Newly-appointed chief selector Wahab Riaz announced an 18-member Pakistan Test squad for the tour of Australia which will commence in December. Shan Masood will be leading the Test side for the first time since Babar Azam stepped down as skipper from all formats following a dismal World Cup 2023 performance.
Riaz handed maiden call-ups for two players. 22-year-old Saim Ayub has been rewarded for his consistent performances for Karachi Whites in Quaid-e-Azam Trophy 2023-24. Ayub was the top run-getter in recently-concluded Pakistan’s domestic one-day tournament.
Another inclusion is fast bowler Khurram Shahzad who took as many as 36 wickets in Quaid-e-Azam Trophy. Like Ayub, he was impressive in the Pakistan Cup as well.
Mohammad Huraira, and Mohammad Nawaz who were a part of Pakistan's Test squad against Sri Lanka were dropped. On the other hand, pacer Naseem Shah is yet to recover from an injury. Haris Rauf was another big name missing from the squad. Riaz revealed that he made himself unavailable for selection despite physio saying that he won't have any fitness issues.
Faheem Ashraf, Mir Hamza and Mohammad Wasim Jr. will be making a comeback into the side as well. Hamza and Wasim Jr were a part of Pakistan's Test squad when they toured New Zealand in the series that started last year in December.
On the other hand, Ashraf was a part of the Test series at home against England at home last year where the Ben Stokes-led side outclassed them with ‘Bazball’ approach.
The Test series against Pat Cummins-led side will begin on December 14 at Perth Stadium. The next two Tests will be played in Melbourne and Sydney. Before the Test series, Pakistan will play a four-day warm-up game against Prime Ministers XI at Manuka Oval, Canberra starting December 6.
“The squad has been assembled keeping in mind the challenging Australian conditions. We have kept the pitches in mind and added more pace bowling resources to the team to ensure that the management can be flexible with the team combinations in all three Test matches,” Riaz said in the press conference in Lahore on November 20.
“Pakistan has started off the ICC World Test Championship 2023-25 really well, after their success in Sri Lanka earlier this year. We hope that the team can carry this momentum ahead in Australia as well. We have tried to ensure that the team has all relevant resources to find success in Australia,” the former Pakistan pacer added.
Pakistan Test squad:
Shan Masood (c), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Wasim Jr., Noman Ali, Saim Ayub, Agha Salman, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Saud Shakeel, Shaheen Afridi
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