 "Babar Azam returns to the Pakistan squad for the limited-overs series against Australia. AP")
After being overlooked for the second and third Tests against England , experienced Pakistan trio Babar Azam, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah were named in the Pakistan squad for the upcoming limited-overs series against Australia in Australia. However, none of these players have been included in the Pakistan squad for the tour of Zimbabwe that follows.
Many new faces have been brought into the squads, while senior players like Fakhar Zaman and Shadab Khan missed out on selection.
Fakhar is facing an inquiry from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for tweeting in support of Babar before the selectors dropped him for the England Tests. The chairman of the PCB, Mohsin Naqvi, announced the new captains for the limited-overs formats on Sunday at a media conference. Wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan was named captain and Salman Ali Agha was announced as vice-captain.
In some bold steps, the selectors have decided to use the ODIs and T20s in Zimbabwe to test new players. Meanwhile, the three ODIs and T20Is each in Australia will have all the main players. The Australia tour is slated to run from 4-18 November. Meanwhile, the three-match ODI and T20I series in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe will be played from 24 November to 5 December.
Pakistan will also be touring South Africa for three ODIs, three T20Is and two Tests in December-January. The selectors, including Aaqib Javed, Azhar Ali, Aleem Dar, Asad Shafiq and Hasan Cheema, also announced that while Rizwan will be available for the Australia tour and Zimbabwe ODIs, he will be rested for the Zimbabwe T20Is.
ODI squad vs Australia: Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Arafat Minhas, Babar Azam, Faisal Akram, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah (wk), Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Muhammad Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha and Shaheen Shah Afridi.
T20I squad vs Australia: Arafat Minhas, Babar Azam, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah, Jahandad Khan, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Muhammad Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Omair Bin Yousuf, Sahibzada Farhan, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufyan Moqim and Usman Khan.
ODI squad vs Zimbabwe: Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Ahmed Daniyal, Faisal Akram, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah (wk), Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Muhammad Irfan Khan, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shahnawaz Dahani and Tayyab Tahir.
T20I squad vs Zimbabwe: Ahmed Daniyal, Arafat Minhas, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah (wk), Jahandad Khan, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Hasnain, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Omair bin Yousuf, Qasim Akram, Sahibzada Farhan, Salman Ali Agha, Sufyan Moqim, Tayyab Tahir and Usman Khan.
Afridi demoted in new contracts offered to 25 Pakistan players
Fast bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi has been demoted in the new central contracts offered to 25 players by the Pakistan Cricket Board on Sunday.
Former all-format captain Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan were retained on the top tier contracts, while fast bowler Naseem Shah, test captain Shan Masood and Afridi are in category B. The PCB didn’t give a reason why Afridi had been downgraded but did say Masood’s contract level was subject to whether he continues to lead the national team in red-ball cricket.
Masood lost six successive test matches since he was appointed test captain last year before Pakistan’s rally to beat England 2-1 in its home test series on Saturday. The new contracts are from 1 July, 2024 to 30 June next year.
The notable omissions from the list are batters Fakhar Zaman and Imam-ul-Haq, along with all-rounder Mohammad Nawaz. The PCB didn’t say why contracts were not offered to these three players.
Spinners Sajid Khan and Noman Ali, who bagged 39 wickets in Pakistan’s two convincing victories against England in the Test series, are in category C. However, the PCB said left-arm spinner Ali’s contract is subject to his fitness.
All-rounder Shadab Khan and fast bowler Haris Rauf were also downgraded apparently because of Pakistan’s below-par performances in white-ball cricket this year, which included an early exit from T20 World Cup where it lost group matches against the U.S. and India.
The PCB said as part of its “strategy to incentivize, encourage and reward talented and emerging cricketers,” five players — Khurram Shahzad, Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Ali, Irfan Khan and Usman Khan — were offered central contracts for the first time.
Category A: Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan.
Category B: Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah, Shan Masood (subject to captaincy).
Category C: Abdullah Shafique, Shadab Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha, Saud Shakeel, Noman Ali (subject to fitness), Haris Rauf, Saim Ayub.
Category D: Aamer Jamal, Mohammad Wasim, Mohammad Hurraira, Mir Hamza, Khurram Shehzad, Mohammad Ali, Usman Khan, Irfan Khan, Haseebullah Khan, Abbas Afridi, Kamran Ghulam.
With inputs from agencies