Greater Manchester Police have shared an appeal to find 13-year-old Lillia.

She was last spotted on Ainsworth Lane at around 9.15pm on Friday (September 11).

Lillia is described as a white girl who is approximately 5ft 5in tall, of slim build, with brown hair and glasses.

When last seen, Lillia was wearing a black zip-up hoodie, light blue ripped jeans and a Nike backpack.

Officers are becoming increasingly concerned about Lillia and want to make sure she is found safe and well.

Anyone who has any information on Lillia’s whereabouts is urged to immediately call police on 0161 856 2661, quoting MSP/06KK/0002168/26.

Members of the public should always call 999 in an emergency.

The The Inner Circle host Amanda Holden opened up about how Britain’s Got Talent helped transform her public image after an affair rocked her marriage to her first husband, Les Dennis

Amanda Holden credits Simon Cowell with helping her transform her public image in the wake of her affair with Neil Morrissey. The television presenter made front-page news in 2000 when it emerged she had been unfaithful to her then-husband Les Dennis.

The former couple briefly separated following the revelation before eventually divorcing in 2003. Four years on, Simon selected Amanda to join him and Piers Morgan on the judging panel of Britain’s Got Talent – a position she has held ever since.

In an interview with The Mail on Sunday, the 48-year-old maintains that allowing viewers to see her true personality on the programme helped her put the scandal firmly behind her.

“People might not have thought I was a girls’ girl when I went into Britain’s Got Talent, because there were all the stories about me,” she shared.

Advertisement

“But any myths people might have believed, with tabloid headlines to do with marriages and affairs, were dispelled by what people saw.”

In the same interview, she also admitted to being a devoted fan of Family Fortunes, which Les hosted from 1987 to 2002. “I thought Les was brilliant on it and I loved it,” she gushed.

This follows her appearance on the Tea At Four podcast last year, during which Amanda spoke candidly about the difficulties of rebuilding trust within relationships. She shared: “If the trust’s been broken, you have to repair the trust, and that can be tough.”

The Britain’s Got Talent judge says she is fortunate not to face such difficulties in her second marriage to Chris Hughes, with whom she has daughters Hollie and Lexi.

While filming the Netflix programme Cheat: Unfinished Business, Amanda revealed she was “grateful to be in a lovely, secure relationship”, in contrast to some of the show’s contestants.

Speaking to Hello! Magazine, she said: “We have ups and downs like everyone else. But when I was looking at the pain and suffering that some of the people we were working with were going through, I felt so grateful that I had somebody in my life with no complications.”

Amanda frequently speaks about her home life and marriage on Heart Radio Breakfast, which she co-hosts with Jamie Theakston.

Last year, she candidly revealed how the couple lead “very separate lives” owing to their demanding schedules.

“Obviously, we’re very happily married, but we do lots of things separately. I love my Peloton and running, he goes and plays squash,” she added of her husband, who works as a talent manager.

“He’s got a massive career as well. We’re always separate, you know.”

Amanda is back on screens for a new series of The Celebrity Inner Circle, which airs tonight at 8.15pm on BBC One.

A former barrister who plotted a revenge attack with a gangster pal; a ‘highly organised’ burglary gang; and a ‘predatory’ sex offender are among the criminals locked up this week in Greater Manchester.

Samreen Akhtar told her criminal mate – and client – Tabish Ali ‘we get him, we kick the f*** out of him and we send him back with broken legs to whoever sent him’ after he was shot amid a ‘turf war’ between rival gangs.

Also locked up this week were two arsonists who targeted a business causing £300,000 worth of damage and two brothers who attacked a man after he claimed one of them had been ‘hitting his dog’.

Click here to hear the latest from Manchester’s courts in our newsletter

Prison terms are handed out to the worst offenders. Each week Manchester Evening News court reporters are on hand to cover the most serious cases.

These are the criminals locked up in Greater Manchester this week…

David Owen, Wayne Jones, Lucas Staines, Rohan Brown and Liam Dodds

A ‘highly organised’ burglary gang brought terror to Greater Manchester in a £500,000 crime spree over 16 months, with children forced to hide as masked thugs broke into homes.

The gang were behind a ‘persistent burglary network’ which saw family gold and jewellery stolen from homes, as well as designer handbags and other valuable goods.

Greater Manchester Police said ‘affluent households’ across Salford, Bury and Trafford were targeted between January, 2024 and May, 2025.

Masked burglars smashed down doors and windows to access homes, with most of the break-ins taking place in daylight when the gang believed they would be empty.

But GMP said that in one burglary, a child hid inside a wardrobe while crooks searched a bedroom. In another break-in, another child also ran to a bathroom to hide as they tried to get inside.

David Owen, 24, of no fixed address, was sentenced to five years and four months for nine counts of burglary. Lucas Staines, 20, of HMP Forest Bank, was jailed for the same period for 15 counts of burglary.

Liam Dodds, 34, from Salford, got six years, four months in relation to eight counts of burglary. Wayne Jones, 23, of Dunedin Drive, Salford, was jailed for eight years for five counts of burglary.

Rohan Brown, 22, of Riverside Way, Salford, got five years, four months for seven burglaries.

Read the full story here: ‘Highly organised’ burglary gang brought terror to Greater Manchester in £500k crime spree

Samreen Akhtar

A barrister plotted a revenge attack with a gangster friend after he was shot by a would-be assassin amid a violent turf war fought between rival drugs gangs.

Samreen Akhtar, 38, was a qualified barrister specialising in criminal law. On September 14 2021, client and family friend Tabish Ali was shot in a violent incident in Blacker Road, Huddersfield. A court heard he was blasted as a bitter war between opposing gangs was fought.

The day after Ali was shot, Akhtar suggested in a recorded phone call they ‘locate and cause serious harm’ to the gunman.

Manchester Crown Court heard Akhtar suggested Ali that once the man’s location was known: “We get him, we kick the f*** out of him and we send him back with broken legs to whoever sent him.”

Akhtar, of Sufton Street, Birkby, was jailed for three years and three months.

Read the full story here: Barrister hatched revenge plot with gangster pal after he was shot by would-be assassin amid violent turf war between rival drugs gangs

Sohail Aurangzeb

A man left a pensioner with fatal injuries after smashing into her in his wife’s car. Sheila Rowan, 70, was knocked down by Sohail Aurangzeb in his partner’s Nissan Juke, which he took without her permission on the afternoon of August 10 last year.

Aurangzeb, 42, had no driving licence and wasn’t insured. He said he got lost and drove onto a rural, cobbled road in Ashton-under-Lyne. He claimed he drove into a ditch, which caused the car to swerve and hit Mrs Rowan.

Manchester Crown Court heard Aurangzeb drove away and didn’t report the incident. Mrs Rowan was found by passers-by who called 999. She died in hospital later that day.

Aurangzeb was jailed for seven years and four months. He earlier pleaded guilty to aggravated vehicle taking, with court documents stating Ms Rowan’s death was ’caused by accident’.

Read the full story here: When his wife finally got hold of him, he didn’t even mention the horrific events that unfolded hours earlier

Jacob Berry

A thug who ‘abused and terrorised’ four women has been jailed for life.

Jacob Berry left his victims with ‘lasting emotional and psychological trauma’.

Berry, 34, was found guilty of seven counts of rape; four counts of engaging in controlling or coercive behaviour; and one count of assault by penetration following a trial, Greater Manchester Police said.

Read the full story here: Thug ‘abused and terrorised’ four women

James Davidson

Advertisement

A ‘predatory’ sex offender has been jailed again after he was found to have been posing as a teenage boy during sick chats with young girls.

James Davidson, 60, from Stockport, was first sent to prison in 2020, being sentenced to two years behind bars for attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child, attempting to meet a girl under 16 following sexual grooming, and attempting to cause a child under 16 to watch a sexual act.

As part of his sentence he was made subject to a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO), which restricted his online activity and was monitored by Greater Manchester Police’s Sex Offender Management Unit.

In March 2025, officers from the unit raided his home after a tip-off he was breaching the order. After interrogating a number of devices, they found he had been communicating with multiple girls while using aliases and pretending to be a 17 year-old boy.

Davidson admitted sexual communication with a child and 25 breaches of his SHPO and was sentenced to two years and seven months.

Read the full story here: The Stockport monster who said he ‘didn’t care about age’ and thought he could hide from police

Jody Lynam

Jody Lynam targeted an innocent family’s home by setting it alight.

Stuart and Claire Marsden had enjoyed a night out together before returning home and going to bed just before 1am. But they were woken up shortly after by a ‘loud crash’. Mr Marsden went to investigate and found a large fire in their rented end-of-terrace home in Bury.

He and his wife were able to escape the blaze, but their house was severely damaged and nine months on, remains uninhabitable. Their children had been staying elsewhere for the night.

Police recovered footage which showed Jody Lynam and a second, unknown offender approaching the house, at about 1.40am on January 18 this year. The unknown man smashed a window before Lynam poured petrol inside. An ‘explosion’ was caused and the pair fled.

Lynam was caught after DNA from a balaclava which he discarded nearby was traced to him. Minshull Street Crown Court was told that drug addict Lynam and his co-offender had been acting on orders from a drug dealer, who pressured them into targeting a rival dealer to ‘send a message’ and intimidate.

Lynam, of Hardfield Street, Heywood, pleaded guilty to arson being reckless as to whether life was endangered. He was jailed for six years and nine months.

Read the full story here: Innocent family caught up in gangland feud as men in balaclavas poured petrol into wrong home and set it ablaze while they slept

Reece Taylor and Paul Taylor

Two brothers brutally attacked a man in broad daylight after he claimed one of them had been ‘hitting his dog’.

Reece Taylor threw his victim to the floor before punching and kicking him outside a block of flats in Ashton-under-Lyne. Minshull Street Crown Court heard the ‘unprovoked’ attack came after the man had asked Taylor to stop ‘hitting his dog’.

Taylor denied he had hit his dog and was not convicted of an animal cruelty offence. He then proceeded to attack the man, before his brother Paul Taylor became involved after mistakenly believing his sibling had blood on his face, after the victim had sprayed Reece Taylor with red dye.

The pair have now both been handed extended sentences for public protection.

Read the full story here: ‘Dangerous’ brothers in the dock following ‘absolutely brutal’ attack – before one decides he can’t behave and goes back to the cells

Diogo Cabral and Emanuel Simoes

Arsonists were caught on CCTV breaking into a business and starting a fire while one of them was still inside. Portuguese nationals Diogo Cabral, 21, and Emanuel Feliciano Simoes, 36, organised the attack on Snapchat, carried out with an unknown third man.

“Let’s do this mission today,” one message discovered by detectives read. Manchester Crown Court heard they were seen pulling up in a car outside Shzsr Enterprises Ltd, on Broughton Street, Cheetham Hill at around midnight on March 1, 2023.

They prised open the shutters with crowbars before two of them ran back to the car and grabbing bottles of accelerant. One of the three remained inside the building after a door was smashed and a fire started.

There was a ‘spontaneous explosion of light and flames’, prosecutor Henry Blackshaw said. The third man, who was behind the shutters, was seen on CCTV fleeing like a ‘scalded cat’, appearing to be on fire.

After the flames died down, he joined the other two in the car before it sped off. Firefigthers raced to the scene and the blaze was extinguished. Around £300,000 of damage was caused at the bedding supply business.

Cabral, of no fixed address, was jailed for five years and four months. Simoes, of Smedley Lane, Cheetham Hill, was jailed for three years.

Read the full story here: ‘Let’s do this mission today’: Snapchatting arsonists thought they had the perfect plan – now they’ve been locked up

Cameron Caswell

A Salford drug dealer hid a gun behind the fridge at his mum’s house. Cameron Caswell, 23, was arrested after police made the discovery following a raid at the Salford property in 2024.

Manchester Crown Court heard cops executed a warrant on Aspinall Crescent in Little Hulton, on December 14. A black bag was found behind a fridge freezer in the pantry. Inside was a gun and ammunition.

Experts determined the weapon was a Turkish-manufactured Zoraki 917. Caswell was jailed at Manchester Crown Court on Friday (September 11).

Read the full story here: Salford drug dealer behind bars after police make discovery behind fridge at his mum’s house

Daragh Burke, 37, is taking on the world’s biggest half marathon in place of PC Matthew Blades, determined to make sure the number his friend was due to wear still crosses the finish line.

PC Blades and his colleague, PC Tom Clough, died when a VW travelling the wrong way along the A66 at South Bank hit their marked police car head-on on Saturday, August 22.

For Daragh, who says “we couldn’t have been closer”, taking Matthew’s place is a fitting tribute to a friendship that stretched from primary school to adulthood.

The pair went through primary school, secondary school, college and university together, remaining inseparable into adulthood.

PC Matthew Blades, Daragh Burke and Conan. (Image: DARAGH BURKE)

Matthew asked Daragh to be his best man and Daragh later became godfather to Matthew’s children.

The business owner said: “We couldn’t have been closer.

“Since the incident I just feel like I’m waiting for him to get in touch as he was always at the other end of the phone.

“That’s one of the hardest parts for me.”

PC Blades was due to complete the Great North Run for Parkinson’s UK tomorrow (September 13).

“I didn’t want to see his number go to waste.

“Me doing it will get that number over the line and hopefully raise a bit more money.”

Unlike many runners who spend months training for the 13.1-mile challenge, Daragh has had only weeks to prepare.

He said: “I haven’t done much running over the past few years but I’ve given it my all in the weeks I’ve had.

“Matthew would be laughing his head off at me doing this as I’ve only had two weeks training but he would be immensely proud as I know Parkinson’s UK is something he felt so strongly about helping.”

The challenge carries added emotion after Daragh joined Matthew’s family, friends and colleagues at his funeral this week.

He said: “I was in the police for a period of time so I know what the job entails, but for all those police officers to come out and show their support was unbelievable.”

Daragh remembered the final weeks he spent with Matthew.

Daragh’s son Conan was christened just over a month before Matthew died.

Matthew became Conan’s godfather and wrote him a card saying: “Dream big, always believe in yourself.”

Daragh said: “That sums him up, that was just who he was.”

On Sunday, thousands of runners will race from Newcastle to South Shields.

Matthew’s funeral took place on Emergency Services Day, a national day of remembrance for those who have died in the line of duty.

Hundreds of people packed St Joseph’s Church in Hartlepool to pay their respects to the 37-year-old father of two who died on duty. Standard bearers from every force across the country lined the route as PC Blades’ hearse made the journey to the church.

His coffin was draped in the Union Jack flag. The hearse carried a floral tribute at its front: “Dad”.

Donate to the fundraiser here: Parkinson’s UK – Matthew Blades

Sir Jeremy was promoted to assistant director-general in May 2025, as part of a broader leadership shake-up. He joined the WHO as chief scientist in 2023, after almost a decade at the Wellcome Trust.

Along with Dr Tedros, the director-general, and other senior figures, Sir Jeremy was closely involved in implementing a painful down-sizing of the WHO following the US departure.

Historically, the US had been the agency’s top donor, and the funding cuts have hit the agency hard.

It has committed to slashing nearly a quarter of its global workforce and shrinking its headquarters in Geneva. Under a new organisational structure, 10 divisions were merged into four.

Sir Jeremy was responsible for one of these: Health Promotion, Disease Prevention and Control.

Speaking in March, he said: “2025 was a very difficult year. When you imagine any organisation – public or private – reducing its workforce by 30 per cent, it is extremely painful. Many institutions usually do this gradually: 10 per cent one year, another 10 per cent the next. Doing it all in a single year was awful, and the organisation lost many good people. Human resources did their best.

“I participated in the architectural overhaul and organisational redesign of WHO,” he added in an interview with the Swiss daily, Le Temps. “It is far from perfect, but the reform we have undertaken is as strategic as possible to ensure the organisation is better adapted to the health challenges of the next 20 years.”

While Sir Jeremy’s position at the WHO was a senior posting, working at the WHO, like other parts of the UN, can be frustrating, owing to its structure and governance.

The WHO is beholden to member states and is subject to enormous pressure at international level, which determines its funding stability, influences outbreak investigations, and tests its ability to act on issues that require consensus, such as the pandemic treaty.

But it is also riven by internal politics, and at the moment several senior officials, including several regional directors, have stepped back from their roles to campaign for Mr Ghebreyesus’s job as head of the organisation. His second and final term as director-general will end on August 15 next year.

It was also the location of a queen’s execution

Just a few miles over the Cambridgeshire border near Oundle, marks a site of major importance in Tudor history. Fotheringhay Castle is the remains of a large, medieval motte-and-bailey castle.

Although nowadays, there is very little left to see except a large mound of grass-covered earthworks – but it still remains a significant historic landmark. The castle, located north of Oundle, was likely founded around 1100 by Simon de Senlis, the Earl of Northampton.

The mound was once the site of a remarkable castle with an illustrious history. It overlooks a crossing point on the River Nene and it also acted as a royal palace and a prison from the 13th century.

Following its founding, the castle was under royal control, hosting a number of notable historic figures including King Henry III, Edward II, Richard III, and it was a favoured residence of several Dukes of York.

The castle was particularly famed as the birthplace of Richard III in 1452. Likely the most notorious Royal to spend time at the impressive castle was Mary Queen of Scots. She was the great-granddaughter of King Henry VII and first cousin once removed to Queen Elizabeth I.

She inherited the throne at just six days old when her father died. She briefly became queen consort in France before returning to Scotland. Mary had once claimed Queen Elizabeth’s throne as her own and was considered the legitimate sovereign of England by many English Catholics.

Seeing her as a threat, Queen Elizabeth I had her confined in various castles and manor houses across England. Following nearly 18 years in captivity, Mary was found guilty of plotting to assassinate Elizabeth.

On the evening of February 7, 1587, Mary was told she was to be executed the next morning. She spent the last hours of her life in prayer, distributing her belongings to her household and writing her will and a letter to the King of France.

She was beheaded on a scaffold in the Great Hall, which was draped in black cloth. It is believed that Mary was not beheaded with a single strike as the first blow missed her neck.

Her request to be buried in France was refused by Queen Elizabeth I and her body was eventually taken to Peterborough Cathedral in July 1587 for burial. However, it was later reinterred in Westminster Abbey.

During the latter part of the Elizabethan period, the castle fell into disrepair despite its importance. The castle was later dismantled and only the grass-covered earthworks and some masonry remains.

By ED HOLT

Published: 12:16 BST, 12 September 2026 | Updated: 16:56 BST, 12 September 2026

An 88-year-old woman has been found dead at her home as police arrest a man, 36, on suspicion of murder.

Thames Valley Police rushed to a home in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, at around 2.20pm on Thursday following reports of an ‘unexplained death’.

Inside a property on Appleford Drive officers found the body of Jill Gant.

A murder investigation has been launched which led to the arrest of a 36-year-old man, from Abingdon, on suspicion of murder.

Advertisement

He remains in police custody. 

The force said that Ms Gant’s family have been informed and they are being supported by specially trained officers.

 Ms Gant’s family have asked for privacy at this time.

Detective Chief Inspector Stuart Brangwin said the police’s thoughts ‘remain with Jill’s family’.

Advertisement

Pictured: Jill Gant the 88-year-old victim who was found dead on Thursday afternoon

Pictured: Appleford Drive in Abingdon. Thames Valley found Ms Gant’s body in a property on the road

He also warned residents to expect a large police presence in the area. 

The detective continued: ‘I understand that incidents like this will cause concern in the community but we are investigating the death as a priority and there is an increased police presence in the area.

Advertisement

‘At this early stage we do not currently believe there is any threat to the wider public as we have made an arrest and we are not looking for anyone else, at this time.’

Anyone with information is urged to contact police by calling 101 or making an online report via the force’s website quoting reference 43260472268.

US President Donald Trump has acknowledged that ‘the UK will have something to say about it’

US President Donald Trump declared that Irish unification would be “a very cool thing” while acknowledging there was “no good answer” to such a loaded question.

Mr Trump offered these remarks while reflecting on an Irish unification query posed by the Press Association during an earlier press conference at Farmleigh House in Dublin, reports the Irish Mirror.

At the US ambassador’s residence in Ireland, Mr Trump said: “You have to understand with the press, with me, every question is a kill.”

Discussing the Press Association’s question, the US president continued: “But they’re going for the kill at all times, and they ask me a question: ‘What do you think about unification of Northern Ireland and Ireland? I said: ‘Oh, that’s a nice question’. I gave a nice answer, I think.

“We’ll read about it tomorrow. That’s one of those questions where, no matter what you say, no matter how well you say it, there’s no good answer, right?

“There are about four or five, I could tell you some other ones, but I’m not going to get you started. But that was one of the questions. But I actually said it would be, I think, a very cool thing.

“To be honest with you, I think it would be cool. As half the room clears out, they say: ‘Let’s get the hell out of here. I don’t like this guy. I liked him a lot 10 minutes ago. I don’t like him’.”

During an earlier meeting with Taoiseach Micheál Martin, Mr Trump said that he would “love” to see Ireland unified and that “it may as well happen now” as it is “going to happen eventually”.

Speaking while sitting alongside the Taoiseach, Mr Trump remarked: “Well, I don’t want to cause any problems, but I will tell you I’d love to see it unified. I have friends on both sides, great people. They’re Irish people. How can they be bad, right?

“I’d love to see it unified. I think it would be a great feather in everybody’s cap if that happened. It’s going to happen eventually. You know what? The way I look at it, it’s going to happen eventually. It may as well happen now.

“We’re talking about it and you got the right man over here to get it moving. But, yeah, I think it would be a fantastic thing.

“Now the UK will have something to say about it, obviously. But I think it would be a great thing. I mean, how can it be bad?”

Want to see more of the stories you love from Belfast Live? Making us your preferred source on Google means you’ll get more of our exclusives… To add Belfast Live as a preferred source, simply click here.

EXCLUSIVE: The Electoral Commission has confirmed it will look into hospitality heaped on Nigel Farage and senior party figures in Dubai last January by mega-rich supporters

Nigel Farage faces being embroiled in another investigation after Reform was accused of failing to declare donors who paid for glitzy fundraising events in the Middle East.

The Electoral Commission has confirmed it had received a complaint over hospitality heaped on Mr Farage and senior party figures in Dubai last January by mega-rich supporters.

Fresh scrutiny over Reform’s finances come after Scotland Yard confirmed this week that it was investigating separate allegations the party broke foreign funding laws.

The latest furore centres on whether Mr Farage should have declared lavish hospitality he received during a two-day trip in May 2025, according to an investigation by Babelfish.

One event was a reception hosted by the Binghatti family, who are among the largest property tycoons in the emirate. Hussain Binghatti Aljbori is ranked by Forbes as one of the richest men in the Middle East, with a £1.8billion fortune. The other was a lunch reportedly paid for by Indian billionaire businessman Sunny Varkey, according to Bloomberg News. There is no suggestion of wrongdoing from the Binghatti family, or Mr Varkey.

Neither the party nor Mr Farage have declared donations covering the cost of these events. The Electoral Commission has confirmed it will review the evidence after a complaint from Labour MP Phil Brickell.

UK political parties must check whether any donation worth over £500 is from a “permissible” donor – including UK voters and companies – and must declare any donations worth more than £11,180.

After Labour MP Phil Brickell wrote to the Electoral Commission calling for a probe into the trip, the commission has now confirmed that it will review the evidence.

In his letter, the Bolton West MP said: “These reports appear to raise a straightforward question of electoral law: were goods, services or hospitality provided to Reform UK in connection with these fundraising events, and if so, were they donations which were properly recorded and reported to the Commission?”

Speaking to this newspaper, he added: “We need to understand if this is just a case of a couple of bad apples – albeit ones that haven’t fallen very far from the tree – or if there is a systemic culture of obfuscation, secrecy and, essentially, cheating, within Reform UK.”

Mr Vince said: “Nigel Farage has put democracy in Britain up for sale to the highest bidder – he clearly does not care where the money comes from – but we should. Ultimately all of this just reinforces the case for a total ban on donations to political parties in Britain”.

An Electoral Commission spokesperson said: “We can confirm we have received a letter from Phil Brickell MP regarding Reform and fundraising in Dubai. The Commission reviews all information it receives and is considering this matter under its regulatory remit.”

Reform UK did not respond to requests for comment.

There is perhaps no batsman in Test history as accustomed as Joe Root to walking in with the scoreboard reading “not many for two” and his team in a tight spot.

That is where Root found himself once again soon after 11am on Saturday. His team were two for two, with both openers out for ducks, and the problems of the third evening bleeding into the fourth morning. A chaotic and patchwork Pakistan team suddenly believed Mohammad Abbas could inspire their defence of 130.

A familiar position for Root, sure, but not the young man at the other end, the rookie No 3 Jordan Cox. Together, they eased England out of a creeping crisis with such aplomb that the target was chased swiftly enough that the few thousand at Edgbaston were refunded 50 per cent of their ticket prices because so few overs were bowled. When Cox hit the winning run, a scrambled single into the off side, Root’s relief was palpable. His team had been tested, and he felt they would be “better for it”.

They had won his first series since returning to the captaincy 3-0, but not without a scare at the last. The scorecard will record this as a routine England eight-wicket win and, for the most part, it was. But England were rattled by Razaullah, a 21-year-old who spent the first two Tests of this series in Mardan, in the mountains of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region near Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan. Having bowled quickly, he wreaked havoc on the third evening with his 63-ball 81, taking England from the brink of an innings victory to an awkward chase.

Razaullah’s partner with the bat was Abbas, who provided England with an almighty fright on the fourth morning. First ball, Ben Duckett was caught behind. The ball was angled in, demanding that it was played, then nipped slightly away, taking the edge. Duckett’s trudge off was glacial, with his curious Test summer over. He has scored England’s only century of the season, but failed to make fifty otherwise. In this series, he has averaged just eight.