England v Pakistan: Ben Stokes injury hands debut to Sam Curran
- Published
Sam Curran took 10 wickets in the match in his last first-class match, against Yorkshire in May
England all-rounder Ben Stokes has been ruled out of the second Test against Pakistan, with 19-year-old left-arm seamer Sam Curran handed a debut.
Stokes, 26, misses the match at Headingley with a hamstring problem.
Curran is the son of ex-Zimbabwe all-rounder Kevin and brother of Tom, who made his Test debut during last winter's Ashes series in Australia.
England lost the first Test at Lord's and must win in Leeds to avoid a third consecutive series defeat.
The loss of Stokes means a reshuffle for England, who are looking to end a run of eight Tests without a win.
Jos Buttler, who returned for the first Test, moves up to number six. Chris Woakes, recalled at Headingley in place of Mark Wood, bats at seven, with Curran at eight and Dom Bess nine.
"I'm not sure how long he will be out," England captain Joe Root told BBC Test Match Special. "The medical staff will reassess in the next couple of days.
"For him to miss out is not great. I'm disappointed for him as a mate as much as anything else.
"Hopefully it's not too serious and I'm sure he'll be playing for England in the near future."
In 38 first-class matches, Curran has taken 104 wickets at 30.44 apiece and averages 27 with the bat.
At 19 years and 363 days, he becomes the seventh teenager to play Test cricket for England and second in two years after Haseeb Hameed featured against India in 2016.
He is also England's sixth debutant in eight Tests, following Craig Overton, Tom Curran, Mason Crane, Jack Leach and Bess.
"He's a very talented young player and has performed well for couple of season in county cricket," said Root. "As a left-armer, he gives us a good point of difference in our attack."
- Published25 May 2018
