flow.

Prior soon became the next unfortunate casualty, run out after Swann sent him back attempting a third run - Aamer's accurate throw doing the rest.

Self-inflicted

It was a self-inflicted blow England could ill afford. Swann was eighth out, lbw pushing forward to Asif - who was on a hat-trick after Anderson shouldered arms and was struck on the pad next ball.

Last man Finn survived initially, only for Umar Gul to swing a full-length delivery past Stuart Broad's defences to wrap up the innings.