(LEEDS) Pakistan will make a late call on Babar Azam for the first Test against England starting at Headingley, with the star batter still recovering from a finger injury. Babar picked up an impact injury to his right hand during the second Test against West Indies and was struck again in Pakistan’s warm-up against the Professional County Club Select XI in Beckenham. He retired hurt and did not return, with the PCB describing it as a “precautionary measure”.
The team arrived in Leeds on Sunday and Babar had a brief hit in the nets on Monday. While he showed no obvious discomfort, his time in the middle was limited.
“Whether he plays or not will be a decision taken on match day,” pacer Mohammad Abbas said. “He did a few throwdowns and some batting practice today. But we’ll have to follow medical advice.”
If Babar is ruled out, Pakistan’s middle order gets a reshuffle. Saud Shakeel and debutant Awais Zafar are likely to both feature. Shakeel missed the West Indies series but scored a century in the warm-up and was already in contention. Babar’s absence would open a spot for both.
There was better news on Shan Masood. The former captain fractured a finger in the first Test in the West Indies and missed the second match. He skipped the Beckenham warm-up but batted for an extended period at Headingley.
“With Shan, too, we’re just going to rely on the medical advice,” Abbas said. “Shan practiced for the whole session and looked very good.”
Babar’s potential absence could also create a leadership gap. He took over the Test captaincy from Masood for the West Indies series. In the warm-up, T20I captain Salman Agha led the side, though he is yet to captain Pakistan in Tests. Pakistan begin their three-match series against England on Wednesday.
