Aaqib Javed: “It’s not that we are completely sidelining them”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Pakistan Director of High-Performance Aaqib Javed has made it clear that batsmen Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan haven’t been permanently sidelined from the T20I team.
His comments come after Azam and Rizwan have missed Pakistan’s last few T20I assignments, including a three-match series against Bangladesh in Lahore, a tour of Bangladesh, a three-match series against the West Indies, and a T20I tri-series against the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Afghanistan.
Both players used to open the batting in the shortest format, but were constantly criticised for their low strike-rate despite scoring runs regularly.
Aaqib reiterated that the door is still open for Azam and Rizwan to return, but stressed the need for them to improve on certain aspects of their game before that happens.
“It’s not that we are completely sidelining them,” he was quoted as saying by ARY News.
After the T20I tri-series, Pakistan took part in the 2025 Asia Cup, where they made it to the final before losing to India by five wickets.
The men in green will now host South Africa for two Tests, three T20Is, and three ODIs, which will take place from October 12 to November 8.
Pakistan squad for South Africa Test series: Shan Masood (captain), Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Asif Afridi, Babar Azam, Faisal Akram, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Kamran Ghulam, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Noman Ali, Rohail Nazir (wicketkeeper), Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha, Saud Shakeel and Shaheen Shah Afridi