England wins toss and elects to bat against Pakistan in 3rd test
England wins toss and elects to bat against Pakistan in 3rd test
England’s coach Brendon McCullum, right, chats with a groundsman as he examines pitch preparing for the third test match between Pakistan and England, in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)
Pakistan test team’s skipper Shan Masood attends a practice session, in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)
England’s Ben Stokes bats during a practice session, in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)
England’s coach Brendon McCullum, right, chats with a groundsman as he examines pitch preparing for the third test match between Pakistan and England, in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)
England’s coach Brendon McCullum, right, chats with a groundsman as he examines pitch preparing for the third test match between Pakistan and England, in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)
Pakistan test team’s skipper Shan Masood attends a practice session, in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)
Pakistan test team’s skipper Shan Masood attends a practice session, in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)
England’s Ben Stokes bats during a practice session, in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)
England’s Ben Stokes bats during a practice session, in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)
RAWALPINDI, Pakistan (AP) — England won the toss Thursday and elected to bat against Pakistan in the third and final test as both teams packed their lineups with spinners for the series decider.
The slow bowlers were expected to dominate after ground staff used giant-sized industrial fans and even outdoor heaters to prepare a dry wicket in hopes to neutralize England’s aggressive batting.
The expected slow pitch has encouraged England to include Rehan Ahmed as third specialist spinner along with left-arm spinner Jack Leach and off-spinner Shoaib Bashir.
“At the moment it looks a very good wicket,” captain Ben Stokes said after England won its first toss in the last eight test matches. “It’s another challenge we’ve been presented with, but we have to wait and see (how the wicket plays).”
Ahmed, who hasn’t played an international match since February, is one of the two changes England made from the side which lost the second test by 152 runs on a recycled wicket in Multan as Pakistan won its first home test since 2021 and leveled the series 1-1.
Ahmed replaced fast bowler fast bowler Matthew Potts while pace bowler Brydon Carse was rested and Gus Atkinson returns after featuring in England’s memorable innings and 47-run win in the first test.
Pakistan retained the same playing XI which earned captain Shan Masood his first win after losing six in a row since his elevation as red-ball skipper. Off-spinner Sajid Khan and left-arm spinner Noman Ali claimed all 20 wickets to nullify England batters and Pakistan also retained leg-spinner Zahid Mahmood, who bowled only six overs in the second test.
“We’ve always talked about consistency and we like to back players,” Masood said.
Masood, who had hoped for a spinner-friendly wicket for the series decider, wasn’t sure how the wicket will behave.
“We like to believe we have to play good cricket,” he said. “The most important thing is to see the situation and respond to the situation ... preparations are a bit different (and) until both teams bat we’ll keep our opinions to ourselves.”
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Lineups:
Pakistan: Saim Ayub, Abdullah Shafique, Shan Masood (captain), Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Salman Ali Agha, Mohammad Rizwan, Aamer Jamal, Noman Ali, Sajid Khan, Zahid Mahmood.
England: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (captain), Jamie Smith, Gus Atkinson, Rehan Ahmed, Jack Leach, Shoaib Bashir.
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AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket