An fine all-round display by Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler's late assault with the bat ended England's long losing streak against Australia as the visitors won the fourth One-Day International by 57 runs in Perth.
Ben Stokes is expected to make his long-awaited England return in a one-day international against New Zealand on Sunday.
After Stokes's heroics with the bat had helped England score 330 for six in their 50 overs, South Africa needed 10 runs from the last 10 balls of their innings with five wickets remaining, but an excellent final over from Wood that cost just four runs sealed victory.
Root shared an unbeaten match-winning partnership of 120 for the sixth wicket with Ben Foakes
But Stokes then introduced Ahmed in the afternoon session and the youngster ripped apart Pakistan's middle order.
Having conceded a lead of 259, England were all out for 195 in the second session on day three of the contest.
The British media's 'no love lost' attitude towards Virat Kohli was evident once again as they questioned the Indian captain's exchange of words with Ben Stokes after the latter's dismissal but performer of the day Jonny Bairstow was in no mood to fan the fire.
James Anderson concluded his illustrious 21-year international cricket career with his 704th and final wicket on Friday during England's commanding victory over West Indies
Alastair Cook backs Joe Root to surpass Sachin Tendulkar as leading run-getter in Test cricket
A delectable spread of special Gujarati and Kathiyawadi delicacies has been curated for the cricketers.
Left-arm spinner Tom Hartley said on Sunday the strip used for the first Test against India didn't offer much to the tweakers and he had to "keep a cool head" to make his debut memorable with a seven-wicket haul in a famous England victory.
With 10 centuries in just 54 innings over the past two and a half years, Root has gone past Sir Alastair Cook as England's highest Test run-scorer.
England's Ben Stokes and Jonny Bairstow struck half centuries to guide the hosts to a four-wicket victory over Pakistan in the fourth one-day international in Leeds on Thursday as they went 4-0 ahead in the five-match series.
'The strength of this England team is just how many people contribute. That is why they are a great team,' says Daren Sammy, the only captain to have won the T20 World Cup twice.
Images from Day 3 of the fifth and final Test between India and England in Dharamsala on Saturday.
'I know how hard he has worked to try to get back fit and I hope it is not too bad and he can get back as soon as possible.'
IMAGES from Day 4 of the 2nd Test played at Newlands in Cape Town on Monday
Prior to the tour, England had won only two Tests in Pakistan and it was their first series win in the country since 2000-2001.
For Michael Vaughan, Pep Guardiola is the best sporting leader in the last 15 years and the former England skipper won't mind if Ben Stokes employs Manchester City manager's approach of never allowing players to take their places for granted.
Jos Buttler made a scathing assessment of the HPCA Stadium outfield, terming it as 'poor'
India is staring down the barrel on Day 2 of the fourth Test against England in Ranchi. Not only the team, but even former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar was also forced to admit on air that the hosts are missing the services of Virat Kohli.
With over 50,000 ardent fans proudly sporting their Team India jerseys, the atmosphere was electric as they rallied behind skipper Rohit Sharma and his team
'We felt like we had a lot of different wicket-taking opportunities. The odd ball was staying low, we got the ball reversing a little bit, and got the odd ball to spin as well. It's never an easy position.'
A relieved Joe Root said the England Test captaincy had taken a toll on his personal health after he guided his side to a memorable five-wicket win against New Zealand on Sunday in his first match since relinquishing the role.
England all-rounder Ben Stokes, who became the highest paid overseas player in the Indian Premier League auction, is excited about sharing the dressing room with Steven Smith and Mahendra Singh Dhoni in his maiden stint at the cash-rich T20 tournament.
James Anderson says he still has to show he deserves his spot in the England Test squad ahead of the home summer but the 41-year-old seamer believes he is in the "best shape" of his life.
Joe Root scored his 35th Test century as he went past the legendary trio of Sunil Gavaskar, Brian Lara and Younis Khan, who had made 34 centuries in their career.
Australia were taunted ahead of the fourth Ashes Test against England with a giant billboard of Ben Stokes saying 'Welcome to Manchester' outside the team hotel on Wednesday.
Kuldeep Yadav wrecked England's top order and fellow spinner Ravichandran Ashwin polished off the tail to bundle out England in just over two sessions.
'A stunning display from England's man of the summer makes him the inaugural winner of The Wisden Trophy, awarded for the outstanding Test performance of the year,' Wisden Cricket announced on their Twitter handle.
'I think that's probably been the most surprising thing. We have kept the ball in really, really good condition but it really gets soft easily here compared to the Kookaburra we used in Bangladesh, where we managed to get (reverse swing) quite a lot'
Images from Day 3 of the first Test between India and England in Hyderabad on Saturday.
Former captain Andrew Flintoff believes Ben Stokes can become one of England's greats and rates the all-rounder as a more talented player than he was.
Former ICC elite umpire Simon Taufel said people cite the 'spirit of the game' when they don't like a dismissal under the laws of cricket.
Victory for England would see them take the series, which is poised at 1-1.
Stokes is also among the Test Cricket of the Year nominees alongside compatriot Jonny Bairstow, Australia opener Usman Khawaja and South Africa speedster Kagiso Rabada.
England all-rounder Luke Wright was ruled out of the World Twenty20 with a side strain on Saturday.
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