Ben Stokes is not part of England's playing XI for the first Test against Pakistan in Multan, and the visitors are being captained by Ollie Pope in the series opener. Stokes led England to a historic 3-0 series victory on their last tour to Pakistan in December 2022.

Injured captain Ben Stokes confident England will not buckle in Multan heat - Stokes has lost his battle to be passed fit for Monday’s clash.

England captain Ben Stokes won’t play in the first test against Pakistan because he’s still recovering from a torn hamstring.

Pakistan play England in a three-Test series starting on Monday in Multan with the visitors favourites to inflict more damage on a team mired in a painful losing streak.

Amid Ben Stokes absence, Ollie Pope is likely to step up with leadership duties, which he honed against the Lankans recently. It will be a massive test for the visitors if they miss out their talismanic captain against Pakistan.

Ben Stokes was hoping to recover from his hamstring injury in time for the first Test in Pakistan but has been left out of the squad; Ollie Pope will deputise as England captain; watch the first Test from Monday live on Sky Sports Cricket at 5.

England have confirmed their playing XI for the first of the three Tests against Pakistan in Multan, beginning on October 7. Ben Stokes has been ruled out of the opening Test as the all-rounder continues his recovery from the hamstring injury, while Brydon Carse will make his debut. The tourists have also opted for two spinners in the line-up.

No new faces for Pakistan but Aamer Jamal, who was hugely impressive in his debut series in Australia last winter, returns from a back injury to join Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah in an eyecatching pace attack.