LONDON: White-ball specialist Liam Livingstone has been given the chance to shine with the red ball for England’s Test tour to Pakistan as opener Alex Lees was dropped from the 15-man squad announced on Wednesday.
Livingstone has never played an international at Test level and has not even featured in first-class cricket for over a year, increasingly focusing his efforts on the shorter forms after becoming a mainstay of England’s limited-overs side.
The 29-year-old’s selection represents a huge gamble having sat out Lancashire’s entire championship season and managing just eight games in the two previous campaigns, averaging 11 in 2021 and 18.5 in 2020.
But he has quickly become a star of the international game in limited overs.
Livingstone smashed his country’s fastest ever international century in just 42 balls against Pakistan last summer and his style is likely to chime with the attacking instincts of captain Ben Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum.
Lees, who was left out of the pool of players given a central contract earlier in the week, has paid for averaging just 23.8 from 10 Test caps.
Keaton Jennings, whose two Test centuries were both made in the sub-continent, returns along with Ben Duckett, while Surrey all-rounder Will Jacks has earned his first call-up to the Test squad.
Veteran fast bowler Stuart Broad misses out with his partner expecting their first child toward the end of November, making room for Surrey’s Jamie Overton.
England’s trip is their first to play a Test series in Pakistan since 2005.
“It will be a historic tour and a compelling series against a good side,” said England’s managing director of cricket Rob Key.
“The selectors have picked a squad for the conditions we can expect in Pakistan. There is a strong blend of youth and experience and players who will adapt well to the types of pitches we are likely to get across the three-match series.”
All three Tests are packed into just 21 days between December 1 and 21 in Rawalpindi, Multan and Karachi.
Squad in full:
Ben Stokes (captain), James Anderson, Harry Brook, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ben Foakes, Will Jacks, Keaton Jennings, Jack Leach, Liam Livingstone, Jamie Overton, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson, Joe Root, Mark Wood
England bet on Liam Livingstone, drop Alex Lees for tour of Pakistan
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England bet on Liam Livingstone, drop Alex Lees for tour of Pakistan
- Despite not playing internationally at Test level, Livingstone is a star in limited overs
- England are scheduled to play three Tests in Pakistan within just 21 days in December
Pakistan spin out Australia in second T20I to take series
- Salman Agha’s 76 and Usman Khan’s 53 lift Pakistan to 198-5, their highest T20I total against Australia
- Pakistan’s spinners take all 10 wickets as Australia are bowled out for 108, sealing an unbeatable 2-0 series lead
LAHORE: Skipper Salman Agha hit his highest score in the shortest format before Pakistan’s spinners routed Australia by 90 runs in the second Twenty20 international in Lahore on Saturday.
Agha hit a 40-ball 76 and Usman Khan smashed a 36-ball 53 as Pakistan made 198-5, their highest-ever T20I total against Australia.
This was enough for Pakistan’s spin quintet who shared all ten wickets between them with Abrar Ahmed returning the best figures of 3-14 and Shadab Khan finishing with 3-26.
Australia were routed for 108 in 15.4 overs, giving Pakistan their biggest T20I victory over Australia eclipsing the 66-run win in Abu Dhabi in 2018.
“It has to be a perfect game,” said Agha. “We batted well and then were outstanding with the ball. Fielding was outstanding.”
The victory gives Pakistan an unbeatable 2-0 lead after they won the first match by 22 runs, also in Lahore, on Friday.
“We want to play in the same way, forget the 2-0 scoreline and come again with the same intensity and go to the World Cup with the same energy,” said Agha of the event starting in India and Sri Lanka from February 7.
This is Pakistan’s first T20I series win over Australia since 2018. The final match is on Sunday, also in Lahore.
Despite skipper Mitchell Marsh coming back after resting on Friday, the visiting batters had little answer to Pakistan’s spin assault.
Ahmed dismissed Marsh for 18, Josh Inglis for five and Matthew Short for 27.
Cameroon Green top scored with a 20-ball 35 before spinner Usman Tariq dismissed him on his way to figures of 2-16.
Marsh admitted Pakistan were better.
“Pakistan outplayed us,” said Marsh. “Hopefully, we can improve and come back tomorrow. They put us under great pressure in batting; it was probably a 160-170 wicket so they scored a big total.”
Earlier, Agha and Usman led Pakistan to a fighting total after they won the toss and batted.
Agha built the innings with Saim Ayub (11-ball 23) during a second wicket stand of 55 as Pakistan scored 72 runs in the power-paly.
Agha’s previous highest in all T20 cricket was 68 not out.
After Babar Azam failed with a five-ball two, Usman helped Agha add another quickfire 49 for the fourth wicket before Sean Abbott broke the stand.
Agha smashed four sixes and eight fours in his sixth Twenty20 half century.
Pakistan added a good 61 runs in the last five overs with Usman knocking two sixes and four fours in his second T20I half century while Shadab’s knock had two sixes and a four.
The Usman-Shadab fifth-wicket stand yielded 63 runs off just 39 balls.
Shadab finished with an unbeaten 20-ball 28.
Pacer Xavier Bartlett and spinner Matthew Kuhnemann were expensive, conceding 92 runs between them in their eight overs.
