Pakistan captain Babar Azam’s participation in the first Test against England, due to start at Headingley on August 19, has been thrown into fresh doubt after he was struck on the right hand during a tour match against a Professional County Club Select XI in Beckenham and retired hurt having scored just five runs. The setback comes as Babar was already managing an impact injury to the same hand sustained during the second Test of Pakistan’s series against West Indies, raising questions over whether the tourists’ most experienced batter will be fit to lead the side into a three-match series that opens in Leeds this week.
A recurring problem for the captain
Babar’s troubles with his right hand have now spanned two series in quick succession. He first picked up the impact injury while batting against West Indies, an issue that was managed through the remainder of that tour without forcing him out of the side. The blow he took in Beckenham reopened concerns about the same area, and Pakistan’s medical staff moved quickly to withdraw him from the tour match as a precaution rather than risk further damage days before the opening Test. The Pakistan Cricket Board has publicly described the decision to rest him as precautionary, saying he is expected to resume training, though no final call on his availability for Headingley has been announced.
Shan Masood’s parallel recovery adds to selection pressure
Babar is not the only senior batter Pakistan have been managing through injury in the buildup to England. Opener Shan Masood, who was ruled out of the second Test against West Indies, has also been working his way back to fitness, undergoing batting practice at Kent County Cricket Club in Beckenham under close supervision from the team’s medical staff. Masood now appears on track to be available for the first Test, which offers Pakistan some reassurance at the top of the order even as uncertainty persists over their captain’s fitness in the middle order.
The squad and the stakes at Headingley
Pakistan have named a 17-member squad for the series that includes Babar Azam as captain, Mohammad Rizwan, Shan Masood, Saud Shakeel, Imam-ul-Haq, Abdullah Shafique, Salman Ali Agha, Sajid Khan, Aamir Jamal, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Abbas and Mohammad Ali among others. The first Test runs from August 19 to 23 at Headingley, followed by the second Test at Lord’s from August 27 to 31 and the third at Edgbaston from September 9 to 13. A ground where Pakistan have had mixed fortunes historically, Headingley’s pitch and Leeds’ notoriously changeable weather add further variables to a Pakistan batting line-up already unsettled by injury concerns to two of its most senior players.
Selectors weigh caution against continuity
Within the Pakistan camp, team management has stressed that no decision on Babar’s involvement will be rushed, with a late fitness test expected closer to the toss to determine whether he takes the field. That approach reflects a broader tension in Pakistan’s selection thinking: risking their captain in a five-day format against a fast, disciplined England attack carries obvious danger if the hand injury has not fully settled, but leaving out their most accomplished batter for the opening Test of an away series would also weaken a side already adjusting to Masood’s recent absence. Some within Pakistan’s set-up have floated the idea of naming Babar in the XI but monitoring him closely through the match, a compromise that underlines how central he remains to the team’s batting plans regardless of the physical risk.
England wait to see who they face
For England, the uncertainty over Babar’s fitness adds an unpredictable element to their own preparations, since his batting record against the moving Dukes ball in English conditions has long made him one of the most closely scrutinised visiting players in a home Test summer. England’s bowling attack, sharpened by a home series, would view his continued injury troubles as an opening, while a fit and available Babar would represent exactly the kind of senior wicket they will be targeting from the first morning at Headingley. Pakistan’s medical staff and team management now have only days to determine which version of that scenario plays out when the two sides take the field this week.