MULTAN, Pakistan — Pakistan, fielding an unusual spin-heavy side, won the toss and chose to bat first in the second cricket test against England on Tuesday. England, led by the returning Ben Stokes, made two changes to their lineup after their commanding innings and 47-run win in the first test.
Stokes, back from a hamstring injury, replaced Chris Woakes, while fast bowler Gus Atkinson was swapped out for Matthew Potts, who last played in England’s test match against Sri Lanka at Lord’s earlier this year.
Pakistan, currently enduring an 11-match winless streak at home, revamped their team after becoming the first test nation to lose a match by an innings despite scoring over 500 runs in the first innings. Four senior players, including an out-of-form Babar Azam, were rested for the remaining matches of the series. Kamran Ghulam was handed his debut, taking Babar’s No. 4 spot.
The hosts stacked their bowling attack with spinners, bringing in Sajid Khan, Noman Ali, and Zahid Mahmood—none of whom have played first-class cricket for nine months. Pakistan’s other spin options include Salman Ali Agha and Saim Ayub. Leg-spinner Abrar Ahmed, who missed the first test due to illness, was ruled out for the remainder of the series.
Lineups:
Pakistan: Saim Ayub, Abdullah Shafique, Shan Masood, Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan, Salman Agha, Aamer Jamal, Sajid Khan, Noman Ali, Zahid Mahmood.
England: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes, Jamie Smith, Matthew Potts, Brydon Carse, Jack Leach, Shoaib Bashir.
