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Pakistan Test captain Babar Azam said he has recovered well after a couple of practice sessions ahead of the second Test against England at Lord's and is "90 per cent fit" heading into the match and the remainder of the series.
Azam is set to return to the playing XI for the second Test against England at Lord's. The second Test between England and Pakistan is scheduled to begin at Lord's on August 27. Babar had initially injured his finger during Pakistan's series against the West Indies in the Caribbean last month and aggravated the issue when he was struck on the same finger during the team's practice game at Beckenham. "I had a couple of practice sessions. I'm 90% fit for tomorrow and the rest of the series," Babar Azam said as per Cricinfo. Azam said leading Pakistan at the iconic Lord's stadium is an honour and vowed to give his best both as captain and batter. He stressed that Pakistan's strong record at the ground gives them confidence, while emphasising the team is focused on moving past the first Test and starting afresh. "When you lead the Pakistan side on this ground, it's an honour. I do my best on the field as captain, and when I'm batting, I just play my game. Our stats here are good, and we'd like to continue that. We will forget about the first Test and are looking forward to this one," he added. Azam stressed the need for complete team performances, with batters and bowlers building partnerships and established batters converting their starts. He also called on Pakistan to avoid losing wickets in clusters and urged the senior players to take greater responsibility. "You need to produce complete team performances. You have to bowl and bat in partnerships. And you have to take it deep as a batter if you're set. If you're set, it's a little easier. For a new batter, it's a little bit difficult to build partnerships. We need to [stamp out] the back-to-back wickets we lose. The senior batters need to be more focused and make up for it," he concluded. His return would provide a major boost to Pakistan's batting, which struggled badly in the opening Test at Headingley. England bowled Pakistan out twice in less than 86 overs as the visitors suffered a heavy defeat. Azam was Pakistan's leading run-scorer in the preceding series against the West Indies, scoring 193 runs at an average of 96.50, including two half-centuries. The Pakistan skipper boasts a strong record in England, averaging 65.75 across six innings, with three half-centuries to his name. Against England overall, he averages 53.83 in 14 innings and has registered a fifty or a century in seven of those outings. (ANI)
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