Babar, Shaheen, and Rizwan among senior figures expected to be rested for Test series against Bangladesh - Reports
Several senior members of the Pakistan side including the likes of Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, and Shaheen Afridi are likely to be rested for the upcoming home Test series against Bangladesh. The two-match affair is expected to take place in August as part of the 2023-25 World Test Championship (WTC) cycle.
The senior players are under a lot of heat following an embarrassing 2024 T20 World Cup campaign recently. The Men in Green, led by Babar Azam, lost to co-hosts USA and India to crash out in the group stages itself, and have faced the wrath of the fans.
According to a report by PTI, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) are in touch with red-ball skipper Shan Masood and newly appointed red-ball coach Jason Gillespie to finalize the squad and make plans for the series.
The former is currently in England, leading Yorkshire, and has a huge task on his hands since Pakistan are fifth in the WTC standings after a clean sweep against Australia away from home earlier this year.
"One of the proposals being considered is giving rest to some senior players namely Babar, Shaheen, Rizwan etc and instead trying out those players who are uncapped or have just played a few internationals for Pakistan," a source told PTI.
"But, no final decision has been taken because in the end Masood and Gillespie will make the final call on the team selection, as in next few weeks the number of national selectors could also be reduced and the PCB might revert back to the old system of selection process," he added.
Pakistan's white-ball woes have been well-documented, courtesy of their own dismal displays. However, the red-ball side are also not faring any better. They failed to win a single series on home soil in the last cycle, and will be on the lookout to amend that record.
PCB to let Babar decide his future as captain; Kirsten asked to submit detailed report on T20 World Cup debacle
One of the raging topics amid the fallout from the 2024 T20 World Cup is Babar Azam's future as Pakistan captain. The ace batter had mentioned that he has left the final decision upto the PCB. However, according to the same report, the PCB wants Babar to make the call himself.
"The next few weeks in Pakistan cricket will be very important and interesting because it appears that the PCB is also waiting for Babar Azam to take a call on captaincy himself before they can discuss the future white-ball captain," the source added.
Newly appointed white-ball coach Gary Kirsten has had a nightmare of a start following a series loss to England and the World Cup exit. He has apparently been asked by the PCB to submit a detailed report as to how the team can fare better in white-ball cricket. His inputs on the team environment, and the skill level of the players have also been sought.