Pak vs Aus: Iftikhar and Wasim to replace Faheem and Hasan in Test series

• Faheem and Hasan will rejoin the squad in coming week after completing their three-day mandatory isolation.
• They will then integrate with the rest of the squad during the first Test.
• Both are expected to regain full fitness before the second Test that will be played in Karachi from Match 12-16.

RAWALPINDI: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa captain Iftikhar Ahmed and fast bowler Mohammad Wasim Jr have been included in Pakistan’s Test squad for the first match of the three-match series against Australia.

The two have replaced Faheem Ashraf and Hasan Ali, who have been ruled out of the Rawalpindi Test (first of the series) due to injuries. Both Iftikhar and Wasim — chosen due to their all-rounder abilities — will reach Islamabad tonight and start their three-day isolation at the team hotel after which they will join the rest of the squad after clearing COVID-19 tests.

Faheem and Hasan will rejoin the squad in the coming week after completing their three-day mandatory isolation. They will then integrate with the rest of the squad during the first Test.

Both are expected to regain full fitness before the second Test that will be played in Karachi from Match 12-16.

The fifteen-player squad

Babar Azam (captain) (Central Punjab), Mohammad Rizwan (vice-captain) (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Abdullah Shafique (Central Punjab), Azhar Ali (Central Punjab), Fawad Alam (Sindh), Haris Rauf (Northern), Iftikhar Ahmed (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Imam-ul-Haq (Balochistan), Mohammad Wasim Jnr (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Nauman Ali (Northern), Sajid Khan (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Saud Shakeel (Sindh), Shaheen Shah Afridi (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Shan Masood (Balochistan) and Zahid Mahmood (Sindh)

Test schedule:

Mar 4-8 – 1st Test, Rawalpindi

Mar 12-16 – 2nd Test, Karachi

Mar 21-25 – 3rd Test, Lahore