Babar Azam will lead his side at Lord’s despite still being troubled by the finger injury that ruled him out of the heavy first Test loss
Pakistan captain Babar Azam has declared himself “90 per cent fit” as he returns to lead his country in the second Test against England.
Babar was ruled out of last week’s series opener at Headingley due to a finger injury, with the tourists crushed by an innings and 103 runs in his absence.
The 31-year-old was hit on the glove by England Under-19 prospect Manny Lumsden during a warm-up match in Beckenham but has returned to batting in the nets over the last 48 hours and is set to bolster a lineup that was knocked over for 171 and 135 in Leeds.
“I’ve had a couple of practice sessions again and I’m 90 per cent fit for the match tomorrow,” he said at his pre-match press conference.
“Always when you lead the Pakistan team, especially at this ground, it is an honour for me and I will do my best. If it is on the field as captain or when I’m batting, I will just play my game.
“I think we were not playing up to our mark (in the first Test) but credit to England for the way they are playing. After that we sat to discuss our mistakes and now we are looking forward to the match, believing in ourselves and we will try to play good cricket.”
There could also be a change to the bowling group, with 20-year-old Ubaid Shah favoured to bring some extra speed to the attack. Khurram Shahzad and Mohammad Ali are likely to be vying for one spot with Mohammad Abbas the most reliable seamer and spinner Ali Usman fresh from a five-wicket haul.
England will be hoping to seal the three-match series with a victory to end a mediocre run in Test cricket.
While they won a one-off Test against Zimbabwe last year England have not won a series since doing so in New Zealand in December 2024, drawing at home to India, losing 4-1 in Australia and then losing to the Kiwis in what turned out to be the last gasp of the ‘Bazball’ era under Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum.
