Preparations underway for Pakistan against England with first-class fixture

In a bid to step up their preparations for the three World Test Championship fixtures against the hosts, England, the Pakistan men’s national cricket team will play a four-day first-class intra-squad match at Incora County Ground, Derby.

The match, which begins today, will be played between PCB Green, with Azhar Ali in lead, and Sarfaraz Ahmed’s PCB White.

14-player lineups:

PCB Green:

Azhar Ali (C), Abid Ali, Asad Shafiq, Babar Azam, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shan Masood, Wahab Riaz and Yasir Shah

PCB White:

Sarfaraz Ahmed (C), Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Fawad Alam, Haider Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Imam-ul-Haq, Imran Khan, Kashif Bhatti, Khushdil Shah, Musa Khan, Sohail Khan and Usman Khan Shinwari

This fixture is Pakistan’s last match practice before the much-anticipated Test series kicks off on 5 August at Old Trafford Manchester.

The first of the two four-dayers, which concluded on Monday, turned out to be an absorbing contest with both batsmen and bowlers fighting tooth and nail to stake their claims in the final XI of the first Test.

After getting rolled out for a paltry 181 in the reply of Team White’s first innings 249 all-out, Team Green staged a jaw-dropping comeback – at the back of Azhar’s 120 retired out, Fakhar Zaman’s 99 and Asad Shafiq’s 67 retired out – to chase 354 for the loss of four wickets in the final session.

As many as six half-centuries and two centuries were scored, while 17-year-old Naseem Shah and Sohail Khan returned five-wicket hauls for their teams. Mohammad Abbas, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Yasir Shah were the other bowlers to put up notable performances.

In such a backdrop, the upcoming fixture promises to keep the fans checking the scorecard on the PCB website and scrolling through the PCB social media handles for the regular updates.

Match Schedule 

Aug 05, Wed – Aug 09, Sun

England vs Pakistan, 1st Test, Emirates Old Trafford, Manchester

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Aug 13, Thu – Aug 17, Mon

England vs Pakistan, 2nd Test, The Rose Bowl, Southampton

Aug 21, Fri – Aug 25, Tue

England vs Pakistan, 3rd Test, The Rose Bowl, Southampton

Aug 28, Fri

England vs Pakistan, 1st T20I, Emirates Old Trafford, Manchester

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Aug 30, Sun

England vs Pakistan, 2nd T20I, Emirates Old Trafford, Manchester

Sep 01, Tue

England vs Pakistan, 3rd T20I, Emirates Old Trafford, Manchester

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