The Pakistan Cricket Board’s men’s national selection committee has unveiled a 17-member squad for the ICC World Test Championship matches against Bangladesh. The first Test is set to take place at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium from August 21-25, followed by the second Test in Karachi from August 30 to September 3.
The Pakistan Test squad will begin their training camp at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on August 11, under the guidance of red-ball head coach Jason Gillespie and assistant coach Azhar Mahmood. The Bangladesh team will arrive in Islamabad early on August 17 and is expected to start training later that day.
The squad is led by Shan Masood, with Saud Shakeel as vice-captain. Aamir Jamal’s inclusion is subject to fitness. Other notable players include Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Naseem Shah, and Shaheen Shah Afridi. Saud Shakeel replaces Shaheen Shah Afridi as vice-captain to help manage Shaheen’s workload.
Among the 17 players, 13 participated in the previous series against Australia. New additions include Mohammad Huraira, Kamran Ghulam, and Mohammad Ali, who have shown exceptional performance in the domestic circuit. Naseem Shah returns to the red-ball side after a 13-month hiatus.
Kamran Ghulam scored 1,025 runs in 11 first-class matches in the 2023-24 season and 148 runs in three innings against Bangladesh ‘A’ last month. Mohammad Ali, who last played against England in 2022, took 24 wickets in the 2022-23 season and 47 wickets in the 2023-24 season. Mohammad Huraira hit a double-century against Bangladesh ‘A’ and had strong performances in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy and other first-class matches.
Players not retained in the squad include Imam-ul-Haq, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali (injured), Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim Jnr (injured), Noman Ali, and Sajid Khan.
