Zak Crawley warns England fast bowlers of tough conditions in Pakistan

As sweltering temperatures bake pitch and levels of smog climb, England opener Zak Crawley on Friday warned young pacers of the visiting team that they will face a "test of character" in the Test series against Pakistan.

This week, the England team landed in Multan, where the first two matches of the three-match Test series will be played starting on Monday.

While the England team has started training in 37°C temperature, monitoring firm IQAir said air pollution was about 27 times higher than the level deemed safe by the World Health Organisation.

"It will be challenging, but we have got all the things in place to counter that," said Crawley, returning to the squad after missing a home series against Sri Lanka with a fractured finger.

"We are looking forward to that challenge," the 26-year-old told reporters in Multan. "We have been talking about it for the last couple of weeks."

He predicted England’s quintet of pace bowlers — on their maiden tours of Pakistan — would particularly face a "test of character and test of skill".

With experienced pace duo James Anderson and Stuart Broad now retired, the baton of pace bowling is with Brydon Carse, Matthew Potts, Gus Atkinson, Olly Stone and Chris Woakes.

"These young guys have got a lot of skill," said Crawley. "Being young brings in energy and fire in the belly as well, and I am sure they will be raring to go and do well."

Pakistan’s international cricket performance is in dire straits, and the red-ball team has lost all five matches during the tenure of skipper Shan Masood which began last year.

Last month they suffered a humiliating first-ever 2-0 home series defeat to low-ranked Bangladesh.

Crawley is one of the eight players on England’s Test squad who also played in the team beating Pakistan 3-0 in 2022, inflicting on them their first whitewash at home.

"I think we will put pressure on the opponents, like the last time," said Crawley, citing England’s aggressive "Bazball" tactics, dubbed after the nickname of head coach Brendon McCullum.

"The finger is good and I have recovered well," Crawley said about his recovery from injury. "I am absolutely raring to go. I can’t wait."

The second Test starts in Multan on October 15 with the final match played in Rawalpindi from October 24.