England’s first Test match against Pakistan in the country since 2005 is to go ahead as planned this morning (December 1) despite a number of the touring party contracting a viral infection. The England and Wales Cricket Board informed the Pakistan Cricket Board that they are in a position to field an XI, and the match will get under way at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium at 5am GMT.
Approximately 13 to 14 members of the travelling group were affected by a viral infection with around half of that number members of the playing squad. England had made additional preparations including hiring their own chef for the tour for the first time, but a number of the squad remained at the hotel instead of taking part in the final training session yesterday.
All those affected were confined to isolation in their rooms to prevent the sickness spreading further and allow those feeling unwell to recover, with captain Ben Stokes among those affected. Mark Wood missed training on Tuesday through illness with other members reporting symptoms later on in the day and although Root said he had experienced symptoms on Tuesday, he has since recovered and took part in training yesterday.
Stokes had named his nominal starting XI for the match, including handing a debut to Liam Livingstone and a first Test recall since 2016 for Ben Duckett, but his plans could be forced to change due to the illness. Pakistan will field four debutants in the match, with Saud Shakeel, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Ali and Zahid Mehmood all named.
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