England defeated Pakistan by 194 runs [Source: AFP]
The second Test of Pakistan's tour of England 2026 ended in disappointment for the visitors as they were thumped by England by a massive margin of 194 runs. With this defeat, Pakistan conceded the three-match Test series, with the final Test at Birmingham remaining to be played.
Furthermore, this marked a successful beginning of the Joe Root's captaincy era, after the Englishmen had yet to win a series in the fresh World Test Championship cycle.
On the other hand, Pakistan, who were high on confidence after a series tie in the West Indies, are left with concerns heading into the final game. On that note, here's a look at the updated WTC table after the 2nd Test between England and Pakistan at Lord's.
Updated WTC Table After ENG vs PAK 2nd Test, 2026
Rank
Team
Matches
Points
PCT (%)
1
Australia
10
96
80.00
2
South Africa
4
36
75.00
3
New Zealand
6
52
72.22
4
Bangladesh
6
40
55.56
5
India
11
68
51.52
6
England
15
62
34.44
7
Sri Lanka
6
24
33.33
8
West Indies
12
30
20.83
9
Pakistan
8
16
16.67
(Last Updated on August 30, 2026)
Ollie Robinson rips through Pakistan; Mohammad Abbas' 9-fer in vain
Heading into the second match of the series, Pakistan were trailing 0-1 in the series. Eyeing their first series win in England since 1996, Pakistan got obliterated by an innings and 103 runs in Leeds, but the team got a boost with Babar Azam's return for the second game.
After opting to bowl first at Lord's, the experienced County Championship campaigner, Mohammad Abbas, used his experience and picked 4/73 in the first innings to bowl out England for 290 runs. Fifties from Jordan Cox and Jamie Smith saved England from a low score.
Things got worse for the visitors in their first innings as Imam-ul-Haq's absence disrupted the whole batting lineup, and the in-form Shan Masood and Abdullah Shafique were dismissed early.
Josh Tongue got rid of Babar Azam at 8(10), and Ollie Robinson ran through the rest of the lineup with incredible figures of 4/11 in 13 overs. Much like the first match, Jofra Archer bowled at full tilt as well to dismantle Pakistan for 110.
Once again, Mohammad Abbas bowled brilliantly for 5/57 to take his name to the Lord's Honours Board, but a fifty for Dan Lawrence and starts for Harry Brook and Joe Root took the target to 389, which was far from Pakistan's reach.
Saud Shakeel did the heavy lifting in the final innings and scored 97(122), but Ollie Robinson's 4/24 took his team to a 194-run win, keeping them alive in the WTC.
Can England and Pakistan still qualify for the World Test Championship 2027 Final?
The win at Lord's keeps England alive in the WTC 2025-27, with an outside chance at reaching the final. However, as things stand, they have only 34.44 per cent points and are in the bottom half of the table at number 6.
England have moved up by one spot to topple Sri Lanka to 6, but with South Africa and Bangladesh Tests left in the cycle, it is not easy for them to achieve the objective of reaching the 2027 final. They will need to win all their matches, and expect other results to go their way as well.
With only two wins in 8 Tests, Pakistan are as good as out of the race, with home series against Sri Lanka and New Zealand remaining. They will play all their remaining games at home, but it is almost impossible to recover from 16.67 per cent points at the bottom of the table and reach the top-2.
![England defeated Pakistan by 194 runs [Source: AFP]](https://onecricketnews.akamaized.net/parth-editor/oc-dashboard/news-images-prod/1788110041976_EnglandCelebrate.jpg?type=hq)
England defeated Pakistan by 194 runs [Source: AFP]
