Pakistan won the toss Monday and chose to bat in the second cricket Test against South Africa, whose lineup features the return of left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj.

Pakistan leads the two-match series following a 93-run victory in last week’s first Test at Lahore, played on a spin-friendly pitch.

Maharaj, recovering from a groin injury, was available only for the second Test, replacing off-spinner Prenelan Subrayen. Seaming all-rounder Marco Jansen also returned to the side, taking the place of Wiaan Mulder, who struggled with both bat and ball in the first match.

South Africa captain Aiden Markram said the team had learned “a couple of lessons” from the opening Test defeat, prompting the two changes.

Anticipating spin-friendly conditions at Pindi Cricket Stadium, Pakistan included a third specialist slow bowler, awarding a Test debut to 38-year-old left-arm spinner Asif Afridi, who replaced Hasan Ali.

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Pakistan captain Shan Masood explained his decision to bat first: “The pitch is a bit on the dry side, so better to bat first.” This marks Masood’s second consecutive toss win in the series.

Line-ups:
Pakistan: Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Shan Masood (captain), Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan, Salman Ali Agha, Noman Ali, Sajid Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Asif Afridi.

South Africa: Aiden Markram (captain), Ryan Rickelton, Dewald Brevis, Tony de Zorzi, Tristan Stubbs, Kyle Verreynne, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Senuran Muthusamy, Simon Harmer, Kagiso Rabada.

Source: AP