Will Zahid Mehmood be replaced by Muhammad Ali?

RAWALPINDI: Media reports revealed on Wednesday that Pakistan is considering a change to the playing XI for the third test against England, which is set to kick off on October 24. Zahid Mehmood may be replaced by Muhammad Ali.

Pakistani leg spinner Zahid Mehmood, who failed to take a single wicket in the second test match against England, is reportedly being replaced for the third test.

In his stead, fast bowler Muhammad Ali may be replacing him according to media reports. The 21-year-old has only played in four test matches, two against Bangladesh and England each. In his first match against England at the end of 2022, he was able to take four wickets, but wouldn’t be able to take another in the series. He would only take two wickets against Bangladesh in the series earlier in August.

England announces squad for third test against Pakistan

Pakistan’s Mir Hamza, another fast bowler who has a little more experience than Ali in tests, is not available for the third match, due to fitness problems. The left arm pacer was reportedly injured during a practice session. Thus, he was unable to bowl, and was instead seen pacing around the ground and doing glute exercises, according to CrickBuzz.

Specifically, he is out with inflammation in the lower back.

Pakistan are yet to announce their playing XI.

Their 16-player squad is as follows: Pakistan: Shan Masood (c), Saud Shakeel (vc), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Haseebullah (wk), Kamran Ghulam, Mehran Mumtaz, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Huraira, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Noman Ali, Saim Ayub, Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha and Zahid Mehmood.

England’s playing XI: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (C), Jamie Smith, Gus Atkinson, Rehan Ahmed, Jack Leach, and Shoaib Bashir

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