Naseem back in Test squad, Shakeel named vice-captain for Bangladesh series

Staff Report

LAHORE: Fast bowler Naseem Shah has returned to the Pakistan Test squad after more than a year out, as selectors announced a 17-member squad for the two-Test home series against Bangladesh. The Tests will be Pakistan’s first since a series loss in Australia at the start of the year and sees four changes from that touring squad. Shan Masood continues as captain with Saud Shakeel promoted to vice-captain for the Tests. The selectors have called up Kamran Ghulam, fast bowler Mohammad Ali and batter Muhammad Hurraira after a combination of consistent domestic performances as well as for the Pakistan Shaheens side on a recent tour of Australia. Shakeel takes over as deputy from Shaheen Shah Afridi as “part of the selectors’ strategic decision” to manage Afridi’s workload across one of Pakistan’s busiest seasons in recent years. Between the end of August and start of April next year, Pakistan is scheduled to play nine Tests, 14 T20Is and, at least, 17 ODIs.

Aamer Jamal, the find of that Australia tour where he took 18 wickets and averaged nearly 30 with the bat, has been named in the squad subject to fitness. Jamal had to cut short his county stint last month with Warwickshire after a back injury. At the time, Jamal posted on X (formerly Twitter) that he was fully fit. In all, it is a significantly different squad than from Pakistan’s last Test assignment, with seven changes in all. The biggest omission is arguably Imam-ul-Haq, who had been a fixture in Pakistan’s Test XI since the start of 2022. He was dropped in Australia for the final Test in Sydney, replaced by Saim Ayub. Faheem Ashraf and Mohammad Nawaz also miss out, cementing Jamal’s role as the allrounder in the line-up. Spinners Noman Ali and Sajid Khan have also been dropped, Pakistan signalling their intentions of how they expect to play this series with only one specialist spinner in Abrar Ahmed. Hasan Ali and Mohammad Wasim, who both toured Australia, are out with injuries.

Pakistan will not fret unduly about those, however, given they can finally welcome back Naseem to the Test side. He last played a Test just over a year ago, starring with six wickets in an innings triumph in Colombo. But a shoulder injury in the Asia Cup soon after meant he missed the ODI World Cup in India and the tour to Australia. He has since played plenty of white-ball cricket but Jason Gillespie, Pakistan’s new red-ball head coach, will savour the opportunity to unleash Naseem and Afridi together again. Ghulam, meanwhile, has hovered close to selection, without breaking through to the Test side. He was part of the squad for the home Tests against New Zealand in 2022-23. He has made his case stronger this time by amassing 1025 runs in 11 first-class matches in the 2023-24 season and also scoring 100 not out and 48 in three innings against Bangladesh A in Darwin last month. Mohammad Ali, a first recall since his debut against England in December 2022, is one of five specialist fast bowlers in the squad. He took 47 wickets in 14 first-class matches in the last season and against Bangladesh A in Darwin last month, as part of Pakistan Shaheens, he took nine wickets, including 6 for 63 in the second innings of the second match.

Hurraira, 22, is expected to open alongside Abdullah Shafique and ahead of Saim, who debuted in Sydney. Hurraira has been in irrepresible form recently, including a sparkling double hundred against Bangladesh A last month for the Shaheens. He is already averaging 56.24 in his first-class career and has scored nearly 2000 runs over the last two first-class seasons. He was part of the Test squad for the Sri Lanka tour in July 2023 but didn’t get a game when Pakistan won the series 2-0. The Pakistan squad will start training in a camp from August 11 in Rawalpindi under Gillespie and assistant coach Azhar Mahmood, while the Bangladesh side will arrive in Islamabad on August 17. The two Tests, part of the World Test Championship, will be played from August 21 to 25 in Rawalpindi and August 30 to September 3 in Karachi.

Squad

Shan Masood (capt), Saud Shakeel (vice-capt), Aamer Jamal (subject to fitness), Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Kamran Ghulam, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Ali, Muhammad Hurraira, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Agha Salman, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Shaheen Shah Afridi.