Naseem returns as Pakistan ring the changes

Alam Zeb Safi

Frontline pacer Naseem Shah returned while Mohammad Huraira, Kamran Ghulam and pacer Mohammad Ali were rewarded for their solid domestic performances as the 17-member Pakistan squad for the two-match home Test series against Bangladesh was unveiled on Wednesday.

Bangladesh are scheduled to land in Islamabad in the wee hours of August 17, while Pakistan’s camp will begin on August 11 in Rawalpindi, being supervised by Jason Gillespie and assistant coach Azhar Mahmood.

The first Test will take place at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium from August 21-25, while the second will be from August 30 to September 3 at the National Bank Stadium in Karachi.

Shan Masood has been retained as Test captain, while the 28-year-old left-handed batsman Saud Shakeel has replaced Shaheen Shah Afridi as the vice-captain.

The series is a part of the ICC World Test Championship 2023-25. In the WTC points table, Pakistan stands on the fifth spot out of nine teams, with two wins and three losses in five matches.

Naseem is back

The 21-year-old pace sensation has returned to the red-ball side after being out for a year. He missed the 2023 Cricket World Cup as well as the three-match Test series in Australia in December, after sustaining a shoulder injury in Asia Cup in September 2023.

Naseem, who made his debut at the age of just 16 in 2019 during a Test series in Australia, has taken 51 wickets in 17 red-ball matches, and his return will add a different dimension to Pakistan’s pace attack that consists Shaheen Afridi, Mohammad Ali, Khurram Shahzad and Mir Hamza.

Induction of Deserving Players

The recently announced squad includes three newcomers who have proven records at the domestic circuit.

Kamran Ghulam

The 28-year-old right hander has been knocking at the doors of selectors for the last four seasons. In the 2023-24 season, he aggregated 1,025 runs in 11 first-class matches and then had scored 148 runs in three innings against Bangladesh A in Darwin last month, including 100 not out in the first match.

He was part of the squad for the home series against New Zealand in December-January 2022-23 but didn’t feature in the drawn two-match series.

Mohammad Huraira

The Sialkot-born Huraira, who scored a double-century against Bangladesh ‘A’ in Darwin last month, has been brilliant in the last couple of first-class seasons. In the 2022-23 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, Huraira aggregated 1,024 runs in 11 matches for Northern. In the 2023-24 season, the 22-year-old right-hander scored 961 runs in 14 matches for the Faisalabad Region and Higher Education Commission (HEC).

He was part of the squad for the tour to Sri Lanka in July 2023 but did not feature in the series which Pakistan won by 2-0.

Mohammad Ali

The 31-year-old fast bowler has been recalled after last featuring in the opening two Tests against England in 2022. Ali took 24 wickets in six first-class matches in the 2022-23 season, followed by 47 wickets in 14 first-class matches in the 2023-24 season.

In the two four-day matches against Bangladesh ‘A’, Ali took nine wickets, including six for 63 in the second innings of the second match.

Players Left Out

Seven players, who were part of Pakistan’s last red-ball series, have been shown the door. Opener Imam-ul-Haq, who played a game in Australia and managed 10 and 12 in both innings in the second Test has been left out as well as the all-rounder Faheem Ashraf.

Hasan Ali and Mohammad Wasim Junior are injured, while Mohammad Nawaz, left-arm spinner Nouman Ali and off-spinner Sajid Khan have also failed to retain their places.