Pakistan were well behind the game before a ball was bowled on a rain-curtailed third day at Lord’s, and it was almost inevitable that’s how they would finish the day, no matter how much play took place. In the end, across three staccato chunks, Pakistan bowled just under 25 overs and took four wickets. But it was also a passage of play in which England scored another 96 runs, and extended their lead to 357.

“The deficit from the first innings was too deep anyway,” he said. “When you’re so far behind, all you can do is get opposition wickets as quickly as possible. I think we bowled better here than the first innings. In better areas and with more consistency. That’s why England are 177 for 7.”

Conditions for bowling were helpful, with cloud cover never easing off, and batters unable to build any rhythm with repeated rain breaks. There was prodigious swing on offer as well as variable bounce; that was how the day’s first wicket fell when Mohammad Abbas shot one through to Emilio Gay which barely rose above his ankle and trapped him in front.

“You often get variable bounce at Lords,” Ali added. “If you watched the Test against New Zealand here [earlier this summer], you saw variable bounce too. As a cricketer, you have to be in awkward conditions. I don’t talk about anyone else, but if you ask me to bowl all my life, I will be ready to do that. Because that’s my job. And no matter how many fast bowlers play, fast bowlers should enjoy bowling in these conditions. If your workload is fine and your preparation is fine, you’ll never have a problem.

“We’ve seen this in domestic cricket too. A cricketer can only do what’s in his control. The weather, atmosphere, conditions, pitch, should not get to you that much.”

However, Pakistan are unlikely to be as stoic with the bat. So far in this series, they have scored a combined 417 runs across their three innings. A target in that range in the fourth innings at at Lord’s, on a surface like this, would be expected to verge on the impossible.

Ali was aware of that. “Miracles do happen in cricket. we can only hope at this time and try and encourage the batting group,” he said.

“It’ll be a difficult task but not impossible. Until the last ball is bowled in cricket, you can’t make predictions. The Test still has a ways to run. 350-400 has been chased in the past, too. It’s all about mindset and belief. Conditions are tough, but we’ll have to face that challenge and find a way out to get runs.”