Former England skipper Nasser Hussain heaped praise on Brydon Carse ahead of his Test debut for the Three Lions and said that the 29-year-old has got a lot of pace. Carse will be playing maiden long-format match in the upcoming first Test match against Pakistan in Multan. Earlier on Saturday, the England Cricket Board (ECB) released a statement and announced that pacer Brydon Carse will be making his Test debut in the first Test match of the three-game series.

“England Men have confirmed their XI for the first Test against Pakistan, set to commence on Monday in Multan. Durham seamer Brydon Carse will be making his Test debut. With England Captain Ben Stokes still recovering from a hamstring tear, Ollie Pope will captain the side in his absence,” ECB wrote in a statement.

Speaking to Sky Sports Cricket, Hussain said that Carse can do Mark Wood’s role in a match. The former cricketer added that he was impressed after seeing the 29-year-old’s performance in the white-ball cricket.

“I think someone like Carse can do that Mark Wood role. I was impressed with him in the white-ball cricket. He’s got a lot of pace and if they’re the flat pitches that England played on last time, then you’re going to need that express pace as well as skill, and Carse provides that,” Hussain was quoted by Sky Sports as saying.

He also added that Jack Leach performed well with Somerset.

“I was watching some of the Somerset games towards the end of the summer, and Leach looked like he had really, really good rhythm in those. He’s obviously missed out because of Bashir, his Somerset team-mate, going past him but I think he’s done a really good job for Somerset, and he had a good tour out there last time,” he added.

The first Test will begin on October 7 in Multan, followed by the second Test on October 15, also in Multan. The final Test will be held in Rawalpindi from October 24 to 28.

England’s playing XI against Pakistan in the Multan Test: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope (C), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith (WK), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Jack Leach, Shoaib Bashir.

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