Pakistan news – Rizwan captain; Babar, Afridi and Naseem back as PCB announces squads for Australia, Zimbabwe tours Trendy Blogger

Mohammad Rizwan has been announced as Pakistan’s new white-ball captain, and his first assignment will be the ODI and T20I series against Australia next month. The team marks the return of Babar Azam, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah. The trio, absent from Pakistan’s last two Tests against England, are back in both white-ball formats. None of them, nor Rizwan, will feature in the ODI or T20I series in Zimbabwe that immediately follows.

Salman Ali Agha, who is part of the four white-ball squads for the away tours, has been named vice-captain. He will captain the team in the T20I series against Zimbabwe, with Rizwan missing from this series.

“I am committed to giving my best in this role and look forward to working closely with the selectors, coaches and my immensely talented teammates,” read a statement attributed by the PCB to Rizwan. “Together we aim to meet and exceed the expectations of our fans and supporters.”

Fakhar Zaman and Imam-ul-Haq, who both missed out on a central contract, do not feature in either team, but central contracts have not always been a reliable indicator of team composition. Mohammad Hasnain did not earn a central contract, but his performance in the Champions One-Day Cup – where he was player of the tournament – earned him a place in all four teams. Shadab Khan has been dropped, left-arm spinner Sufiyan Muqeem has been added to both T20I travel squads, while off-spin bowling all-rounder Qasim Akram will travel to Zimbabwe for the T20Is.

PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi confirmed that Fakhar’s dispute with the PCB over a tweet he posted against Babar’s exclusion from the Test side was a factor in his omission, although according to the President, that was not the main reason. “The tweet (that he posted) is a problem for us,” Naqvi said. “It doesn’t matter as much if he fails his fitness test. We need to make a decision on his show cause notice, and after that he needs to take his fitness test. That’s why he’s not here. He spoke very well at the connection camp, and it was he who raised his voice that led us to reform our international department. I appreciate that. But it is unacceptable for a player to tweet against the selection committee. This is not allowed and it never will be.

Pakistan Shaheens wicketkeeper Mohammad Haris also fell down the pecking order, failing to make it into any team, with wicketkeeper Haseebullah Khan, who played a solitary T20I in New Zealand in January, being included in all four. His Peshawar Zalmi teammate Saim Ayub, who primarily made his name as a top-order T20 power hitter, will not feature in any of the T20I series after a sustained and lean run in the format, but made the cut for both ODIs. squads.

The ODI series against Australia, scheduled to begin on November 4, is Pakistan’s first in this format since the World Cup in India a year earlier. It marks the start of a busy period in the 50-over format in the build-up to the Champions Trophy in February, the first ICC event Pakistan is expected to host since the 1996 World Cup. Australia and Zimbabwe ODIs are followed by white-ball matches in both formats against South Africa and a tri-series against New Zealand and South Africa in Multan just before the start of the Champions Trophy.

Australia tour (November 4-18)
Pakistan ODI team: Mohammad Rizwan (captain, week), Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Agha Salman, Arafat Minhas, Babar Azam, Faisal Akram, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah Khan (week), Irfan Khan, Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi

T20I squad: Mohammad Rizwan (captain, week), Abbas Afridi, Agha Salman, Arafat Minhas, Babar Azam, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah Khan (week), Irfan Khan, Jahandad Khan, Naseem Shah, Omair Yousuf, Sahibzada Farhan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufiyan Muqeem , Usman Khan.

Zimbabwe Tour (November 24 – December 5)
ODI Team: Mohammad Rizwan (captain, week), Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Agha Salman, Ahmed Daniyal, Faisal Akram, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah Khan (week), Irfan Khan, Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Hasnain, Saim Ayub, Shahnawaz Dahani, Tayyab Tahir

T20I squad: Agha Salman (captain), Abbas Afridi, Ahmed Daniyal, Arafat Minhas, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah Khan (week), Irfan Khan, Jahandad Khan, Mohammad Hasnain, Omair Yousuf, Qasim Akram, Sahibzada Farhan, Sufiyan Muqeem, Tayyab Tahir, Usman Khan

11:50 GMT: This story was updated when Rizwan was confirmed as captain

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