Azhar’s reign as ODI captain will continue

Image courtesy of: Zimbio

Azhar Ali will continue on as Pakistan’s ODI captain for the five-match series against Australia, which begins on January 13 in Brisbane.

Earlier this month, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Shaharyar Khan revealed that Azhar was on thin ice in regards to the ODI captaincy and retaining his place in the squad.

However, after a sparkling performance in the first two Tests against Australia, in which he has scored 324 runs, including a brilliant double century, at an average 108, Azhar has kept hold of the reins for the time being.

Meanwhile, Pakistan have recalled middle order batsman Umar Akmal and left-arm seamer Mohammad Irfan. Kamran Akmal was also touted for a return following a string of fabulous performances in Pakistan’s domestic competitions, but an alleged disagreement between the team management and national selectors led to him missing out.

Pakistan have also opted to drop spinner Yasir Shah and seamer Sohail Khan, who were both part of the squad in the national team’s last ODI series against the West Indies in the United Arab Emirates in September-October.

“The ODI team has been selected keeping in mind the conditions in Australia and the performances of players in the recent ODI series against West Indies and in domestic cricket,” chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq said. “The team is a fine blend of experience and youth, and the selectors have decided to stick to the same combination of players selected for the West Indies series earlier. We believe that the team will do well in the tour.”

Pakistan ODI Squad: Azhar Ali (capt.), Sharjeel Khan, Babar Azam, Shoaib Malik, Asad Shafique, Umar Akmal, Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), Mohammad Rizwan, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Amir, Wahab Riaz, Hasan Ali, Rahat Ali, Mohammad Irfan