MULTAN, Pakistan (AP) — Pakistan will re-use the same first-test strip in the hope its spinners can take 20 wickets in the second game against England. The team has taken 20 wickets just once in its last six tests, losing all of them under the captaincy of Shan Masood.

Babar Azam, who was dropped for the remaining two Tests, has failed to score a half-century in his last 18 test innings, with a highest score of 41 against Australia in Melbourne last year.

Pakistan assistant coach Azhar Mahmood said Babar will return to the side after the series against England as Pakistan has a busy schedule in Australia, Zimbabwe and South Africa before hosting West Indies in two tests early next year.

“We have a very busy FTP (Future Tours Program),” Mahmood said. “There’s a lot of cricket coming up…the selection committee thought to give Babar Azam rest so that he comes back fresh. I am quite close to Babar and I know there’s lots of things going on in his mind,” he added.

Except for Babar, Pakistan has kept faith in the batting line-up that scored 556 and 220 in the first test.

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Pakistan: Saim Ayub, Abdullah Shafique, Shan Masood (captain), Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan, Salman Ali Agha, Aamer Jamal, Noman Ali, Sajid Khan, Zahid Mahmood