Babar ruled out of first England Test, Agha to lead

Pakistan captain Babar Azam has been ruled out of the first Test against England at Headingley with a right hand injury. Salman Agha will captain the side in his absence.

"Pakistan captain Babar Azam is unavailable for the first Test match," head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed confirmed on the eve of the match. "Salman Agha will be the captain for the first Test."

Babar sustained the injury to his right hand during the three-day warm-up against Professional County Club Select XI in Beckenham. He had previously been managing an impact injury on the same hand from the second Test against the West Indies.

Pacer Mohammad Abbas had earlier indicated a call on Babar’s availability would be made on the morning of the Test, but the head coach confirmed his unavailability a day earlier.

Babar did bat in training on Monday (August 17) after the PCB medical team advised him to rest for the remainder of the practice game. Abbas had said: "He did a few throwdowns and some batting practice today. But we'll have to follow medical advice."

Agha has previously led Pakistan in T20Is and ODIs, but this will be his first Test as captain.