Pakistan have been handed a crushing blow ahead of the opening Test against England at Headingley, with captain Babar Azam being ruled out of the match because of a lingering injury to his right hand. Babar picked up the injury during Pakistan’s warm-up game in Beckenham, which forced him to retire hurt. He later remained off the field.
Notably, Babar was struck on the same hand during Pakistan’s second Test against the West Indies earlier this month. In Babar’s absence, Salman Agha will take over the captaincy for the first Test. He also led the team during the warm-up match after Babar was forced to leave the field.
"Pakistan captain Babar Azam is unavailable for the first Test match. So Salman Agha will be the captain for the first Test,” Pakistan coach Sarfaraz Ahmed said at the press conference.
This is surely a big setback for Pakistan, with Babar remaining in tremendous form in the preceding Test series against West Indies. Meanwhile, the first against England begins on Wednesday in Leeds.