Bad News For England! Star Pacer Ruled Out Of Test Series Against Pakistan

The England men’s cricket team is all set to travel to Pakistan next month to take part in a three-match Test series that is scheduled to start on October 7 in Multan. Star all-rounder Ben Stokes, who missed the home series against Sri Lanka, was named as England’s captain. Ahead of the team’s departure to Pakistan for the three-match series, Poms suffered a big setback on Thursday (September 26) when it was confirmed that star pacer Josh Hull is ruled out of the series.

The 20-year-old left-arm pacer from Leicestershire made his Test debut for England against Sri Lanka at The Oval on September 6, 2024, and managed to take three wickets for 53 runs in the first innings. The 6 feet, 7 inches tall pacer will miss the Pakistan tour due to a quad injury.

“Get well soon, Josh. Josh Hull has been ruled out of our Test tour of Pakistan due to a quad injury. #PAKvENG | #EnglandCricket,”ECB tweeted.

According to an ESPNCricinfo report, Hull picked up a niggle during his maiden Test against Sri Lanka, after which he was pulled out of the white-ball series against Australia. He was expected to get fit, but with the issue persisting, the ECB decided on Thursday to stand Hull down from the three-Test series.

England hasn’t announced any replacement for Hull and will travel to Pakistan with a 16-man squad on October 1.

In the squad announced by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) on September 10, Durham seamer Brydon Carse and Essex batter Jordan Cox were the only uncapped players picked for the overseas tour. Somerset spinner Jack Leach, who suffered an injury during the India-England series earlier this year, was back along with opener Zak Crawley, who missed the Sri Lanka series due to a fracture in his right little finger.

Pakistan’s squad for England series

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced the squad for the first Test on Tuesday (September 24) and included all-rounder Aamer Jamal in the squad. Jamal, who impressed with his all-round show during the three-match series against Australia, missed the two-match Test series against Bangladesh last month due to injury.

In addition to him, pacers Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naeem Shah managed to retain their place in the side after being dropped from playing XI for the second Test against Bangladesh in Rawalpindi.