- Saud Shakeel will lead the Shaheens on the tour.
- Tour to comprise two Tests and three ODIs.
- PCB offers opportunity to “exciting talent”.
LAHORE: Left-handed top-order batter Saud Shakeel will captain future Pakistan hopefuls on the tour of Sri Lanka, which will comprise two four-day fixtures and three 50-over matches in Kandy and Colombo from October 28 to November 14.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), in a statement, said Saud played in three one-day internationals against England earlier this summer, while other players named in the 19-player squad who have played in international matches include Abdullah Shafique (T20I), Arshad Iqbal (T20I), Haider Ali (ODI, T20I), Naseem Shah (Test), Usman Salahuddin (Test and ODI) and Zahid Mahmood (T20I).
To maintain consistency in selection, the selectors have also retained players who have recently been part of the national side but have been unable to break into the playing line-up. These include Kamran Ghulam, Salman Ali Agha and Mohammad Haris, the statement said.
The PCB said that with an eye on next year’s ICC U19 Cricket World Cup 2022 in the West Indies, the selectors have included in the squad Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s teenage wicketkeeper Salman Khan and top-order batter Qasim Akram of Central Punjab.
Opportunities have also been awarded to exciting talents, such as Sindh’s 22-year-old mystery spinner Abrar Ahmed, Ahmed Safi Abdullah (34 wickets and 245 runs in Quaid-e-Azam Trophy 2020-21), Irfanullah Shah (23 wickets in Quaid-e-Azam Trophy 2020-21) and left-arm fast bowler Akif Javed, who is returning to competitive cricket this season after missing the last season due to an injury, it said.
Squad
Saud Shakeel (captain) (both formats), Haider Ali (vice-captain) (both formats), Abbas Afridi (50-over), Abdullah Shafique (both formats), Abrar Ahmed (both formats), Ahmed Safi Abdullah (four-day), Akif Javed (50-over), Arshad Iqbal (both formats), Irfanullah Shah (both formats), Kamran Ghulam (both formats), Khurram Shahzad (both formats), Mohammad Haris (wicketkeeper) (both formats), Naseem Shah (both formats), Omair Bin Yousuf (four-day), Qasim Akram (both formats), Salman Ali Agha (both formats), Salman Khan (wicketkeeper) (both formats), Usman Salahuddin (four-day), Zahid Mahmood (both formats)
Player Support Personnel: Ijaz Ahmed (head coach and team manager), Rao Iftikhar (Assistant coach), Mohtashim Rashid (fielding coach), Mohammad Javed (trainer), Faisal Rai (analyst) and Hafiz Naeem (physiotherapist).
Tour schedule
Oct 21 – departure for Kandy
Oct 28-31– 1st four-day match, Kandy
Nov 4-7 – 2nd four-day match, Kandy
Nov 10 – 1st 50-over match, Colombo
Nov 12 – 2nd 50-over match, Colombo
Nov 14 – 3rd 50-over match, Colombo
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