Pakistan announce playing XI for 1st Test vs Bangladesh
Pakistan announced their playing XI for the first Test of the two-match series against Bangladesh on August 19. The series opener will be played in Rawalpindi, starting August 21.
After initially announcing a 17-member squad for the Bangladesh Tests, Pakistan reduced it to 14 with the release of Aamer Jamal (due to fitness issues), leg-spinner Abrar Ahmed, and batter Kamran Ghulam.
Left-arm pacer Mir Hamza, right-handed batter Mohammad Huraira, and veteran wicketkeeper Sarfaraz Ahmed will warm the benches in the opening Test against Bangladesh.
Shan Masood will lead the side for his second assignment and first at home after being appointed Test captain late last year. He will have a new deputy in middle-order batter Saud Shakeel.
Pakistan are set to feature an all-seam attack with the four pacers Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Khurram Shehzad, and Mohammad Ali with batting all-rounder Salman Ali Agha as the lone spin option.
The Bangladesh series will also be Jason Gillespie's first assignment as Pakistan's Test head coach.
Pakistan's last Test series was the dismal 0-3 whitewash down under against Australia earlier this year. Yet, they have never lost a Test match against Bangladesh, winning 12 out of 13 with the lone draw.
Pakistan last played Bangladesh in Tests in a two-match away series in 2021 and won by a 2-0 scoreline. The two teams last played in Pakistan in Tests in 2020 but the two-match series was called off after Pakistan won the first game due to Covid-19.
Both teams are desperate for a series win, considering their place in the 2023-25 World Test Championship (WTC) table. While Bangladesh are languishing at second to bottom with one win in four Tests, Pakistan are sixth with two wins in three matches.
The series will be Pakistan's first time back on the field after their dismal 2024 T20 World Cup campaign, where they suffered a first-round exit.
Pakistan's playing XI for 1st Test vs Bangladesh
Shan Masood (C), Saud Shakeel (VC), Abdullah Shafique, Babar Azam, Khurram Shehzad, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Rizwan (WK), Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, and Shaheen Shah Afridi.