England will need “a few moments of madness” to earn their way to winning the first Test against Pakistan, according to jack of all trades Will Jacks.
On a lifeless pitch, England racked up a whopping 657, only for Pakistan to end day two in Rawalpindi 181-0.
“There is only one team that can win. Pakistan seem happy with a draw,” Jacks told Test Match Special.
“With this team environment that we have and our leaders, we will push for victory no matter what.”
England broke a record 506-4 on day one and then scored a further 151 runs from 26 overs on Friday morning.
Harry Brook, on his second Test, went from 101 to 153, including taking an England record 27 on a single over leg spinner Zahid Mahmood.
“It’s a good wicket to play on, as you can tell by our scoreline,” Brook said. “It will be difficult to get 20 wickets, but we will definitely give it a chance.
“When we were at bat it started to drop a bit, so hopefully we get one to stay low.”
England’s tally is the highest in a Test against Pakistan and the highest in Asia. It is also their fifth highest of all time.
They followed suit, scoring at 6.5 points and more. Pakistan’s response was a more traditional approach to Test cricket, with Abdullah Shafique dropping to 89 and opening partner Imam-ul-Haq reaching 90.
Imam was dropped by wicketkeeper Ollie Pope on the 11th, while Shafique gloved just before Pope’s dive on the 54th.
“We’re going to have to take some world catches and go through some crazy times to win,” Jacks said.
“There’s plenty of cricket left to play. They hit well, which they have a right to do. We’ll be pushing for a win over the next three days.”
Jacks makes his Test debut in place of Surrey team-mate Ben Foakes, who was ruled out with the illness that swept through the English camp the day before the Test started.
The 24-year-old, who batted 30 and had 12 overs without a wicket, found he was playing at the last possible moment.
“It was literally two minutes before I got the ceiling,” Jacks said.
“I knew when I went to bed the night before we had 13 sick players and staff, seven or eight players, so there might be a possibility that I would have to be called up.
“I was about 50 per cent ready mentally. Ben Stokes pulled me aside and said ‘Foakesy is sick, you’re in’. That didn’t give me time to be nervous.”
