England's Test contingent arrives in Pakistan for first series in 17 years

England's red-ball contingent, led by the mercurial Ben Stokes, has made its way to Pakistan for its first Test series in 17 years. The Three Lions landed in the subcontinent in the early hours on Sunday for a three-match Test series, their first in the country since 2005 due to the precarious security situation.

The visitors took part in a memorable T20I series in Pakistan a couple of months ago in the lead-up to the T20 World Cup. The series was a hotly contested affair as England completed a thrilling 4-3 series victory in the last game at the Gaddafi Stadium. However, it was feared that the English side might pull out of the Test series, like they had done previously, after an attack on former prime minister Imran Khan during a protest march in Wazirabad earlier this month.

Touchdown in Pakistan for our Men’s Test squad! 🇵🇰 pic.twitter.com/2GbRr1Xcw1

— England Cricket (@englandcricket) November 26, 2022

But England's red-ball skipper Ben Stokes quashed those concerns and feels the team's security is in the right hands for the upcoming series against the losing T20 World Cup finalists.

"It's been a long time since England have played Test cricket in Pakistan. With what happened with Imran Khan recently, there was a little bit of concern, but we have Reg Dickason, who has been the security man for many years with England, and we left it in his capable hands," Stokes said in Abu Dhabi on Friday.

I'm really looking forward to the series: Ben Stokes

Stokes wasn't a part of the English T20I team that took part in the seven-match series in the country a couple of months ago. The flamboyant all-rounder is looking forward to the Test series as he has never played on these shores before and is also keen on witnessing the security arrangements for the team.

"In terms of the tour itself, I'm really looking forward to it. I've never been there, and I'm quite interested to see what the security lark is like. I've heard it's pretty intense," Stokes added.

England squad for the Test series: Ben Stokes (c), James Anderson, Harry Brook, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ben Foakes, Will Jacks, Keaton Jennings, Jack Leach, Liam Livingstone, Jamie Overton, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson, Joe Root, Mark Wood, Rehan Ahmed.