Pakistan win toss and bat on recycled Multan surface

Pakistan won the toss and chose to bat first vs England

Pakistan won the toss and chose to bat first in the second Test at Multan, with Shan Masood happy to take first use of a recycled pitch that yielded 1599 runs in last week’s series opener.

Masood confirmed a much-changed team for the hosts, with three spinners in Sajid Khan, Zahid Mahmood and Noman Ali joining the lone seamer Aamer Jamal, the only survivor from the Pakistan attack that conceded 823 for 7 declared in their innings defeat in the opening Test.

He hoped to be able to exploit a pitch that has undergone a remarkable make-over in the four-day turnaround between Tests, including heavy watering and the use of industrial-sized fans to coax more life out of the surface.

“Given the condition of the pitch, we want to put a good score on the board and see how it plays over the next few days,” Masood said. “Playing a Test for Pakistan is the biggest opportunity for anyone as a cricketer. There is a rejuvenated energy in the camp, [even though] there are things that we cannot control.”

Pakistan’s one other notable change is the inclusion of Kamran Ghulam for his Test debut, in place of the out-of-form Babar Azam at No.4. “It’s heartwarming,” Masood said, with Ghulam a stand-out performer for Pakistan in domestic cricket in recent seasons. “He’s finally got his chance, I hope he has a memorable Test.”

For England, Ben Stokes returns as captain – a decision that was aided by the likely assistance that the pitch will offer the spinners, which takes the onus off his seam bowling in the wake of the hamstring tear that has kept him sidelined for two months.

He confirmed that England would have batted first given the chance, but backed his attack of three seamers and two spinners to keep the pressure on the hosts. Matthew Potts also comes into the XI, with Chris Woakes and Gus Atkinson the two quicks to be rested after their exertions in the first Test.

“It was an amazing victory last week, getting put in the field and bowling the way we did,” Stokes said. “Keeping our intensity and attitude set the tone for us, and allowed us to bat really big

“We feel we’ve got all bases covered, just wait and see how the pitch plays.”

Pakistan: 1 Saim Ayub, 2 Abdullah Shafique, 3 Shan Masood (capt), 4 Kamran Ghulam, 5 Saud Shakeel, 6 Mohammad Rizwan (wk), 7 Salman Agha, 8 Aamer Jamal, 9 Sajid Khan, 10 Noman Ali, 11 Zahid Mahmood

England: 1 Zak Crawley, 2 Ben Duckett, 3 Ollie Pope, 4 Joe Root, 5 Harry Brook, 6 Ben Stokes (capt), 7 Jamie Smith (wk), 8 Matthew Potts, 9 Brydon Carse, 10 Jack Leach, 11 Shoaib Bashir.

Andrew Miller is UK editor of ESPNcricinfo. @miller_cricket