England are touring Pakistan for the first time since 2005 and the first Test match has gone ahead dsepite illness in the England camp overnight.
The Pakistan Cricket Board said in a statement two hours before the scheduled start that the England and Wales Cricket Board “has informed the PCB that they are in a position to field an XI, and, as such, the first test will commence as per schedule today at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium”.
Batter and former captain Joe Root said: “It’s nothing like food poisoning or Covid — I think it’s just one of those things that we’ve unfortunately picked up as a group. We try to do absolutely everything right to make sure we’re prepared really well for this game.
“Sometimes you just pick up a virus and when you’re all tied together in one, I tell you, you can spread it out. We did everything we can to try and mitigate that, but you have to see how things go tonight and tomorrow.”
Here is everything you need to know to watch the cricket.
How to watch on TV and online
Pakistan vs England is being broadcast on Sky Sports Main Event and Cricket channels. Sky Sports customers can live stream the game online via the Sky Sports app and website.
The first Test match in Rawalpindi starts at 5am GMT each day, with build-up from 4.30am on Sky Sports Cricket.
If you’re not a Sky customer you can grab a NOWTV Day Pass here to watch without a subscription.
- First Test, Rawalpindi (December 1-5)
- Second Test, Multan (December 9-13)
- Third Test, Karachi (December 17-21)
