Pakistan pacer Naseem Shah to miss third Test against England after failing to recover from a shoulder niggle

Pakistan fast bowler Naseem Shah has failed to recover from the shoulder niggle that kept him out of the second Test against England in Multan. As a result, he will miss the third and final Test in Karachi as well, which starts on December 17.

The 19-year-old was in visible discomfort during the opening Test in Rawalpindi, mainly while throwing the ball in the outfield. Despite that, he put up a spirited performance with the ball on a lifeless surface. He claimed five wickets in the Test, returning with figures of 24-0-140-3 in the first innings.

According to the PCB, Naseem will travel to the High Performance Center in Lahore to undergo further assessment.

The Pakistan team has not announced a replacement at this juncture. However, the youngster's injury has increased the strain on their fast-bowling options, given Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf are already out of the series. The hosts had considered a recall for Hasan Ali, but decided against it and opted to put their faith in the all-rounders.

Mohammad Ali, who made his Test debut in Rawalpindi, was the lone specialist seamer in Multan. Faheem Ashraf shared the new ball, while left-arm spinner Mohammad Nawaz and leg-spinner Abrar Ahmed were included in the playing eleven.

The third Test in Karachi could see Mohammad Wasim Jr. make his debut. He has only played seven first-class games, the last of which came in December of 2021.

Pakistan will aim for a consolation victory in third Test against England

Babar Azam. (Image Credits: Getty)

Pakistan captain Babar Azam finds himself under pressure heading into the third Test after a second successive series defeat at home under his leadership. The 28-year-old lamented the side's batting failures in both innings in Multan. He said, as quoted by Cricket Pakistan:

"Yes, we were not up to the mark in the first innings. We had a couple of soft dismissals. After that, we had a fightback in the bowling, and in the second innings, we fought well, but unfortunately, we did not finish it. We have a simple plan to carry on the momentum; we had good partnerships between Imam and Saud and then Saud and Nawaz.

"The tail also fought well, but we didn't finish well. We made mistakes in the Test match; we could have won, we didn't finish well against Australia, and now again, we should have finished well."

Should England win in Karachi, it will be the first time any team has won three Tests on the trot in Pakistan.