Babar Azam ruled out of first Test against England; Salman Agha to captain Pakistan

LEEDS: Pakistan have suffered a major blow ahead of the opening Test against England, with star batter and former captain Babar Azam ruled out of the first match due to his finger injury.

Babar had been awaiting clearance from the medical team after sustaining an injury to his right hand during the second Test against the West Indies. Despite making a brief return to the nets, the batter has not recovered sufficiently to feature in the series opener at Headingley.

In Babar’s absence, Salman Agha will take charge of the Pakistan Test side. The all-rounder has limited captaincy experience at first-class level, having led in just four matches in 2022 when several senior Pakistan players were away at the T20 World Cup in Australia.

Salman will now face the biggest leadership challenge of his career as Pakistan prepare to take on England in the first of a three-Test series.

The opening Test is scheduled to begin at Headingley on Wednesday, with Pakistan now forced to reshape their batting order following Babar’s absence.