MULTAN, Pakistan, Oct 5, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - Pakistan play England in a three-
Test series starting Monday in Multan with the visitors favourites to inflict 
more damage on a team mired in a painful losing streak.

England's 3-0 whitewash on their last trip to Pakistan in 2022 was the first 
clean sweep by any visiting team to the country, and plunged the hosts into a 
slump that has left them winless in their last 10 home Tests.

The visitors will be buoyed by memories of that famous win, but begin the 
series without talismanic leader Ben Stokes, who will miss the first Test due 
to a hamstring injury.

While England sit in third place in the ICC Test rankings, five spots above 
Pakistan, they travel to South Asia with an inexperienced pace attack 
following the retirement of James Anderson and Stuart Broad.

Pakistan, meanwhile, are known for their unpredictability and will be 
desperate to wipe away the humiliation of a shock 2-0 defeat at the hands of 
low-ranked Bangladesh last month.

Captain Shan Masood, whose tenure has been marked by a run of five 
consecutive defeats, said his players were motivated to prove themselves.

"We took steps in the right direction in Australia despite losing, but we 
could not take them forward in the Bangladesh series," Masood said this week.

"We are eager to stage a comeback in this important series."

- Test of Azam -

Pakistan cricket is flailing in all formats, with a revolving door of bosses 
and allegations of nepotism crushing the development of the nation's most 
popular sport.

Superstar batsman Babar Azam relinquished the white-ball captaincy this week, 
saying he wanted to focus on his batting after a run-drought of 16 Test 
innings without a half-century.

The three Tests in Multan and Rawalpindi scheduled to wrap up on October 28 
will be the first trial of the 29-year-old's renewed commitment to his craft.

"We all know how good a player he is," said Masood. "The good thing is that 
he is not out of form, and we can hope he is just one innings away from 
producing his best."

While all eyes are on Azam to score big, Pakistan will hope pace spearheads 
Shaheen Shah Afridi -- who missed the 2022 Test with a knee injury -- and 
Naseem Shah can crack England's robust batting order.

"We have told our fast bowlers that they are very important in taking 20 
wickets," said Masood.

- Steadfast without Stokes -

Stokes will miss the first Test as he struggles to recover from a hamstring 
injury inflicted while playing for Northern Superchargers in The Hundred on 
August 11.

There are doubts over his return for the second match starting October 15, 
but England's record has remained strong in his absence.

Top-order batter Ollie Pope led them to a 3-0 whitewash of the West Indies 
and a 2-1 win over Sri Lanka.

Two years ago, it was England's batting that set the tone for the 3-0 victory 
on the very first day of the series, smashing 506-4 to set a new record for 
an opening day total in Tests.

Top batter Joe Root will also be eyeing the record books, needing just 71 
runs to best Alastair Cook's tally of 12,472, the most by any England batter.

Even without Stokes, England will have five pace bowlers led by fast-rising 
Gus Atkinson who has taken an impressive 34 wickets since his debut earlier 
this year. But the quintet will all be bowling for the first time in 
Pakistani conditions.

Experienced Jack Leach heads the spin attack, accompanied by Shoaib Bashir 
and Rehan Ahmed.

Harry Brook led the way with three hundreds in the 2022 series while Zak 
Crawley, Ben Duckett and Pope also feasted on slow and flat tracks.

"I know that Shan Masood has been asking for quicker, more lively wickets for 
their fast bowlers. Obviously last time we were there they were slow, dry and 
spun a bit," Stokes said before arrival.

"So, we've got to go there with an open mind about what we're going to get."