MULTAN: England captain Ben Stokes continues to recover from a hamstring injury, leaving him a doubt for the first Test against Pakistan as the match begins in Multan on Monday (Oct 7). Stokes has been out since early August and even missed England’s 2-1 Test series win against Sri Lanka. The team was led by Ollie Pope to fame. However, the England Test captain was training with his team in Multan on Friday. He was seen batting at the net as well as bowling during the match. The all-rounder said last week that he was unlikely to start in the three-Test series. Opener Zak Crawley told BBC Sport that his captain appeared to be doing well and recovering from injury. “We don’t know yet. I think he’s got a few more tests to do, but he’s been doing some jogging and stuff,” the England team editorial added. However, if Stokes is fit enough to field and bat but not bowl, England will have to decide how to field their side against Pakistan. That being said, Stokes had to be rested against Sri Lanka, England then added five bowlers to their playing XI, they will have to drop one of their best batsmen if they decide to do the same on Monday. England can avoid missing out on important batting by handing over the wicket-keeping responsibility to Pope, while Jamie Smith keeps wicket for the team on a regular basis. They can then play with four bowlers, with Joe Root assisting them with right-arm bowling outside the break. Things would have been easier for England if they had opted to leave Stokes out altogether, with Pope remaining captain for one more match and Smith keeping wickets and batting at six, leaving the necessary space for five bowlers. Batting first, Crawley said Multan’s pitch had a “green tinge” so England may need three seamers and two spinners in their playing XI. As for Crawley himself, the batter is coming back from a broken finger that sidelined him for more than two months. He suffered an injury while trying to catch the ball while facing the West Indies. England won the series 3–0 at Edgbaston in July. “I feel brand new,” he said. “I’m looking forward to getting out there. I’ve definitely missed it so I can’t wait to get back out there with the boys.” We have great news for cricket fans that Pakistan’s first private sports channel Geo Super will be telecasting all three matches of the Pakistan vs England Test series live.
