Shaheen Shah Afridi, a lanky pacer from Pakistan, has been named in the 16-man squad to play two Tests in Sri Lanka next month. It will be his first outing in the long form of cricket in a year, having injured his knee during Sri Lanka’s tour of Pakistan last July. Unfortunately, this caused him to miss Pakistan’s home Test series against Australia, England, and New Zealand. Despite featuring in the T20 World Cup in Australia, he again injured the same knee in the final. Now that he’s back to full fitness, however, Shaheen is determined to make an impactful comeback.
I dearly missed Test cricket and it was tough for me to be away from this format. I am very excited to be returning to the Pakistan Test side after a year and eager to make an impactful comeback, Shaheen stated.
In addition, two new players have been added to the team. Mohammad Huraira, a prolific young batter, has been picked for the first time. He scored 986 runs in his first domestic season in 2021 and became the second youngest Pakistani to hit a triple hundred. He topped the chart again with a tally of 1,024 last year. All-rounder Aamer Jamal has also been picked for the first time.
The two-match Sri Lanka series will be Pakistan’s first assignment in the new World Test Championship cycle that runs from 2023 to 2025. The squad will assemble in Karachi on July 3 and depart for Sri Lanka on July 9. However, the itinerary of the tour has yet to be announced.
Other members of the Pakistan team include Babar Azam (captain), Mohammad Rizwan, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Noman Ali, Agha Salman, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Saud Shakeel, and Shan Masood.
Pakistan’s cricket fans eagerly await the results of the upcoming matches.
