Stokes and Potts return for second Test in Pakistan

Ben Stokes has not played a Test for England since July

England captain Ben Stokes is fit to play in the second Test against Pakistan in Multan, coming in alongside pace bowler Matthew Potts.

All-rounder Stokes and Potts replace Chris Woakes and Gus Atkinson in two changes to the side that won a record-breaking first Test.

It has been confirmed the second Test, beginning on Tuesday, will be played on the same pitch used for the first.

Pakistan have made sweeping changes to their squad, dropping former captain Babar Azam and pace bowlers Naseem Shah and Shaheen Shah Afridi.

The hosts' selection committee, including captain Shan Masood, coach Jason Gillespie, former skipper Azhar Ali and ex-international umpire Aleem Dar were engaged in a long and public meeting on the square during Monday’s training session.

At the same time, Stokes was bowling in the nets in preparation for his first Test since July.

The 33-year-old injured his hamstring in August and has missed four Tests, including England’s innings-and-47-run win here last week.

“I’ve put myself through quite a lot of high-intensity stuff: sprints, batting for long periods of time, then bowling in the first Test and these two days,” Stokes told BBC Sport.

“I needed to make sure I ticked every box, to make sure I was confident within myself and confident over the rest of my body. I’ve done everything I need and we’re good to go.”

Pakistan have opted for the used pitch in order to give more assistance to the bowlers after the first Test was mainly dominated by batters.

The hosts posted 556, only for England to respond with 823-7 declared, their highest total since 1938. It condemned Pakistan to an unwanted record as the side with the highest total to go on and lose a Test by an innings.

On the highly unusual decision for the second Test to be played on the same pitch as the first, Stokes admitted his team would also lean on home advantage if they were behind in a Test series.

“We would probably be going to our groundsmen saying ‘can we have a bit more of this, bit more of that’,” he said.

With the used pitch likely meaning a greater role for the spinners, it could ease the burden on Stokes’ fast-medium bowling.

The captain said he will have to be “sensible” with his workload, but also confirmed he would not have returned had he not been able to bowl at all.

“Those were the sort of thoughts that went through my head at home before we came out,” he said. “I’d written a few teams down with me not bowling and it just didn’t work.

“I’m obviously playing as a third seamer. Playing on a used wicket sort of made the decision a little bit easier.

“I’m available to bowl and obviously when I sense the time is right for me to maybe come on and make an impact there won’t be any doubts in my mind that I can bowl.”

Stokes resumes the captaincy from Ollie Pope, who won three and lost one of his matches in charge.

Potts, 25, wins his ninth Test cap as England freshen up their pace bowlers after the gruelling exploits of the first Test. It means Atkinson misses out for the first time since making his debut in July.

Victory would give England a second consecutive series win in Pakistan following their 3-0 triumph in 2022.