A young man clad in Pakistan whites steams in with the ball in his hands. A subtle jump off the popping crease, a slingy release, the ball skidding off the surface and thumping into the knee roll of the batter.

Round the wicket, the same run-up, the same action, generating sharp inswing to destroy the stumps of a left-hander. Then comes the celebration — face red, fists clenched, all fire.

Pakistan fans have longed for that sight, those sounds, that feeling.

At Edgbaston in Birmingham on Wednesday, the starved aficionados of Pakistan cricket, who almost automatically qualify as fast-bowling lovers, were jolted from a slumber — the sort of indifference brought on by constant disappointment — by a 21-year-old from Mardan called Razaullah.

The right-armer, already drawing comparisons with Pakistan great Waqar Younis, strengthened the notion that pace bowling and Pakistan go hand in hand with a fourth-ball dismissal of England captain and greatest Test batter Joe Root on his debut.

Razaullah’s first two overs saw him touch 92mph, while he did not dip below 89mph. He became increasingly wayward with his lines and lengths as the day progressed, particularly after Pakistan had been dismissed for a mere 133, but returned late in the day to castle opener Emilio Gay, who had looked well set during his half-century.

That he was even on the field at Edgbaston owes much to the Pakistan Cricket Board’s controversial mid-series overhaul.

After Pakistan suffered an innings-and-103-run defeat in the first Test at Headingley and a 194-run loss at Lord’s, the PCB sacked head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed and sent seven players home.

Razaullah was one of the seven replacements and one of five uncapped players drafted into the squad.

He emerged onto the professional cricket scene in Pakistan when he played the district U-19 competition for Mardan in 2023 before featuring at the regional youth level for Abbotabad.

Razaullah’s performances helped him get picked by Sahir Associates for the President’s Trophy Grade II tournament in 2024-25, where he led his side to a title win and qualification to the first-class version of the competition.

Razaullah then played for Peshawar as a guest player in the 2025-26 Quaid-i-Azam Trophy, where he scored a century and a 50 across two innings of one of the matches.

The right-armer truly impressed with the ball in the 2025-26 President’s Trophy, taking 30 wickets in five matches for Sahir Associates.

After being picked by Pakistan Super League debutants Rawalpindiz last season, PCB high-performance director Aaqib Javed was impressed by Razaullah while watching him practise at the National Cricket Academy.

That attention eventually led to a place in the PCB’s fast-bowling camp in late August. Razaullah was among 12 pacers invited to the camp, alongside Mohammad Imran Jr, who is also part of the Pakistan squad for the third Test.

Dawn understands that interim head coach Mike Hesson, who replaced Sarfaraz in a rushed arrangement, had taken a liking to Razaullah, which influenced his selection for the Test squad.

And on Wednesday, the youngster showed why.

His two wickets may not have been enough to change the course of a Test in which England finished the day 156-4, 23 runs ahead, but they offered Pakistan something it has been desperately short of: the sight of a young fast bowler attacking an established batter with genuine pace and conviction.

The timing of Razaullah’s emergence could hardly be more striking.

Pakistan’s batters had failed to cross 200 in any of their first five innings of the series. They then folded for 133 at Edgbaston, leaving their bowlers with another mountain to climb.

Razaullah, alongside the seasoned Mohammad Abbas and Mohammad Ali, has given Pakistan’s attack something to build on. Whether it can turn into anything more will depend on the batters finally giving them something to defend.