England's Tim Bresnan ruled out of series against Pakistan

The last two years have proved a stiff test of determination for Graham Onions and of Monty Panesar's patience, but a tricky start to England's desert campaign has allowed them both to sniff the chance of a return to international cricket. Ongoing injury concerns surrounding Chris Tremlett's eye and Graeme Swann's thigh, in addition to the premature departure of Tim Bresnan after a reaction to his elbow surgery, had both forgotten men in contention for the second of England's three-day warm-up matches against a Pakistan Board XI at the International Cricket Council's Global Sports Academy here in Dubai. "I appreciate I'm kind of bottom of the pack now and that's fine," said Onions, the 29-year-old Durham seamer who has seen Tremlett, Bresnan and Steven Finn overtake him in the England pecking order during a lengthy absence from the game with back problems that first occurred in Bangladesh almost two years ago. "I do appreciate that people are ahead of me and they deserve to be. It's just nice to be here, because after the surgery I couldn't be sure if I'd be here again. Now I'm part of a squad and if I took five wickets there's a serious opportunity for me to be part of the Test side. "I want to try and prove a point to Andy Flower and Andy Strauss that I'm good enough to be here and stay. Now that I'm up for selection it's important for me to come in and get back to my form of 2009. That seems a long time ago. I'm here now and I want to make a difference – I want to be part of this team. I'm convinced that with my skiddy type of bowling I'll do quite well out here." It was in Dubai that Onions launched his comeback during Durham's pre-season trip to the UAE early last year. He admits that watching England's Ashes triumph in Australia from long distance was tough at times, but the ECB's medical staff had closely monitored his lengthy rehabilitation, and offered him early encouragement with selection for the Lions after a couple of good early-season performances – then invited him to join Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad at the pace-bowling performance camp in South Africa before flying to Dubai as cover for Bresnan. Panesar was in Australia last winter but endured similar frustration to Onions as Swann's consistency brooked no argument about who would be selected as England's sole spinner. However he also remained in England's plans, and there was some discussion about the possibility of playing two spinners on the dry surfaces in the UAE even before the thigh problem that Swann picked up in England's opening match offered the Sussex left-armer some early encouragement. The PCB Board XI include a handful of players with international experience, such as the captain, Sarfraz Ahmed. Junaid Khan, the left-arm seamer who had a brief stint with Lancashire last season, has arrived in Dubai with the senior squad and been declared fit for next week's first Test after recovering from a stomach injury. Meanwhile in Bangladesh, there was further evidence of the strength in bowling depth to which Onions referred as Stuart Meaker, Surrey's South Africa-born paceman, took four wickets to lead the Lions to a series-equalising win over Bangladesh A. The spinners Danny Briggs and Scott Borthwick took two wickets each, and Jonny Bairstow led the pursuit of a victory target of 177 with an unbeaten half century, other useful contributions coming from Somerset's Jos Buttler and Hampshire's James Vince. This article was updated on Wednesday 11 January