Shadab khan to lead as Pakistan announces squad for T20I series against Afghanistan.

Pakistan has named a fifteen-man squad for the three-match Twenty20 International series against Afghanistan in Sharjah.

Squad:

Shadab Khan (C), Abdullah Shafique, Azam Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Ihsanullah, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Haris (wk), Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Shan Masood, Tayyab Tahir, Zaman Khan make up the squad.

Reserves: Haseebullah, Usama Mir, Abrar Ahmed.

🚨 Pakistan squad for T20I series against Afghanistan in Sharjah 🚨#AFGvPAK | #BackTheBoysInGreen pic.twitter.com/gzObBOQ25K

— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) March 13, 2023

Shadab Khan will captain the national team in place of Babar Azam, who has been rested.

Najam Sethi, chairman of the PCB Management Committee, contacted Babar, Mohammad Rizwan, Shaheen Afridi, and Fakhar Zaman on Sunday and informed them that they will be granted rest.

Haris Rauf has likewise taken a break in order to manage his responsibilities.

The board is concerned about the players’ workload. As a result, the board views this as a crucial choice with the future in mind, particularly the T20 World Cup in 2024.

Najam Sethi, Chair of the PCB Management Committee:

“I want to congratulate Shadab Khan on his appointment as the Pakistan team captain for the series against Afghanistan. Shadab Khan has been the Pakistan vice-captain in white-ball cricket for the past couple of years and it is logical that he takes over the side in the absence of Babar Azam for the short three-match T20I tour of Sharjah.

Read More: Shaheen likely to replace Babar as captain for Afghanistan T20Is

“For the short Sharjah tour and to ensure continuity, we have also appointed Mohammad Yousuf as the interim head and batting coach. Yousuf has been with the national side since last year as a batting coach and has also been working in the National High Performance Centre.”

Last week, Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) jointly agreed to make slight tweaks to the itinerary of Afghanistan’s home three-match T20I series against Pakistan.

The start of the series was brought forward by a day and will now start on March 24, with the last two games to be played on March 26 and 27 in Sharjah, UAE.

Schedule

March 24: 1st T20I, Sharjah

March 26: 2nd T20I, Sharjah

March 27: 3rd T20I, Sharjah