Ben Stokes could MISS England’s first Test against Pakistan as he continues to recover from a hamstring injury – with Ollie Pope expected to resume as stand-in captain in his absence

Ben Stokes’s return to Test cricket may be delayed after it emerged he could miss Monday’s series opener against Pakistan in Multan.

Stokes sat out the recent series at home to Sri Lanka after injuring his hamstring during the Hundred in August, but had been hopeful of resuming the captaincy for the first of six Tests in Pakistan and New Zealand between now and Christmas.

England will know more on Saturday about his availability for Monday, with Ollie Pope on standby to continue as captain after leading his team to a 2-1 win over the Sri Lankans.

Stokes would not have bowled in the first Test in any case as he continues to manage his return from injury, and he only bowled an over or two off a couple of paces during training in near 40-degree heat in Multan yesterday/on Friday.

But, if confirmed, his absence would once more leave England needing to work out how best to balance the team as they return to the scene of a famous victory two years ago, when they became the first visiting side in Test history to win 3-0 in Pakistan.

The England captain trained alongside his team-mates as he continues his recovery from a hamstring injury

With Stokes unavailable Ollie Pope captained England to a 2-1 series win over Sri Lanka last month

‘He’s recovering well from his injury, but we don’t know just yet,’ said opening batsman Zak Crawley. ‘I think he’s got to do a few more tests, but he’s been doing some running and stuff.’

Asked about the balance of the side, Crawley replied: ‘We’ve got plenty of options with the ball and the bat – and bowlers who can bat really well, as proven in the summer. We feel ready whatever team comes out. It’s going to be a nice balance either way.’

While Stokes’s return may yet be delayed until the second Test, also in Multan, starting on October 15, Crawley is raring to go after missing the Sri Lanka series with a broken finger.

He has been advised by team medics not to field in the slips, but he insisted he couldn’t feel any pain in the little finger on his right hand when batting. And absence has made the heart grow fonder.

‘It’s shown how much I love playing for England,’ he said. ‘I’ve come back with a new hunger, and a lot of energy.’

It was Crawley who kickstarted an astonishing opening day of the series two years ago, hitting Naseem Shah for 14 in the first over of the first Test at Rawalpindi, and scoring the first of England’s four centuries as they racked up 506 for four by stumps.

‘I take pride in that knock – it’s one of the favourite days of my career,’ he said. ‘To see other guys go out there and get 650 was awesome.’

Zak Crawley insisted he has returned with a ‘new hunger’ after missing the Sri Lanka series with a broken finger 

And he intends to tackle the Pakistan attack with a more nuanced approach as England seek to continue the ‘refinement’ called for by head coach Brendon McCullum after the 4-1 defeat in India at the start of the year.

‘Something I’ve thought about the past couple of months is being more adaptable,’ he said. ‘I’ll still be very aggressive – that’s always going to be me – but it’s just playing the right shots.’

He may also have to adapt to a Multan pitch that looked surprisingly green only 72 hours out from the toss. ‘We’ll see,’ said Crawley. ‘It could be a slightly different series to last time.’