Pakistan batsman Sharjeel Khan has been included in the T20I squad for the tours of South Africa and Zimbabwe next month. He is coming back to the national side for the first time in over four years.

Former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar has advised Sharjeel to play fearlessly and back his natural game. He said if the 31-year-old delivers at the top of the order then it will be a relief for Pakistan's batting order which is mostly dependent on captain Babar Azam.

“Show your guts. Be a man and go on the field, it is time for payback. Sharjeel has all the shots in the book. All he needs is confidence. Don’t let the pressure get the better of you. He should allow himself to display his talent,” Akhtar was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan on PTV Sports.

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“If he goes on to become a fitter player and a reliable opener, it will solve half of Pakistan team’s problems. Currently, there is a lot of load on Babar Azam,” he added.

While Sharjeel isn't worried about his fitness, ex-Pakistan captain Rashid Latif shared his thoughts on the same and said, “Sharjeel should work with Younis on his batting and fitness. Sharjeel should stay back in Zimbabwe during the Test series."

Sharjeel was handed-over a five-year ban for spot-fixing in Pakistan Super League (PSL), and he returned to the Pakistan team after half of the sentence was suspended. 

Pakistan's T20I squad: Babar Azam (capt), Shadab Khan, Sharjeel Khan, Mohammad Hafeez, Haider Ali, Danish Aziz, Asif Ali, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Usman Qadir, Hasan Ali, Arshad Iqbal.