The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Saturday (April 18) announced a new 16-member squad for the upcoming two-match Test series against Bangladesh. Pakistan selectors have included several surprising new faces in the Test squad for the upcoming Bangladesh tour.
Pakistan made major changes for Bangladesh tour!
Shan Masood will continue to lead the Pakistan national cricket team in the longest format, but the biggest highlight of this announcement is the inclusion of four uncapped players. Abdullah Fazal, Amad Butt, Azan Awais and Muhammad Ghazi Ghori have all received their first Test call-ups.
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Surprisingly, despite heavy scrutiny over his place in the Test team due to his poor form, Mohammad Rizwan was retained in the team as wicketkeeper-batsman. In another bold move, former Pakistan captain Sarfaraz Ahmed has been appointed as the new red-ball coach.
At the same time, many players who were part of the previous Test series in South Africa have been dropped. Players like Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafiq, Abrar Ahmed, Asif Afridi, Faisal Akram, Kamran Ghulam and Rohail Nazir have been dropped from the team.
Pakistan Test squad for Bangladesh tour:
Shan Masood (captain), Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Muhammad Ghazi Ghori (wicketkeeper), Abdullah Fazal, Amad Butt, Azan Awais, Babar Azam, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Abbas, Noman Ali, Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Aga, Saud Shakeel and Shaheen Shah Afridi.
Many more to follow…
