Sohaib Maqsood on Saud Shakeel opening the batting at the 2025 Champions Trophy: “Not bad either”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Pakistan cricketer Sohaib Maqsood believes middle order batsman Saud Shakeel is not a bad option to replace Saim Ayub as an opener in the 2025 Champions Trophy.
Ayub was ruled out of the tournament after fracturing his ankle during Pakistan’s two-Test series against South Africa.
Even though Shakeel is known for being a middle order batsman, Maqsood thinks he could excel at the top of the order.
In fact, national selector Asad Shafiq recently confirmed that Shakeel is one of two players – the other being Babar Azam – who could open the batting with Fakhar Zaman in the Champions Trophy.
“Not bad either,” Maqsood said on X, formerly known as Twitter, when asked about the prospect of Shakeel being an opener.
It should be noted that Shakeel last played ODI cricket at the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup prior to the ongoing ODI tri-series against New Zealand and South Africa, where he made his comeback.
Picked for the match against South Africa, Shakeel made 15 runs.
After the tri-series, he and the rest of the Pakistan team will feature in the Champions Trophy, which will be held from February 19 to March 9.
Pakistan Squad for 2025 Champions Trophy: Mohammad Rizwan (captain and wicketkeeper), Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Tayyab Tahir, Faheem Ashraf, Khushdil Shah, Salman Ali Agha, Usman Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Hasnain, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah