Mark Wood returns for England’s second Pakistan Test

• Liam Livingstone will be replaced by Mark Wood for the second Test in Multan.
• Mark Wood hasn’t played a Test since March due to an elbow injury.
• England hope to secure their first Test series victory against Pakistan.

Liam Livingstone, who is injured, will be replaced by pace bowler Mark Wood for the second Test against Pakistan, which begins on Friday.

Wood, 32, will replace Livingstone as the only change in the squad that won the first Test. As a result, Multan is not accommodated by normal wicketkeeper Ben Foakes, who missed the first Test due to sickness, and his replacement Ollie Pope keeps the gloves.

England hopes to secure their first Test series victory against Pakistan in an away series in 22 years by winning the second test in Multan.

Due to an elbow injury that prevented him from participating in the home summer, Wood hasn’t participated in a Test match since March.

England captain Ben Stokes as saying, “Having someone in your side who can bowl at 150 km/h is a major asset for any team around the world, especially as Pakistan is a very hard place to come and win.”

Besides facing concerns over injuries to some players, the England skipper is also a bit apprehensive about the haze and fog whirling around Multan, which could encourage some more imaginative tactics in the game which gets underway on Friday.

During the pre-game news conference, he stated, “In this Test, if it does turn out the way that it potentially could, with the late start and early conclusion, we could wind up having only 300-350 overs in the Test match.”

“We probably need to be a little bit braver in what we do. We shall see. Having someone of his calibre and what he brings will be massive for us. Our ability to take 20 wickets will increase as a result “Stokes threw in.

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