England vs Pakistan: Ben Stokes to donate match fees to flood relief appeal

Karachi, November 28: England captain Ben Stokes says he will donate his match fees to the Pakistan Floods Appeal during his side's Test tour of the country this week.

The tourists will kick off their three-match series in Rawalpindi on Thursday, in what is their first visit for red-ball cricket since 2005.

Stokes, who helped fire England to T20 World Cup glory against Pakistan in Australia earlier this month, is taking charge of his first overseas trip since succeeding Joe Root as captain.

But amid fierce weather that rocked the country earlier this year, the captain says he will be donating his earnings from the tour to relief causes throughout his stay.

"The floods that devastated Pakistan earlier this year [were] very sad to see," he wrote in a statement on social media.

"The game has given me a lot in my life and I feel it's only right to give something back that goes far beyond cricket," said Stokes.

I’m donating my match fees from this Test series to the Pakistan Flood appeal pic.twitter.com/BgvY0VQ2GG

— Ben Stokes (@benstokes38) November 28, 2022

Meanwhile, head coach Brendon McCullum says his side will be looking to maintain an offensive approach to their game after a successful year so far.

England won six of their seven Tests on home soil earlier this year and the New Zealander says there will be no change for their journey abroad.

"We'll be pushing for results, but we want to play entertaining cricket," he told BBC Sport. "There may be a time where you risk losing to win and if Pakistan are good enough to beat us, that's cool too."

"Our goal is to make Test cricket a sport which people want to turn on and be prepared to pay their money for, and they walk away entertained.

"With some of the conditions we'll be faced with, it might push us into that more aggressive style, which we like anyway."

Wood to miss first Test

The first Test starts in Rawalpindi on Thursday and England will be without fast bowler Mark Wood, who is nursing a hip injury that ruled him out of the Twenty20 World Cup semifinal and final in Australia this month.

“Mark's not going to make the first Test squad unfortunately because of his injury,” head coach Brendon McCullum said.

“We expect him to be ready for the second test and otherwise we've got a full squad to pick from,” he added.