Former Pakistan captain Sarfaraz Ahmed will replace Mohmmad Rizwan in the playing XI for today’s opening Test against New Zealand.
Former Pakistan captain Sarfaraz Ahmed is marking his comeback to the sport following a four-year absence. In his final Test of 2019, he grabbed 10 catches against South Africa and scored 50 runs.
Pakistan will likely make three lineup adjustments for today’s opening encounter against New Zealand in Karachi.
According to the reports, Mir Hamza will replace the injured Naseem Shah, and off-spinner Sajid Khan is also set to join the team.
The newly appointed chief selector, Shahid Afridi, will make some changes to the Test squad (PCB) for the New Zealand series. A 14-person team led by Najam Sethi is responsible for monitoring PCB operations for 120 days.
While speaking to the media on Sunday in Karachi, Shahid Afridi emphasized the need for players’ workload management and hinted at the inclusion of Mir Hamza and Sarfaraz Ahmed.
As Afridi’s first significant move, Mir Hamza, Sajid Khan, and Shahbaz Dahani were recruited to the Pakistan Test squad for the home series.
Afridi told the media that the players were selected based on their performances and Pakistan’s strength.
“Given that Naseem Shah is not fully healthy, it seemed sensible to add two fast bowlers to the lineup. How many days has Shahnawaz Dahani been in our custody? When will he be made available? Shahid Afridi disclosed that Mir Hamza was chosen since a left-handed batter was required while Shaheen was unavailable.
The chief selector stated, “And Mir Hamza has been playing well, so I believe he deserves to participate at this time.”
The skipper, Babar Azam, has also underscored the need to regulate the workload of players, which Afridi reiterated.
“There are gamers who frequently participate in all game formats. We need to bolster our bench so that if one player is rested, there will be no problem; we also have some seniors who have been warming the bench for a long time, so let’s see. “Tonight, I will meet with Babar Azam to discuss our future steps,” said the chief selector.
Afridi said that he hopes to see Babar Azam among the great captains and that he will assist him in achieving that goal.
