PAK vs ENG 2nd Test: Ben Stokes Returns to Lead Side as England Make Two Changes to Playing 11

Skipper Ben Stokes returns to lead the side as England announced their playing 11 for the second Test against Pakistan, scheduled to start on Tuesday (October 15) at the Multan Cricket Ground in Multan.

Stokes had been out since the start of August with a hamstring injury, but was seen in the nets bowling at full pace ahead of the second Multan Test, and is now deemed fit to return to action.

Ben Stokes retuns as England announce playing 11 for 2nd Test vs Pakistan

Making way for Stokes will be Chris Woakes, who claimed two wickets in the first Test, which England won by an innings and 47 runs at the same venue in Multan last week.

Also getting a break from the absorbing contest in Multan, is pacer Gus Atkinson, who is being replaced by Matthew Potts. Atkinson claimed 4 wickets across two innings as England batted only once, scoring a record total of 823/7 declared.

The two heroes from the series opener Joe Root and Harry Brook will look to carry forward their form from the double and triple ton outings. Likewise, Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley also will hope to carry on their run-scoring.

Ollie Pope, who stood in for Stokes in the first Test, will look to get some runs under his belt after registering a duck, coming in as a make-shift opener to fill in for the injured Duckett. Jamie Smith will continue with his wicketkeeping responsibilities.

Brydon Carse, who made his Test debut last week, retains his place as the pace-bowling option alongside Stokes and Potts, while Shoaib Bashir and Jack Leach will continue as the specialist spin-bowling options for the visitors.

The tourists will be up against a much-changed home side, who have dropped four senior players from their squad in the form of Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi, Sarfaraz Ahmed and Naseem Shah. Abrar Ahmed also has been rested due to illness.

There are reports claiming Pakistan have opted to use the same wicket as the first Test for the second game in Multan. So, England have opted to slightly freshen up the pace department. Here is a look at the England Playing 11 for the second Multan Test: