RAWALPINDI, Pakistan, Dec 1, 2022 (BSS/AFP) - England captain Ben Stokes won the toss on Thursday and elected to bat against Pakistan in the first Test at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.

The start of the three-match series -- England's first in Pakistan since 2005 -- hung in the balance on Wednesday after several members of the touring squad came down with a mystery virus.

Pakistan have handed first Test caps to pacers Haris Rauf and Mohammad Ali, spinner Zahid Mahmood, and batsman Saud Shakeel.

Liam Livingstone and Will Jacks, both batsmen, make their England debuts.

The remaining two Tests are in Multan (December 9-13) and Karachi (December 17-21).

Teams:

Pakistan: Babar Azam (captain), Mohammad Rizwan, Imam-ul-Haq, Abdullah Shafique, Azhar Ali, Salman Ali Agha, Mohammad Ali, Haris Rauf, Saud Shakeel, Zahid Mahmood, Naseem Shah

England: Ben Stokes (captain), James Anderson, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Will Jacks, Jack Leach, Liam Livingstone, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson

Umpires: Joel Wilson (WIS) and Ahsan Raza (PAK)

Tv umpire: Marais Erasmus (RSA)

Match referee: Andy Pycroft (ZIM)