Pakistan's Kamran Ghulam bats during the first day of the second test cricket match between Pakistan and England, in Multan, Pakistan. (AP )

MULTAN, Pakistan, Oct 15, (AP): Debutant Kamran Ghulam scored a resolute century on a tricky recycled wicket and carried Pakistan to 259-5 at stumps on Day 1 of the second test against England on Tuesday. Ghulam answered Pakistan’s batting problems at No. 4 with a patient 118 off 224 balls.

He became the 13th Pakistan batsman to score a century on a test debut and is the first to do so against England. Off-spinner Shoaib Bashir (1-66) broke through Ghulam's defenses late in the final session when he tickled the leg bail with the second new ball just four overs old. Mohammad Rizwan, who could have been out caught behind early but England didn’t go for the television referral, was unbeaten on 37 and first test century-maker Salman Ali Agha was 5 not out at stumps.

The 29-year-old Ghulam had long been knocking at the doors of test cricket with 16 first-class centuries before he was finally given a chance after Pakistan left out Babar Azam for the remaining two matches of the series because of his lean patch in red-ball cricket. "Babar Azam is a legend, but in the back of my mind I was thinking to give my 110%,” Ghulam said. "I had waited for four years after scoring consistently in first-class cricket. I wasn't worried about the wicket or the opposition, I just desperately wanted to get a chance and perform.”

Ghulam reached his memorable century off 192 balls in the final session when he drove Joe Root to the mid-wicket boundary for his ninth four. He knelt and kissed the turf. England squeezed the runs early in the final session through some impeccable reverse swing of Brydon Carse (1-14 in 11 overs) and Matthew Potts (1-36 in 17 overs) as Pakistan lost Saud Shakeel cheaply when the left-hander got a thick edge off Carse.

Jack Leach (2-92) had taken two wickets inside the first 45 minutes to give Pakistan an early shock at 19-2 after captain Shan Masood won the toss and elected to bat on a dry wicket tailor-made for Pakistan’s spin-heavy bowling attack. Ghulam blunted the spin of Leach and Bashir by combining in a 149-run stand with Saim Ayub, who raised his third half-century in the last four test matches and made 77. "There was pressure when I walked out to bat because we had lost two quick wickets,” Ghulam said. "The ball was reversing well and it was also keeping low, but I was focused to do well and played with a positive frame of mind.”