Harry Brook has the rhythm of Joe Root and the brutal power of Kevin Pietersen – he showed ruthless instinct in sensational 300 against Pakistan, writes NASSER HUSSAIN

Having conceded 556 in the first innings, I thought England would have to be almost perfect to force a win — and they have been.

The way the two Yorkies, Joe Root and Harry Brook, batted was truly amazing. Yes, it is a flat pitch in Multan, but the skill, the concentration and the fitness they showed in the scorching heat was remarkable.

Out of everyone who has scored 250 in a Test, Root made the lowest percentage of his runs in boundaries, which meant he had to run the majority of them, and yet he still batted for 10 hours.

And at the other end was Brook. Only Virender Sehwag has got a run-a-ball 300 in Test cricket, but Brook had the skill to almost match him without looking frenetic or chaotic. He has the shots of Kevin Pietersen and the rhythm and hunger of Root — and they are two of England’s greatest players.

There have been times when Brook’s ruthlessness and concentration have been questioned. Like at Lord’s in last year’s Ashes, when he took on the fielders when there were five back and he was caught in the deep. Or against Sri Lanka at the Oval, when the tourists were ‘hiding’ the ball outside off stump yet he kept driving and chipped one up to cover. But he showed a really ruthless instinct here.

He put on a record-breaking partnership alongside Root (pictured) as England took charge

Brook has the shots of Pietersen (pictured) and showed a ruthless instinct on day four

When Brook took time out of the game earlier this year following the death of his grandmother, he worked hard on his fitness, and it has really showed. The fitness levels of this England side are unbelievable and incomparable with older generations.

For England to get 800, and to get there so quickly, was magnificent. They batted for only one more over than Pakistan did in their first innings, and scored 267 more runs.

Because England score so fast, it gives them enough time to fashion victories. It was the same when they beat Pakistan in Rawalpindi and New Zealand at Trent Bridge, the only other occasions on which they have conceded 550 in the Bazball era.

England timed their declaration perfectly and what we saw after that was a tired and demoralised Pakistan team.

Remember, that was the same for England. They had been in the field for 149 overs but still went out and put in a shift with the bat.

That proves England’s superior fitness and mental toughness, whereas Pakistan played plenty of loose shots in their second-innings collapse. They’ve made a habit of those in recent months.

What happened on Thursday proves again why Test cricket is the best format because it is all about being mentally tough. This match has been dull to watch at times, but Test cricket is still intriguing because if you don’t switch on for one session, like Pakistan on Thursday night, it can cost you.

England had to be perfect to put themselves in a position to beat Pakistan and they have been

They bowled better than their hosts, hitting a better length, with Brydon Carse showing his skill and proving he is not one-dimensional

England also bowled a better length than Pakistan. You have to bowl a hard, heavy length and find the cracks in the pitch. All of England’s seamers did that.

Brydon Carse, in particular, proved he’s not one-dimensional. In the first innings, he was asked to bang it in halfway down, but on Thursday he needed to bowl a heavy length and hit those cracks, and he was able to do that as well. England’s bowlers were well handled by stand-in skipper Ollie Pope. He kept them going and rotated them at the right time.

The only thing I would change is Shoaib Bashir being asked to bowl a defensive leg-stump line with the field set for him. Last night, with Pakistan 82 for six, was the perfect opportunity to give Bashir an extra fielder on the off side and get him bowling an attacking line targeting the off stump.

But that is one minor criticism of an otherwise magnificent performance from an England side who are a joy to watch.