Opener Shan Masood and pacer Haris Rauf have been recalled to Pakistan's 16-member squad for Tests against Australia, starting from March 4 in Rawalpindi. Rauf, who was in the side for the Test series against South Africa and Zimbabwe in 2021 but was uncapped, has returned to replace off-spinner Bilal Asif.Masood, who last played a Test against New Zealand in January 2021, replaces Abid Ali, who is completing his rehabilitation after being diagnosed with Acute Coronary Syndrome in December last year. Apart from the 16-member squad, Pakistan has named reserve players in Yasir Shah, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Mohammad Abbas, Naseem Shah and Kamran Ghulam.As per the statement from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), players who are not involved in the ongoing Pakistan Super League will assemble in Karachi on February 16 for a training camp at the National Stadium. After the first Test in Rawalpindi, Karachi (March 12-16) and Lahore (March 21-25) will host the second and third Tests respectively.
"We have opted for consistency for the important home series against Australia and changes have only been made where absolutely necessary. This is to give the boys confidence, reward them for their impressive performances in the longer version of the game in 2021 and continue to build the side for the future."These are the best available, most talented and in-form players in the domestic circuit. I am confident they will put up an impressive performance against a formidable Australia side," said chief selector Muhammad Wasim.The PCB further confirmed that Saqlain Mushtaq will continue as head coach for another 12 months. It also announced the appointments of former Australia pacer Shaun Tait as fast bowling coach for 12 months and former Pakistan batter Mohammad Yousuf as batting coach for the Australia series.
Squad: Babar Azam (captain), Mohammad Rizwan (vice-captain), Abdullah Shafique, Azhar Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Fawad Alam, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Nawaz, Nauman Ali, Sajid Khan, Saud Shakeel, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shan Masood and Zahid Mahmood.Reserves: Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Abbas, Naseem Shah, Sarfaraz Ahmed and Yasir Shah.