Babar Azam included in all three formats for South Africa tour

Pakistan team during a trainig session. —X/@therealpcb

Selectors leave out Shaheen Afridi from Test squad.
Babar Azam included in teams for all three formats.
Focus on building momentum for Champions Trophy: Javed.

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Wednesday announced the Green Shirts’ squads for all three formats for the upcoming South Africa tour commencing on December 10.

The national side is set to play three T20Is, followed by the same number of ODIs during their tour which will culminate on January 7 with two Test matches.

Shan Masood will be leading the red-ball team whereas Mohammad Rizwan will captain the side in the ODIs and T20Is.

The Men in Green will be heading to South Africa after a 2-1 ODI series win against Zimbabwe followed by securing an unassailable 2-0 lead against them in the T20I series on Tuesday.

Before that, the national side secured an historic 2-1 ODI series win against Australia in their backyard to mark their first 50-over series win in the Kangaroos’ home ground in 22 years.

However, the hosts then whitewashed Pakistan in the subsequent T20I series.

The upcoming South Africa tour will provide the team with valuable match practice allowing them to fine-tune the combinations and finalise the preparations ahead of the Champions Trophy 2025 set to be held in Pakistan next year.

Babar Azam has been named in all three squads along with Rizwan, Saim Ayub and Salman Ali Agha, while Naseem Shah has been selected for the Tests and ODIs.

Shaheen Shah Afridi, who also missed the last two Tests against England, has been picked for the white-ball matches as part of his workload management so that he is in his best fitness and form for the Champions Trophy.

Also returning to the Test side is fast bowler Mohammad Abbas, who last played in Jamaica in August 2021. Abbas, who has taken 90 wickets in 25 Tests, had a stellar Quaid-i-Azam Trophy, claiming 31 wickets in five matches

Also earning the selectors’ nod for the first time in ODIs is Sufyan Moqim, the left-arm wrist spinner who has taken eight wickets in two T20Is, including five wickets for three runs in the second T20I.

Fast bowler Khurram Shahzad has also been named in the Test side after claiming 15 wickets for Pakistan Shaheens against Sri Lanka “A” last month.

Mir Hamza is the fourth fast bowler in the 15-man Test squad and is presently playing for Peshawar against Lahore Whites in Abbottabad.

Furthermore, the selectors have decided to go with one specialist spinner Noman Ali — who took 20 wickets against England — in light of the conditions at Centurion and Newlands and have left out Sajid Khan despite his 19-wicket tally against England.

The T20I squad will depart for South Africa on December 6 after Thursday’s third T20I against Zimbabwe, while the ODI and Test players will depart for Johannesburg on December 13.

Red-ball head coach Jason Gillespie will also arrive in Johannesburg on December 13 to supervise the pre-Test series camp.

Speaking on the squads, interim white-ball head coach Aqib Javed said: “We have adopted a horses-for-courses policy to ensure all three squads are well-balanced and capable of performing strongly in South Africa”.

“Our focus in ODIs is to continue building momentum ahead of the Champions Trophy, while the T20I series provides a platform to blend experience with emerging talent,” he remarked.

Speaking on Shaheen’s exclusion from the Test side, the former cricketer termed the decision as a “strategic” move to ensure that the pacer remained physically and mentally fresh for the Champions Trophy.

Squads

T20I: Mohammad Rizwan (captain & wk), Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Haris Rauf, Jahandad Khan, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Hasnain, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Omair Bin Yousuf, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufyan Moqim, Tayyab Tahir and Usman Khan (wk)

ODI: Mohammad Rizwan (captain & wk), Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Haris Rauf, Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Hasnain, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufyan Moqim, Tayyab Tahir and Usman Khan (wk)

Test: Shan Masood (captain), Saud Shakeel (vice-captain), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Babar Azam, Haseebullah (wk), Kamran Ghulam, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Naseem Shah, Noman Ali, Saim Ayub and Salman Ali Agha