In a surprising move, the newly formed selection committee of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has decided to omit senior players Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi, and Naseem Shah from the 16-member squad for the final two Tests of the ongoing three-match series against England.
Babar has been under scrutiny for some time, having failed to score a half-century in Test cricket since December 2022. His struggles were highlighted after twin failures in the high-scoring first Test in Multan, where he managed just 30 and 5. Following advice from the selection committee, Babar was dropped. The other two notable omissions, Shaheen Afridi and Naseem Shah, also struggled on the flat Multan pitch, which contributed to their exclusion.
All three players have had a disappointing year. Babar averages just 18.5 in 2024 and hasn’t scored a fifty in his last 18 Test innings, while Shaheen and Naseem have averaged 72 and 51 with the ball, respectively, this year.
The PCB, however, stated in an official announcement that the players have been ‘rested.’
“Taking into consideration the current form and fitness of key players and looking ahead to Pakistan’s future assignments in the 2024-25 international cricket season, the selectors have decided to rest Babar Azam, Naseem Shah, Sarfaraz Ahmed, and Shaheen Shah Afridi. Abrar Ahmed, who is recovering from dengue fever, was unavailable for selection,” the PCB said in a media release.
Mohammad Ali, Noman Ali, Sajid Khan, and Zahid Mehmood have been included in the squad, alongside uncapped left-arm spinner Mehran Mumtaz and wicketkeeper-batter Haseebullah Khan.
These adjustments have been made considering the conditions in Multan, where the same pitch from the first Test will be used for the second. Pakistan have not won a home Test since December 2022, with an 11-match winless streak, including three consecutive defeats in 2024, following a whitewash by Bangladesh. The second Test against England begins on October 15, and Pakistan will be hoping these squad changes lead to a turnaround in their fortunes.
Pakistan squad for 2nd and 3rd Tests: Shan Masood (c), Saud Shakeel (vc), Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Haseebullah (wk), Kamran Ghulam, Mehran Mumtaz, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Huraira, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Noman Ali, Saim Ayub, Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha and Zahid Mehmood.