Concussion worry still plays on Morgan’s conscience

But he will stride out with confidence, in his first competitive innings since that day at Old Trafford in September, when he leads England in the one-day international series against Pakistan.

Morgan switched mid-series against Australia to the Masuri helmet, with its additional neck-guard developed after Phillip Hughes suffered a fatal blow from a bouncer last year, and he has since updated to a bespoke model individually moulded for him.

There have been many net sessions too to fine-tune his methods against the short ball, but even so Morgan admits it will be a crucial first innings back for him today at the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium.

He had a sighter in England’s warm-up fixture, on an adjoining ground, against the gentler pace of Hong Kong – in which he made 16 off 20 balls.

Other than that, the 29-year-old has not been to the middle since having to retire hurt in Manchester two months ago and then spend the final week of the season recovering.

“At the time, it was quite concerning,” he said. “The ball hit me quite hard. It was about 10 days before I was, I suppose, myself.

“Balance, grogginess, it was a really weird feeling.

“It’s worrying, to be honest, because the feeling of concussion is something I’ve never had before.”

Pakistan, meanwhile, are all set to once again target England’s two inexperienced spinners.

In the Test series Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali failed to contain a batting line-up which is expert against spin.

Captain Misbah ul-Haq said: “We’ll try to dominate with the bat, especially the spinners and put them under pressure.”