Pakistan announce 18-man squad for Australia Tests; Naseem Shah misses out due to injury
Newly appointed Pakistan Test captain Shan Masood will lead an 18-man contingent for the upcoming three-match away Test series against Australia. Chief selector Wahab Riaz named the squad on Monday, November 20, in Lahore.
Saim Ayub and Khurram Shahzad received their maiden Test team call-ups, while pacer Naseem Shah missed out due to injury. The Men in Green have naturally gone with a pace-heavy bowling attack for the tour Down Under.
Shaheen Afridi spearheads the pace bowling unit, with the likes of the returning Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Hasan Ali, Mir Hamza, Khurram Shahzad, and all-rounder Faheem Ashraf to round up the department.
Noman Ali and Abrar Ahmed are the frontline spin-bowling options in the squad, with all-rounders Salman Ali Agha also marking his presence.
The reliable red-ball opening pair of Abdullah Shafique and Imam-ul-Haq retain their respective places in the squad, and so do the likes of Babar Azam and Saud Shakeel. Mohammad Rizwan and Sarfaraz Ahmed are the two wicketkeeper options for new Test skipper Shan Masood to choose from.
Riaz said after naming his first squad after being appointed as chief selector:
“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."
Pakistan are scheduled to play three Tests in Australia from December 14 onwards. The Men in Green's last Test win Down Under came in 1996, with the Asian giants amassing 14 successive losses since then.
Pakistan also faced a 1-0 loss the last time they faced Australia in a red-ball series at home. Their upcoming tour begins with the first Test in Perth, while Melbourne and Sydney will host the remaining matches.
Pakistan squad for Test series against Australia
Shan Masood (captain), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Noman Ali, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Saud Shakeel and Shaheen Shah Afridi
The squad will report for a training camp in Rawalpindi, scheduled from November 23 onwards. They are slated to depart for Australia on November 30 from Lahore.
Pakistan are currently placed at the top of the World Test Championship (WTC) standings after a 2-0 win over Sri Lanka away from home in July 2023.