England vs Pakistan: Jonny Bairstow and Moeen Ali steady the ship after Alex Hales suffers controversial dismissal

England 202 - 5 (50.4) Pakistan yet to bat

Alex Hayles responds to his controversial dismissal (Getty)

Jonny Bairstow and Moeen Ali came to England's rescue on day one of the fourth Investec Test against Pakistan at The Oval.

England were in substantial trouble on 110 for five, after Alastair Cook won the toss under heavy cloud cover and on a green pitch.

But Bairstow (55no) and Moeen (52no) adapted to the circumstances, much different to those of their rollicking century partnership to set up victory at Edgbaston last week, this time putting on an unbroken 90 in a teatime 200 for five.

Wahab Riaz (three for 59) in particular, on his return to the scene of a maiden five-wicket haul on his Test debut six years ago, had made short work of the hosts in a fast and fiery spell either side of lunch.

But then England's sixth-wicket pair cashed in on Pakistan mistakes, Bairstow caught at point on 13 off a Wahab no-ball and Moeen dropped twice.

England's earlier troubles began with the controversial departure of Alex Hales, followed by that of Cook; then after Joe Root went to Wahab, the second of three wickets for the addition of only five runs, James Vince fell to a brute of a delivery from the left-armer.

There was swing available with the new ball, on a surface of decent pace, but Hales' dismissal was a curiosity which owed nothing to either of those factors.

Joe Root endured a frustrating afternoon (Getty)

It was one that left the vexed batsman himself far from convinced too.

Hales whipped a full ball from Mohammad Amir to midwicket, where Yasir Shah lunged forward to claim the low catch.

Bruce Oxenford's initial 'soft signal' that Hales was out proved more than the usual starting point for DRS - because the anticipated telling video replay evidence to support or disprove the decision never materialised.

Hales, it seemed, hit the ball so well he had defeated the cameramen - and for his trouble, aghast and muttering in apparent disbelief, he had to go.

England recovered their composure in a second-wicket stand of 46 until Cook - five balls after being dropped at slip by debutant Iftikhar Ahmed off Wahab - under-edged a pull at Sohail Khan down on to his stumps.

Root's anger, unlike Hales', was then directed entirely at himself when he followed a short one from Wahab and edged behind.

First-change Wahab, left out in Birmingham last week, put Iftikhar's drop further behind him with one that bounced on Vince for caught-behind to consign England's number four to another failure in his maiden Test summer.

Wahab's successful return stalled with Bairstow's reprieve off one of a rush of early-afternoon no-balls from Pakistan.

They included the first by Amir since his return to cricket from his five-year ban for deliberately over-stepping in the 2010 spot-fixing scandal.

Wahab was behind the line when he had Gary Ballance edging low to Azhar Ali at third slip, and he then greeted Moeen by hitting him on the helmet with a bouncer first ball.

Amir was bowling well too from the pavilion end, but his reward would not come - and when Azhar put down a straightforward slip chance, with Moeen on nine, the left-armer kicked the ground in understandable frustration.

Bairstow survived another close call, DRS confirming he was not out lbw to more Amir swing, and Azhar failed to hold a second half-chance to shift Moeen - a sharp one at short-leg from the full face of the bat off Yasir Shah.

The profits for England were Bairstow's third half-century in his last four Test innings, and a third in succession for Moeen on the stroke of tea.

PA.