PAK vs ENG: For the second Test against England, which begins on Friday in Multan, the young Pakistani bowler Naseem Shah is a serious question (December 9). Naseem bowled in both innings of the Rawalpindi Test despite having a minor shoulder ache, picking up five wickets. While bowling, he was seen cradling his sore shoulder. He also skipped the entire training session on Thursday.
The likelihood of Pakistan tying the series is severely damaged by this. In the opening Test match in Rawalpindi, the Asian heavyweights were defeated by 74 runs as England once again demonstrated their aggressive style of red-ball cricket. Both teams scored 500 or more runs in their respective first innings, but the Pakistani team fell short of its 343-run target by just 268 runs.
With 38 wickets from 14 games, 19-year-old Naseem has been a consistent member of Pakistan’s Test squad. As the sole specialist pace option in addition to Muhammad Ali, who made his Test debut in the previous match, Naseem’s absence may improve Mohammad Wasim’s prospects for a Test debut.
In the meantime, Pakistan’s speedster Haris Rauf suffered a quad injury during the opening innings of the most recent game. In Rawalpindi, Rauf made his Test debut. He bowled 13 overs in the first innings, but he did not come back to bowl in the second, and he was later disqualified from the entire series. Pakistan’s pace unit appears to be lacking going into the Multan Test with star pacer Shaheen Afridi already out of the series due to a knee injury.
However, Multan’s pitch is anticipated to be spin-friendly, which might work in the hosts’ favour. The Multan pitch is expected to have significant turn, according to Pakistani captain Babar Azam, who said they will rely on spinners to get wickets. In their most recent game, Pakistan gave 34-year-old leg-spinner Zahid Mahmood his Test debut. They also have great possibilities for spin in the ranks of Mohammad Nawaz, Nauman Ali, and Abrar Ahmed.
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