Pakistan will get an opportunity to put the horrors of recent weeks behind them when the third and final Test against England begins in Birmingham on Wednesday.
On paper, there is little riding on the contest as England have already taken an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series after registering emphatic wins at Leeds and Lord's. However, so much has happened in the interim and largely off the field, it will almost be a fresh start for Pakistan.
Following defeats by an innings and 103 runs, and then by 194 runs, the Pakistan board wielded the axe on the team, removing seven players and the head coach.
Among the players shown the door were former captains Mohammad Rizwan and Salman Ali Agha. Opener Imam-ul-Haq was also left out after drama surrounding his leg injury.
Former captain Sarfaraz Ahmed, who was put in charge of the Test team in April, was replaced by white-ball coach Mike Hesson.
As many as five uncapped players were brought into the team, highlighting the anger within the board about the consistently falling standards of the national side.
The wholesale changes to the Pakistan team for the third Test came back in the spotlight on Monday as it was revealed that the board had also launched an investigation into the conduct of players.
“The Pakistan Cricket Board has initiated an internal disciplinary inquiry following media reports concerning discipline and conduct, which are currently being reviewed internally,” PCB media director Amir Mir said on X.
“The PCB handles such matters in accordance with its standard procedures. The process is being conducted under PCB regulations, ensuring that all concerned individuals are given due consideration.”
The statement did little to throw any light on the nature of inquiry or the reasons behind it. All it has done is put more pressure on whichever Pakistan team takes the field for the Edgbaston Test.
For England, the only challenge they face is complacency. The hosts are expected to field an unchanged side for the third straight match, with Ollie Robinson – the leading seamer of the series – on the brink of 100 Test wickets.
England captain Joe Root said it is easy to disregard a team that is facing such dramatic issues.
“It's very easy to say one team's excellent, one team's poor,” Root said. “Normally it's somewhere in the middle … regardless of what's happened over the last two games, this week's a completely different proposition for us.
“There's a very talented group of players in that dressing room and you got to be ready for it.”
Hesson will have to engineer one of the great recoveries to salvage anything from the series, especially given the mood in the dressing room.
“The last couple of days have been challenging for being in a hotel with some players coming, some players going and then the arrival of everyone,” Hesson said.
“The guys are probably more used to a little bit of chaos than I am. There's no doubt they have been disappointed, incredibly disappointed.”
