Eng vs Pak 2nd Test, Day 1, Toss Update: Pakistan Opt To Bat After Skipper Azhar Ali Wins Toss; England Drop Jofra Archer

Pakistan skipper Azhar Ali has won the toss for second time in this series and elected to bat first.

Photo: Twitter

The England cricket team will look to wrap up the series when they lock horns with Pakistan cricket team in the second Test of the ongoing three-match Test series in Southampton.

On the other hand, Pakistan cricket team will eye a comeback in the series as the visitors will aim to take advantage of an England side devoid of national hero Ben Stokes, who has flown down to New Zealand to be with his family.

In the first Test, a brilliant match-winning century partnership from middle-order batsmen Chris Woakes (84*) and Jos Buttler (75) helped England chase down a 277-run target.

Pakistan bowlers had managed to get half of England's batsmen dismissed for just 117 runs in the first Test but failed to get the job done. Now, their World-class bowling attack will look to make a strong comeback to level the series 1-1

Weather Update: At the moment it's nice and dry in Southampton but rain is predicted on all five days, which is a worrying aspect for both the teams.

Toss Update: Pakistan skipper Azhar Ali has won the toss and elected to bat first. 

For Pakistan, Fawad Alam returns to his national squad after 11 long years and has replaced spinner Shadab Alam. England has made two big changes in their playing XI as Zak Crawley replaces Ben Stokes while Sam Curran takes place of star all-rounder Jofra Archer in the squad.

Teams:

England (Playing XI): Rory Burns, Dominic Sibley, Zak Crawley, Joe Root(c), Ollie Pope, Jos Buttler(w), Chris Woakes, Sam Curran, Dominic Bess, Stuart Broad, James Anderson Pakistan (Playing XI): Shan Masood, Abid Ali, Azhar Ali(c), Babar Azam, Asad Shafiq, Fawad Alam, Mohammad Rizwan(w), Yasir Shah, Mohammad Abbas, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah