Pakistan bat against Australia in Rawalpindi opener

ISLAMABAD : Pakistan captain Babar Azam won the toss and elected to bat in the opening test against Australia in Rawalpindi on Friday.

"The pitch looks nice so we'll try to put runs on the board," Babar said, predicting spinners would play a key role in the first match of the three-test series.

Having lost fast bowler Hasan Ali and seam-bowling all-rounder Faheem Ashraf to injuries, Pakistan added Naseem Shah to their pace attack spearheaded by Shaheen Afridi.

Australia's first tour of Pakistan in 24 years includes tests in Karachi and Lahore followed by four limited-overs matches in Rawalpindi.

Nathan Lyon was the lone specialist spinner complementing Australia's three-pronged pace attack led by skipper Pat Cummins.

The tourists also retained all-rounder Cameron Green, who was not even born when Australia last toured Pakistan in 1998.

Australia players will wear black armbands in memory of former wicketkeeper Rod Marsh who died aged 74 on Friday.

Teams:

Australia: Usman Khawaja, David Warner, Marnus Labuschagne, Steven Smith, Travis Head, Cameron Green, Alex Carey (wicketkeeper), Pat Cummins (captain), Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood

Pakistan: Imam-ul-Haq, Abdullah Shafique, Azhar Ali, Babar Azam (captain), Fawad Alam, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Iftikhar Ahmed, Nauman Ali, Sajid Khan, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah

(Reporting by Amlan Chakraborty in New Delhi; Editing by Robert Birsel)