Babar Azam develops fever ahead of third Test, Pakistan face possible eighth change

Pakistan captain Babar Azam has developed fever ahead of the third Test against England at Edgbaston, scheduled for September 9-13. The development raises the prospect of yet another forced change to a touring party that has already been heavily disrupted across this series.

Team manager Naveed Akram Cheema confirmed the situation on Wednesday, September 2, there is no need to panic, and a quick recovery is expected. Medical monitoring is ongoing, however, and Babar's availability for the Edgbaston Test has not been confirmed.

The news, first reported by Geo News, comes at a turbulent time for Pakistan cricket. Following a 194-run defeat in the second Test at Lord's, the PCB recalled seven players from the touring squad. Sarfaraz Ahmed was removed as Test head coach alongside bowling coach Umar Gul, with Mike Hesson now handling all-format coaching. Meanwhile, Misbah-ul-Haq has also offered his resignation as the national selector.

Babar's returns with the bat have been limited in the only match he has featured in the series. At Lord's he managed only 8 in the first innings before falling to a Jofra Archer delivery aimed at his body in the second, adding just 6. Those scores did little to ease the scrutiny on a captain whose Test form has been a recurring concern.

His most recent Test century was a knock of 161 against New Zealand in December 2022, leaving him without a three-figure score in the longest format for close to four years. There had been signs of improvement before this tour: Babar accumulated 193 runs across two Tests in the West Indies, including two half-centuries, in a series that ended 1-1. That run of form had encouraged optimism ahead of the English assignment.

Babar had already sat out the first Test of this series through injury, with Salman Ali Agha leading the side in his place. He returned for the Lord's match but was unable to make a meaningful contribution before Pakistan's heavy defeat.

Pakistan's options are significantly narrowed by the scale of the changes already made after Lord's. Mohammad Rizwan and Salman Ali Agha were both recalled to Pakistan as part of the post-defeat reshuffle, removing two of the more senior figures from the available pool.

Salman had shown he could handle the captaincy role during the first Test, but his departure from the tour means that avenue is no longer open. Should Babar be ruled out, Pakistan would be registering an eighth change to their touring group during this series, a figure that reflects the extent of the disruption they have endured.

Team manager Cheema has publicly maintained a calm outlook, with the expectation that Babar will be fit in time. No replacement has been named, and the PCB has issued no further statement on squad composition or the captaincy arrangement for the third Test.