Sarfaraz Ahmed is set to play international cricket again after being included in Pakistan’s squad for the tour of England
Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo
Former captain Sarfaraz Ahmed is set to make his comeback, while batsman Haider Ali is likely to make his international debut as Pakistan named their 29-man squad for the tour of England.
Pakistan are scheduled to play three Tests and three T20 Internationals against England.
Recent reports said that the tour is all set to go ahead, but the start date of the Test series will be pushed back from July 30 to August 5.
Sarfaraz hasn’t represented Pakistan since being sacked as Test and T20 captain in October last year.
However, he recently captained the Quetta Gladiators in the Pakistan Super League (PSL), where he scored 148 runs in nine matches at an average of 21.14 and a strike-rate of 128.69.
Haider, meanwhile, enjoyed a successful PSL campaign as he scored 239 runs in nine matches for the Peshawar Zalmi at an average of 29.87 and a strike-rate of 158.27.
Left-arm spinner Kashif Bhatti is the other uncapped player in the squad, while 36-year-old fast bowler Sohail Khan is set to play international cricket for the first time since 2017.
Left-arm seamer Wahab Riaz is also in the team despite not receiving a central contract for the 2020-2021 season.
Meanwhile, fast bowler Hasan Ali, left-arm seamer Mohammad Amir and batsman Haris Sohail will miss the tour of England.
Hasan is currently recovering from a back injury, while Amir wants to be present for the birth of his second child in August. As for Haris, he withdrew from the tour since he has concerns about the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Pakistan’s Squad: Abid Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Shan Masood, Azhar Ali (Test captain), Babar Azam (Test vice-captain and T20 captain), Asad Shafiq, Fawad Alam, Haider Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Mohammad Rizwan, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Haris Rauf, Imran Khan, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sohail Khan, Usman Khan Shinwari, Wahab Riaz, Imad Wasim, Kashif Bhatti, Shadab Khan, Yasir Shah
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