Pakistan Cricket Board on Wednesday (February 9) named a 16-member squad in addition to five reserves for the upcoming three-Test series against Australia.
From the last series against Bangladesh, three changes have been made in the Pakistan squad for the Test matches in Rawalpindi (4-8 March), Karachi (12-16 March) and Lahore (21-25 March).
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Haris Rauf, who was in the side for South Africa and Zimbabwe Tests in 2021, has returned to replace off-spinner Bilal Asif, while Shan Masood, who last played in New Zealand in the 2020-21 season, has taken over from Abid Ali, who is completing his rehabilitation after being diagnosed with Acute Coronary Syndrome. Yasir Shah has been added to the reserve pool.
Test players, who are not part of the ongoing Pakistan Super League (PSL), will assemble in Karachi on February 16 for a training camp that will be held at the National Stadium.
"We have opted for consistency for the important home series against Australia and changes have only been made where absolutely necessary. This is to give the boys confidence, reward them for their impressive performances in the longer version of the game in 2021 and continue to build the side for the future," chief selector Muhammad Wasim said in a statement.
"These are the best available, most talented, and in-form players in the domestic circuit. I am confident they will put up an impressive performance against a formidable Australia side," he added.
Meanwhile, the PCB also confirmed that Saqlain Mushtaq will continue as head coach for another 12 months, while it also announced the appointments of Shaun Tait as fast bowling coach for 12 months and Mohammad Yousuf as batting coach for the Australia series.
Pakistan Squad: Babar Azam (C), Mohammad Rizwan, Abdullah Shafique, Azhar Alu, Faheem Ashraf, Fawad Alam, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Nawaz, Nauman Ali, Sajid Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shan Masood, Zahid Mahmood.
Reserves: Yasir Shah, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Naseem Shah, Mohammad Abbas, Kamran Ghulam Player
Player Support Personnel: Mansoor Rana (manager), Saqlain Mushtaq (head coach), Shahid Aslam (assistant to head coach), Mohammad Yousuf (batting coach), Shaun Tait (bowling coach), Cliffe Deacon (physiotherapist), Drikus Saaiman (trainer/strength and conditioning coach), Abdul Majeed (fielding coach), Emmad Ahmed Hameed (media and digital manager), Col (retd) Usman Anwari (security manager), Talha Ejaz (analyst) and Malang Ali (masseur).
(With PCB inputs)
