Pakistan have left out Shan Masood, Sajid Khan and Noman Ali from the Pakistan vs Sri Lanka Test squad, naming 14 players for the two-match home series under Babar Azam's captaincy. The Tests will be played in Rawalpindi and Lahore between November 9 and 21, and two more pace bowlers are still to be added. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced the group in a press release.
Why Masood was left out
Masood, 37, was Pakistan's Test captain for most of the last three years. He has been struggling to regain fitness after a niggle picked up in the President's Trophy, the domestic first-class competition, and his tour of England was also difficult, with wholesale changes during the series. The PCB's press release did not give a reason for his absence, and the board did not immediately respond to a request for clarification.
Returns and omissions
Salman Agha returns to the Test side after scoring a triple-century on his return to domestic cricket in Pakistan, having been sent home mid-tour in England. Ali Usman is also back, after impressing in England before an abrupt recall. The Pakistan vs Sri Lanka Test squad also adds Arafat Minhas, an allrounder whose stock has risen during the ongoing ODI series, his younger brother Sameer Minhas as a top-order batter, Mohammad Taha, the leading run-scorer in the President's Trophy, and middle-order batter Mohammad Suleman.
Mohammad Rizwan and Imam-ul-Haq, who were brought back from England and face investigations by the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA), are not in the Test squad. Abdullah Shafique, who scored 184 not out in a win over the West Indies, has also lost his place, even though he made 185 in a first-class match a week before the announcement.
Spin, seamers and the coaching set-up
This is the first home series since Pakistan shifted to spin-friendly pitches in which neither Sajid Khan nor Noman Ali is picked. Both had been regulars for Pakistan on home surfaces built for their skills, and Sajid went to England without playing a Test. The only seam bowlers named so far are Mohammad Abbas and Razaullah, whose all-round performance in the third Test drew praise on an otherwise difficult tour. The selectors will decide the final two seamers after a three-day tour match against Sri Lanka.
Mike Hesson, who took over as interim head coach for the third Test against England, continues in that role. Mohammad Ghazi Ghori and Saad Baig are the two wicketkeepers in the 14-man group.
Aasan alfaaz mein
Pakistan ne Sri Lanka ke khilaf do Test matches ke liye 14 khiladiyon ka squad chuna hai. Shan Masood, Sajid Khan aur Noman Ali is squad mein shamil nahi hain, jabke Salman Agha aur Ali Usman wapas aaye hain. Aakhri do pace bowlers ka faisla tour game ke baad hoga. Matches Rawalpindi aur Lahore mein 9 se 21 November tak honge.
