Pakistan announce 17-member squad for Bangladesh Tests; Saud Shakeel named new vice-captain

Pakistan announced the 17-member squad for the upcoming home Test series against Bangladesh. The series comprising two Tests will be part of the 2023-25 World Test Championship (WTC) and will take place between August 21 and September 3

While Shan Masood will lead the side for his second Test series, middle-order batter Saud Shakeel has been appointed as the new vice-captain. Shakeel takes over the deputy role from pacer Shaheen Afridi, who could be load-managed during Pakistan's packed international season.

Thirteen of the 17 players selected were involved in Pakistan's last Test series in Australia, where they suffered a 0-3 walloping. Ace pacer Naseem Shah returns to the Test squad after over a year.

Meanwhile, Mohammad Huraira, Kamran Ghulam, and Mohammad Ali have earned national selection for their consistent performances on the domestic circuit. Huraira has never played for Pakistan in any format but fellow right-handed batter Ghulam has featured in a lone ODI against New Zealand last year.

As for right-arm pacer Ali, who played two Tests in the home series against England in 2022, the Bangladesh series recall is a reward for his excellent showing in first-class cricket.

Renowned names Imam-Ul-Haq, Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Nawaz, Noman Ali, and Sajid Khan were the players not retained in the Test squad while Hasan Ali and Mohammad Wasim Jr. were left out due to injury. Pakistan's star in their 0-3 whitewash Down Under, Aamer Jamal has been picked in the squad but his participation is subject to fitness.

Pakistan's training camp will begin at Rawalpindi under the supervision of Test head coach Jason Gillespie and assistant coach Azhar Mahmood on August 11. Bangladesh are expected to arrive in Islamabad on August 17 despite the ongoing political turmoil in the country.

The first Test will be played at Rawalpindi (August 21 to 25), while the second Test will be played at Karachi (August 30 to September 3).

Pakistan and Bangladesh last met in a Test series in Bangladesh in 2021 with the former winning by a 2-0 margin.

Pakistan are fifth on the WTC table with 22 points in five outings and Bangladesh languishes at eighth with 12 points in four games.

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Pakistan's squad for 2-match Test series vs Bangladesh

Shan Masood (c), Saud Shakeel (vc), Aamir Jamal (subject to Fitness), Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Kamran Ghulam, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Huraira, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Shaheen Shah Afridi.