• England Captain Ben Stokes will lead the second test against Pakistan.
• Stokes missed England’s recent home series against Sri Lanka and the opening Test against Pakistan.
• Pakistan has included three frontline spinners for this Test, including Noman Ali, Zahid Mahmood, and Sajid Khan.

MULTAN: England captain Ben Stokes is set to lead his team in the second Test against Pakistan in Multan on Tuesday after overcoming a hamstring injury. Stokes, who sustained the injury two months prior, missed England’s recent home series against Sri Lanka and the opening Test against Pakistan, which England won convincingly.

The England lineup also welcomes back Durham seamer Matthew Potts for his first appearance since the August Test against Sri Lanka at Lord’s. Seamers Gus Atkinson and Chris Woakes will be rested for this match.

“Look, it’s obviously got to be sensible,” said talismanic all-rounder Stokes on Monday after being declared fit, having been bowling in the nets since before the first Test. “I’m obviously playing as a third seamer. I’m available to bowl and obviously when I sense the time is right for me to maybe come on and make an impact there won’t be any doubts in my mind that I can come on and bowl.”

Asked if he could have played as a batsman only, the 33-year-old skipper added, “Those were the sort of thoughts that went through my head at home before we came out. I’d written a few teams down with me not bowling, and it just didn’t work.”

England secured a victory in the first Test by an innings and 47 runs, driven by notable performances from Harry Brook, who scored a remarkable 317, and Joe Root with 262. In a rare occurrence, the second Test will take place on the same pitch used in the first match.

Pakistan, who have gone 11 home Tests without a win, are eager to level the series and have included three frontline spinners for this Test. The squad features left-arm spinner Noman Ali, leg-break bowler Zahid Mahmood, and off-spinner Sajid Khan.

Pakistan has also made four changes, including a debut for batsman Kamran Ghulam, a standout in domestic cricket with a record 1,249 runs in the 2020-21 season.

Batsman Babar Azam and pacers Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah, along with spinner Abrar Ahmed, will not be part of this match due to injury concerns.