Key events
Team news
Both captains named their XIs in advance, which saves us engaging in futile speculation. Brydon Carse, who has jumped the cab rank in the last six weeks, will make his Test debut for England. No new faces for Pakistan but Aamer Jamal, who was hugely impressive in his debut series in Australia last winter, returns from a back injury to join Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah in an eyecatching pace attack.
Both teams have picked three seamers and two spinners, a balance they may regret if the pitch is as grassy as suggested. We’ll soon find out.
Pakistan Ayub, Shafique, Masood (c), Babar, Shakeel, Rizwan (wk), Ali Agha, Jamal, Shaheen, Naseem, Abrar.
England Crawley, Duckett, Pope (c), Root, Brook, Smith (wk), Woakes, Atkinson, Carse, Leach, Bashir.
Preamble
Morning folks. Enjoy the off season? Less than eight days after the end of the English cricket summer, the winter begins with the first Test against Pakistan in Multan. Ordinarily that would generate a certain ennui. But when a man is tired of Pakistan v England, he is tired of sport; for there is everyhing in Pakistan v England that sport can afford.
These series always give us something, from exhilarating cricket to pantomime controversy to surprise victories. Pakistan are in a bit of a mess at the moment, and were recently beaten 2-0 at home by Bangladesh, yet that often makes them more dangerous – especially now that Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah are back in the side. There are a few 2005-06 vibes about the build-up to this series. Pakistan low, England high; final score: Pakistan 2-0 England.
A more obvious reference point is England’s last tour here, the remarkable 3-0 win in 2022 that elevated Ben Stokes to the ranks of truly great captains. He’s unfit for this game, though he will be in the dressing-room as both the boss of the family and consigliere to Ollie Pope. In 2022 Stokes and England had to get blood out of a road to win. This time, by all accounts, the pitches could be much livelier. Rise and shine everyone!
