Pakistan are set to kickstart their campaign against England with the first Test match starting on Monday, 7 October at Multan Cricket Stadium. The hosts are ready to take revenge for their 0-3 clean sweep in 2022. (More Cricket News)
The second Test match in that series was played in Multan and the visitors won by 26 runs after a brilliant display of "Bazball" which was a new term in cricket then.
Ben Stokes has been rested from the first Test due to hamstring and Ollie Pope is set to lead the English side for the fourth time. He also led the side against Sri Lanka at home turf where they won the series 2-1.
For Pakistan, things have not going in their favour since the beginning of the year. Bangladesh recently robbed them in the Test series and now another Test series is loading. Shan Masood-led Pakistan side need to perform collectively to reflect results.
Pakistan Vs England 1st Test Full Squads
Pakistan: Shan Masood, Saud Shakeel, Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Salman Agha, Babar Azam, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Rizwan, Muhammad Hurraira, Naseem Shah, Noman Ali, Saim Ayub, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Shaheen Shah Afridi
England: Ben Stokes, Gus Atkinson, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Jordan Cox, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Josh Hull, Jack Leach, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, Rehan Ahmed, Joe Root, Shoaib Bashir, Jamie Smith, Olly Stone, Chris Woakes
As the stage is set for the first Test match to be played at Multan Cricket Stadium, there are three key player battles which may be worthy of looking out for.
1. Joe Root Vs Naseem Shah
Joe Root is the best player in the England team and he is on the verge of overtaking Sir Alastair Cook for the most Test runs for England. He comes to at number four and likes to take his time while batting. He can switch the strike rate when he feels comfortable and if he crosses 50-run marl, then he takes no time to reach the three-figure mark. On Multan Pitch where the ball does not swing much, Naseem Shah's pace and bounce may come in handy against Joe Root.
2. Babar Azam Vs Gus Atkinson
Gus Atkinson has got a dream start to his Test career with just a handful of matches played so far. It will be his first Test match outside England and he will try to use his sheer pace against Pakistan stalwart Babar Azam who is going through a lean phase of his career. He is a stylish batter and needs some time to work on his batting. Multan's pitch might come out as a paradise for him and he can score many runs against English bowlers as well. But the battle between the Atkinson and Azam will be worth looking out for.
3. Harry Brook Vs Shaheen Shah Afridi
Harry Brook made a ton of runs when he came to Pakistan two years back and a similar kind of batting is expected from him this time as well. He likes pace bowling and comes to bat in the middle-order. He might try to go after Shaheen Shah Afridi who is the best bowler in the Pakistan outfit. The left-arm seamer has a variety of deliveries which can be used against Brook in Multan. The battle between the two will be a good one.
