Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on July 27 made two additions to their squad for ongoing Test series against West Indies and the three-Test series on England soil. An injured Abdullah Fazal has been replaced by Abdullah Shafique. Also, Saud Shakeel who is already present with the squad, is added to boost their batting strength.
Fazal complained of discomfort in lower back during training for the first Test of the series against West Indies. His replacement, Shafique was on the Caribbean soil representing Lahore Qalandars in the Global Super League (GSL) 2026. He had registered scores of 12 and 8 against Perth Scorchers XI and Desert Vipers. Michael Bracewell-led Lahore Qalandars have won both their games and are currently placed at the top of the points table.
Shafique returns after missing Bangladesh series
Shafique previous Test appearance was against South Africa at home in October 2025. So far, the 26-year-old's has played 24 Tests, scoring 1,610 runs, averaging 37.44. He has five centuries and six fifties to his name. While Shafique is yet to play Tests against West Indies, he has two Test tons against England.
ALSO READ: 'Think about cricket, not social media': Kishan reveals what he, Abhishek & Axar advice Sooryavanshi
Shakeel gets a lifeline
Meanwhile, 30-year-old Shakeel was part of the warm-up game against West Indies Select XI. He did not bowl or bat. He had a forgettable Test series against Bangladesh, scoring just 29 runs from four innings.
Pakistan’s updated Test squad for West Indies, England Tests -
Azan Awais, Imam-ul-Haq, Shan Masood, Babar Azam (c), Awais Zafar, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Salman Agha, Aamer Jamal, Sajid Khan, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Abbas, Khurram Shahzad, Ghazi Ghori, Ubaid Shah, Ali Usman, Saud Shakeel, Abdullah Shafique.
What happened on Day 1 of West Indies vs Pakistan 1st Test?
On Day 1 of the Test series opener, Roston Chase won the toss and opted to bat first. 21-year-old Azan Awais and Imam-ul-Haq were picked as openers. Aamer Jamal struck early, knocking over Brandon King. Aamer Jamal did not let Tagenarine Chanderpaul and Amir Jangoo convert starts into big scores. The hosts were 106/3. Before bad light ended the day's play early, Kavem Hodge and wicketkeeper-batter Shai Hope shared an unbeaten 84-run partnership for the fourth wicket. Hodge scored 83 runs from 181 balls. On the other end, Hope was unbeaten on 39 off 91 balls. West Indies were 194/3 from 67 overs at Day 1, Stumps.