Pakistan announces 16-member Test squad for England series

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Tuesday announced the 16-member Test squad for the England Test series, with Azhar Ali as captain. 

According to a tweet from the PCB, the squad will comprise:

Azhar Ali (c), Babar Azam (vc), Abid Ali, Asad Shafiq, Fawad Alam, Imam, Kashif Bhatti, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Rizwan, Naseem Shah, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Afridi, Shan Masood, Sohail Khan and Yasir Shah.

Pakistan are the second Test team, after West Indies, to tour England this summer. They will play three Tests, the first beginning on Wednesday, and three T20 Internationals in bio-secure venues in Manchester and Southampton.

Yesterday, head coach Misbah-ul-Haq, expressing satisfaction with the team’s preparations for the England series,  said the team was in good form and ready to play.

“We started after three months from scratch, which has been good so far,” Misbah said while speaking through a video link.

While noting that this was an opportunity for young bowlers to exhibit their skills, he said that the Pakistani bowlers lacked experience when compared to their counterparts.