England scored a mammoth 823-7 in their first innings before tea on the fourth day of the opening Test against Pakistan on Thursday, taking a lead of 267 runs.

Harry Brook scored a superb 317 and Joe Root scored 262 as both batsmen achieved their highest Test scores on the flat wicket at the Multan Cricket Stadium.

Brook, 25, hit a four-off spinner Saim Ayub to become the sixth Englishman to score 300 or more in Test cricket. He achieved this feat with 310 balls, 28 fours and three sixes.

Andy Sandham of England became the first batsman to score a triple hundred in Test cricket, scoring 325 against the West Indies at Kingston in 1930.

Other Englishmen to score 300 points include Len Hutton (364), Wally Hammond (336 not out), Graham Gooch (333 not out) and Bill Edrich (310 not out).

Since his debut in 2022, Brook has made great strides at the international level.

In 2022, he hit three centuries against Pakistan – in only his second series, which England won 3-0.

Brooks senior partner Joe Root was unlucky not to reach his maiden triple century as he was caught for 262 by spinner Agha Salman shortly after lunch.

England continued at 492-3, looking for quick runs, which Root and Brook provided despite Pakistan’s defensive leg-side bowling, adding 166 runs in 29 overs in the session.

Root, who surpassed Alastair Cook’s 12,472 to become England’s highest Test run-scorer on Wednesday, surpassed his previous best of 254, which he also scored against Pakistan in Manchester in 2016.

Pakistan’s only chance came in the first hour when Root, making 186, failed to fend off a pull shot from pace bowler Naseem Shah, but Babar Azam took the regular chance at mid-wicket.

Pakistan were without top player Abrar Ahmed, who was suffering from fever and did not take the field on Thursday.