The captain is past the master. That's the little master Sunil Gavaskar. Cook overtakes the Indian great's 9,607 to top the run-scoring list for a Test opener. 

Cook is making a habit of emphatically dispatching these wide deliveries. Amir strays on the off side and the captain crunches it through point.

Seems almost a side-story this Cook-Root partnership thanks to Pakistan missing two golden chances to dismiss the England skipper. Regardless, the partnership has officially crossed a hundred, coming off Yasir's over. 

We saw James Vince drop one yesterday, and a few have gone down today from Pakistan in the slips. So, this seems like an appropriate time to do a bit of crowdsourcing (yes, I can do managerial-type jargon). Who are your best and worst slip fielders?

International examples are excellent, although bonus points if you can out your ex-school captain.

England 107-1 (26 overs)

Not out batsmen: Cook 56, Root 44

Fall of wicket: 8-1 (Hales 6)

Bowling: Amir 9-1-36-0, Rahat 9-0-44-1, Wahab 5-0-23-0, Yasir 3-0-4-0.

Pakistan first innings: 339 all out (Misbah 114, Shafiq 73, Woakes 6-70)

Full scorecard

Ramiz Raja
Former Pakistan captain

Pakistan have got good fielders in other positions but when it comes to slip catching, you need experts. It's not easy to get Cook and now they have dropped him twice. 

Pakistan coach Mickey Arthur is shaking his head in disbelief. Almost a quiet sort of to-himself shake, but it's there. Cook survives a second time, though at least Amir can manage a smile after that drop, as captain Misbah comes over and gives him an encouraging sort of pat. What else, really, can you do? 

Geoffrey Boycott
Ex-England batsman on BBC Test Match Special

My mum would have caught that in her pinny. That was a shocker. He should have caught that without gloves. In fact, if he'd opened have mouth he'd done better.

Cook dropped on 55published at 14:41 British Summer Time 15 July 2016

14:41 BST 15 July 2016

Would you Amir and Eve it? Cook edges another one off the seamer and another one goes down! This time it's wicketkeeper Sarfraz who dives to his left but the ball pops out of his gloves. In fact, the ball bounces off his wrist and then knocks him on the head as well.

This partnership is the second-best of the match so far. But you feel these two batsmen are well settled. Rahat has not really troubled either Root or Cook despite his apparent propensity for swing. No cat-and-mouse game this despite what some felines behind the Lord's scoreboard might think.

Is that a bit of sunshine I see? By the power of sol, it is. Unless they've switched on the Lord's floodlights at full blast. Yasir tweaks away at Cook, with just the one slip in position next to Sarfraz but Root gets a short-leg as well. Keeps the batsmen in check for just one.

Just when I was talking about the Lord's crowd rising from a mini-slumber, out come the expensive wines and champagne. Well, they look expensive anyway. Hopefully they were used to toast England's team 100, which Cook brings up with a single off Rahat.

Cupking11: If I've got this right, if Cook reaches 59 he'll become the highest ever scoring opening batsman in test cricket

With his dual sweat bands in pristine white (so far), Yasir bowls out his second over. He's given encouragement by the wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed - "shabash Yasir!". How much do you really sweat as a spinner that you need two bands? Anyway, one from that over.

Andrew Samson
BBC Test Match Special statistician

This equals Cook's second-quickest 50 in Test matches, 60 balls. His quickest came in 56 balls in Mohali in 2008.

Stand and deliver from Cook. Another effortless, yet emphatic, boundary through the point area and he raises his bat for a half-century. Good round of applause for that, so my guess is the Lord's crowd are rising from their post-lunch semi-slumber. To be honest, I saw the Lord's menu entry earlier and I don't blame you. No, it's okay, I'll be content with my soup and coffee.

They say you're in good nick if you can hit fours down the ground. Alastair Cook is clearly in good nick then...

Yasir's got a decent smile on his face, if nothing else. Clearly a man well aware of his skills and how much the England batsmen respect him. Two from his first over, but already I can see the turn available to him, especially the one moving away from Root.