'It's great for the sport'- Nasser Hussain on T20 specialists playing Tests

Liam Livingstone will make his Test debut [Source: Twitter]

On Thursday, England will take on Pakistan in their first Test on Pakistani soil after 17 long years at Rawalpindi. 

This will be Test coach Brendon McCullum and skipper Ben Stokes's first overseas assignment and will pose different challenges across all three venues - Rawalpindi, Multan, and Karachi.  

As per the norm, England announced their playing XI a day ahead of the first Test and included T20 specialist Liam Livingstone and Ben Duckett, whose last red-ball appearance came in 2016. 

Former England captain Nasser Hussain, in his column for The Daily Mail, hailed McCullum and Co. for inducting Livingstone and Duckett into the Test arena, calling it good for the sport at large. 

McCullum's move to hand Livingstone a Test cap is not surprising, given the New Zealander's wish to keep the longest format of the game exciting. 

Here's what Hussain wrote

"It is a good indication of where this England Test team are at right now that Ben Duckett and Liam Livingstone will be playing in the first Test against Pakistan,

"They will both still play T20 cricket around the world, of course, but it is also clear that they want a piece of the Test action. In an era when we are all worried about Test cricket’s future, it is great not just for the English game, but for the sport as a whole."

Hussain, in his column, also talked about the challenges Stokes will face in Pakistan, ranging from the conditions to making strategies on the run.

Also Read: 'Do what you can to ensure that Test cricket survives'-Brendon McCullum