Pakistan warmed up for their first Test against England at Headingley from Wednesday with a seven-wicket win over a County Select XI as Saud Shakeel hit an unbeaten hundred and Imam-ul-Haq scored 80.

Set 262 to win on the third and final day in Beckenham, the tourists reached their target in 57.1 overs with England spinner Shoaib Bashir recording second-innings figures of 0-45 from eight overs after bagging 4-76 from 20.2 first time around.

Bashir is hoping to be included in the England XI in Leeds next week, live on Sky Sports, but the hosts could pick an all-pace frontline attack with the recalled Dan Lawrence, who will bat at No 6, and newly reappointed captain Joe Root providing the spin options.

Opening batter Emilio Gay and seam bowler Matt Fisher were the other members of the England Test squad, besides Bashir, to play in Beckenham, although the first two were released from duty on the final day.

Gay bagged a pair in the match as the home side made scores of 305 all out and 195 all out, while Fisher clubbed 62 not out from 53 balls in the hosts’ first innings before registering bowling figures of 1-15 from 11 overs in Pakistan’s opening knock of 238.

Who else impressed for Pakistan in Beckenham?

Pakistan’s top-scorer in their first innings was Abdullah Shafique (61), while highlights with the ball included a second-innings five-for for left-arm spinner Ali Usman.

The tourists suffered a scare on day two when captain Babar Azam retired hurt after being struck on the hand by a delivery from young Hampshire quick Manny Lumsden.

Babar was advised to rest for the remainder of the game but a PCB statement said he would train at Headingley on Monday.

The skipper said on Saturday after the win over the County Select XI: “It’s a very good preparation for us to prepare ourselves for the Test.

“The pitch was a bit challenging early on but it got better after a couple of days. We have to prepare ourselves for the game and it’s a great thing to go out and perform.

“I’m not sure what the conditions will be like in the first Test, but seeing here it’s slightly dry and the ball was turning as well. That pitch will have some bounce there.

“It will be slightly different [in Leeds]. We will be preparing accordingly. “

England vs Pakistan Test series fixtures

• First Test (Headingley) – Wednesday August 19 – Sunday August 23 (first ball 11am)
• Second Test (Lord’s) – Thursday August 27 – Monday August 31 (first ball 11am)
• Third Test (Edgbaston) – Wednesday September 9 – Sunday September 13 (first ball 11am)

Watch the three-Test series between England and Pakistan live on Sky Sports Cricket from Wednesday (11am first ball at Headingley). Stream cricket and more top sport contract-free with NOW.

Sheffield United and Birmingham made an underwhelming start to the Championship season as they played out a goalless draw at Bramall Lane.

Both sides have ambitions of mounting promotion challenges this campaign, but there was not too much to get excited about in this drab curtain-raiser where chances were at a premium.

Blades boss Chris Wilder and Birmingham counterpart Chris Davies will both be hoping to add some extra quality into the squads before the end of the month.

Optimism is always high at the start of a new season, but this was not a case of either side hitting the ground running as a tightly contested first half passed without either side managing a shot on target.

The only action of note in the opening 45 minutes was a flurry of action just before the half-hour as both teams enjoyed their best moments.

The Blades went first as Patrick Bamford hooked Femi Seriki’s deflected cross just wide.

Birmingham responded straight away and Alex Cochrane’s cross was perfect for Paik Seung-ho, but the South Korean could not get enough on his header and the chance passed.

Blues started the second half on the front foot and had a big moment in the 58th minute when Carlos Vicente was played through on goal, but his attempted pass was cut out by Japhet Tanganga when the better option was to shoot.

The visitors began to turn the screw and produced the first shot on target in the 62nd minute when Jay Stansfield’s low show was well kept out by Michael Cooper.

Cooper then had a more routine save as Stansfield tried an optimistic effort from distance.

Wilder’s side got through that tricky period and began to launch their own attempt to win the game.

Callum O’Hare sent Bamford clear into the area, but his shot was straight at Blues goalkeeper James Beadle, who saved with his feet.

Neither side showed the quality required to break the deadlock in an opening encounter which will be soon forgotten.

The managers

Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder:

“For us, we turned the ball over too cheaply. I always thought it was going to be a game of moments where we had to find a bit of quality and we never found that quality that we were after. Out of possession, we were okay.

“A clean sheet is relatively important for us; we have to have something to build on. Overall, seven out of 10 for us; a lot of work to be done on the training pitch, trying to improve the team because we’re light in a couple of areas, but I’m sure we can work that one out.”

Birmingham boss Chris Davies:

“I think if anyone was going to win it, it would have been us. We were the better team actually in the game.

“I thought in terms of the chances, the momentum that we had, and the way we approached it, I said to the players, it’s often a feeling, and you look like a team that was really ready to compete.

“That first 10 minutes, the crowd’s going to be [on us] their first game of the season and everything else. But we got through that – there’s so much encouragement there for me because we’ve continued what we’ve been doing in the last several games, and we look a we look at team that’s there in every moment. That’s what we need to be.”

What the result means and next fixtures…

St Helens produced a blistering second-half performance to stun Wakefield Trinity with a 46-16 victory and keep their slim Super League play-off hopes alive.

Saints, who have never failed to make the post-season, came into the match on a run of three defeats in a row and five losses in six, leaving them six points off the top six.

The visitors slipped 10-0 down to fourth-placed Wakefield and trailed 16-12 at half-time but then ran in six unanswered tries in the second period.

Tristan Sailor’s brace completed his hat-trick while Lewis Murphy added to his first-half score and Jake Davies touched down twice in the closing stages to move St Helens to within four points of sixth-placed Leigh Leopards with four games remaining.

Wakefield falter after bright start

Wakefield, who lost Josh Rourke and try-scorer Isaiah Vagana to injuries inside the first quarter of an hour, missed the chance to move two points behind table toppers Leeds as they suffered a sixth successive defeat to Saints and slipped to back-to-back home losses after last week’s narrow reverse against the Rhinos.

Tyson Smoothy’s eighth-minute effort, which was converted by Jack Sinfield, and Vagana’s Sinfield-aided score in the 12th put Wakefield on top.

However, Vagana was barged into as he went down and went off with a physio holding his left arm, after Rourke departed following a collision with Murphy.

Sailor and Murphy dragged Saints back into the contest with tries that Jackson Hastings converted, only for Sinfield to exploit a huge gap before kicking his second conversion to leave Wakefield four points to the good at the break.

Lachlan Walmsley had two tries chalked off for Trinity after the resumption, either side of which Murphy put Saints back in front with another fine finish, diving one-handed in the corner before hobbling off with an injury to his left leg.

Once Billy Keeley latched on to a loose ball and went over after 64 minutes, Saints dominated, with Sailor’s hat-trick, sealed after a lung-busting run, prompting Wakefield’s fans to stream for the exits.

Powell rues Wakefield’s lack of ‘fight’

Trinity coach Daryl Powell called his side’s capitulation “unforgivable”, saying: “There was a lack of effort, almost, at the end.

“It’s really disappointing. The second half last week and the whole game today, I don’t think we’re in a great place.

“We didn’t perform well. We took a smack on the nose last week and we haven’t recovered from that this week. They were desperate and they outplayed us. I don’t think our fight was good enough.

“It’s hugely disappointing and I’ve said to the players ‘we’ve got to flip this pretty quick’. We play Wigan next week and it doesn’t get any harder than that.”

Wigan level on points with Leeds as Bradford slip to bottom spot

Wigan moved level on points with leader Leeds as they scored six tries in a 34-6 victory at lowly Bradford, who now prop up the table following resurgent Huddersfield’s victory at Toulouse on Saturday evening.

The visitors crossed three times in each half with Jake Wardle, Adam Keighran and Bevan French touching down before the break.

Wardle went over again in the second period while Kian McDermott and Jake Kerr also registered tries, with the Bulls’ sole effort coming from Andy Ackers.

Wigan’s 18th win of the season leaves them four points clear of Warrington and Wakefield in third and fourth respectively, while Bradford have been usurped by Huddersfield on points difference after their fellow Yokshiremen’s 26-10 win in France.

The Giants have won four games in a row after just two victories across their first 19 matches, with this latest success thanks to two tries from Sam Halsall and one apiece for Joe Greenwood and Conor Wrench.

Huddersfield’s revival, which has also included beating York, Hull FC and Catalans, has come at the same time Toulouse have faded, with Sylvain Houles’ men on a four-match losing streak following previous disappointing results against Catalans, Leeds and Wigan.

Sky Sports will show every game of the Super League live this season, including two matches each round exclusively live. The remaining five matches will be broadcast on Sky Sports+.