"His performances in ODIs have gone down": Inzamam-ul-Haq on Shan Masood's omission for Afghanistan ODIs and Asia Cup
Pakistan's Men's team's chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq addressed the selection decisions taken for the three-match ODI series against Afghanistan and the 2023 Asia Cup. While the former captain has announced a strong squad, there was a notable exclusion of Shan Masood.
Pakistan named a strong 18-man squad for the three ODIs against Afghanistan and the 2023 Asia Cup. Left-arm pace spearhead Shaheen Shah Afridi has returned to the fold and will look to translate his form for the Welsh Fire for the national team.
Speaking on Masood's omission, Inzamam explained that the left-hander's form has dipped in the format, but hinted that he is part of their future plans. As quoted by ESPN Cricinfo, he stated:
"Shan has performed very well on the whole across formats. Unfortunately, his performances in ODIs have gone down. We have a list of 20-21 players, and Shan is part of that. But Saud Shakeel and a couple of other players were impressive recently, so we had to leave out Shan. But he is a part of our plans."
The 53-year-old reasoned that Faheem Ashraf has been selected as Pakistan want to build him as a capable all-rounder for the 2023 World Cup. He explained:
"Preference has been given to Faheem Ashraf, since the squad doesn't have another fast-bowling allrounder. If you look at PSL and other tournaments, he was in good form. And we need an allrounder, he is a fast-bowling allrounder, which we need at the World Cup."
This is Inzamam's second tenure as the chief selector, having served in the role from 2016-2019. Having picked the squad for the 2019 World Cup, he will do the same for the 2023 edition.
"I'll keep an eye out on the entire first-class structure" - Inzamam-ul-Haq
The 120-Test veteran vowed to streamline the cricketing structure moving forward, given he joined the set-up a handful of days ago. Inzamam added:
"I've only joined recently, so I'll keep an eye out on the entire first-class structure. I only took charge on Monday, so a lot of things were already in motion. We'll create a setup as things go and fine-tune our processes further."
"The players we've selected have performed in first-class cricket and elsewhere, and that's why they were rewarded. Sometime you create a 20- or 22-man squad, but sometimes you may need someone from outside that pool if someone's in great form or if the team needs changes."
Pakistan's ODI series against Afghanistan begins on August 22 in Hambantota, Sri Lanka. The same venue will host the next two matches.
Pakistan's ODI Squad for Afghanistan series and Asia Cup: Babar Azam (capt), Shadab Khan, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Fakhar Zaman, Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Saud Shakeel, Salman Ali Agha, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz, Usama Mir, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Afridi, Tayyab Tahir, Mohammad Haris (wk), Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Wasim.