The lanky Shaheen Shah Afridi was named in Pakistan’s 16-man squad on Saturday to play two Tests in Sri Lanka next month, his first outing in the long form of the game in a year.
The 23-year-old injured a knee in Sri Lanka last July and missed Pakistan’s home Test series against Australia, England and New Zealand.
Shaheen, who has 99 wickets in 25 Tests, participated in the Twenty20 World Cup in Australia last year but injured the same knee in the final.
However, he returned to full fitness and played in the Pakistan Super League, as well as featured in the T20I and ODI series against New Zealand earlier this year.
“I am very excited to return to the Pakistan Test side after one year,” Shaheen said, according to a statement from the Pakistan Cricket Board.
Announcement – Scroll to Continue
“I’ve missed Test cricket so much and it was hard for me to be away from this format. I’m looking forward to making an impressive return.”
Prolific young hitter Mohammad Huraira and all-rounder Aamer Jamal have been drafted for the first time.
The 21-year-old Huraira scored 986 runs in his first domestic season in 2021 and during the course became the second-youngest Pakistani behind Javed Miandad to hit 300.
Announcement – Scroll to Continue
He topped the list again last year with a tally of 1,024.
Sri Lanka’s two-match series will be Pakistan’s first assignment in the new World Test Championship cycle, which will run from 2023 to 2025.
The team will meet in Karachi on July 3 for a camp before leaving for Sri Lanka on July 9.
Announcement – Scroll to Continue
The tour itinerary has yet to be announced.
Squad: Babar Azam (captain), Mohammad Rizwan, Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Huraira, Mohammad Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Noman Ali, Agha Salman, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Saud Shakeel, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shan Masood
sh-fox/sco
Discover more from PressNewsAgency
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.