Three England pacers unlikely to feature in first Pakistan T20I

England are touring Pakistan for the first time since 2005. The side reached Karachi on September 15 and has trained at National Stadium for the last three days.

England have a 20-man squad for the series and already they will feature without skipper Jos Buttler in initial games as he is recovering from a calf injury.

As per reports, three pacers, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood, and Reece Topley are unlikely to feature in the first game of the series.

Woakes and Wood are returning from extended layoffs due to their respective injuries and won't be hurried into the side.

Meanwhile, left-arm pacer Topley is suffering from a niggle.

Pakistan and England will lock horns in a seven-match T20I series starting from September 20. The first four matches will be played in Karachi on September 20, 22, 23 and 25 with the final three in Lahore on September 28, 30 and October 2.

Both camps have termed this series pivotal in preparation for the upcoming T20 World Cup in Australia.

England squad: Jos Buttler (captain), Moeen Ali, Harry Brook, Jordan Cox, Sam Curran, Ben Duckett, Liam Dawson, Richard Gleeson, Tom Helm, Will Jacks, Dawid Malan, Adil Rashid, Phil Salt, Olly Stone, Reece Topley, David Willey, Chris Woakes, Luke Wood, Mark Wood, Alex Hales

Pakistan squad: Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Aamir Jamal, Abrar Ahmed, Asif Ali, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Wasim Junior, Naseem Shah, Shahnawaz Dahani, Shan Masood  and Usman Qadir