Babar gets precautionary rest ahead of England Tests

Pakistan Test captain Babar Azam suffered a blow to hand while featuring in a warm-up fixture for Pakistan against Professional County Club Select XI.

A rising delivery from England under-19 star Manny Lumsden struck his bottom hand when he was batting on five in the contest. Babar was seen in pain after the incident, and did not bat thereafter.

"Following an assessment by the team doctor and taking precautionary measures, Babar has been advised to take rest from the remainder of the practice match," a media release from PCB stated. "Babar will participate in Pakistan team's practice session on Monday, August 17, at Headingley Cricket Ground."

Besides being a lynchpin of the Pakistan batting, Babar has also recently been re-appointed as the skipper of the Test side.

Under his leadership, Pakistan tied their most recent Test outing in West Indies 1-1, breaking a trend of eight consecutive overseas losses with an eight-wicket win in the second Test.

Pakistan begin their three-game series against England from 19 August. The series will be a part of the ICC World Test Championship 2025-27, where England are at the seventh place with a point percentage of 24.36, whereas Pakistan are eighth with a point percentage of 22.22.

While Pakistan will hope Babar is fully fit to perform against England, they already have some positive news in the form of Shan Masood returning back from injury ahead of the series.

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