Pakistan's 18-member Test squad announced for Australia tour

   Pakistan Chief Selector Wahab Riaz has announced the 18-member Test team led by Shan Masood for the tour of Australia.

   Lahore:(News Hub Update latest ICC World Cup News. November 21, 2023) Pakistan cricket team will play a series of three Test matches between December 14 and January 7. The first Test will be played in Perth from December 14 to 18, the second Test in Melbourne from December 26 to 30, and the third in Sydney from January 3 to 7.

   Left-handed batsman Shaan Masood will lead Pakistan's Test team for the first time. He has been entrusted with the leadership in place of Babar Azam for the World Test Championship 2023-25. It should be remembered that Babar Azam resigned from Test captaincy last week. 

    Pakistan's 18-member Test squad

   Shan Masood (Captain), Amir Jamal, Abdullah Shafiq, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Imamul Haq, Khurram Shehzad, Saeem Ayub, Mirhamza, Muhammad Rizwan, Muhammad Wasim Jr., Nouman Ali, Salman. Ali Agha, Sarfraz Ahmed, Saud Shakeel, and Shaheen Shah Afridi are included.

   Left-handed batsman Saeem Ayub and fast bowler Khurram Shehzad have been included in Pakistan's Test team for the first time. Saeem Ayub scored 553 runs with the help of three centuries in four matches of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy of this season, in which the match-winning double century in the final against Faisalabad was noteworthy.

   Continuing his excellent form, Saeem Ayub also scored the highest 397 runs in the Pakistan Cup tournament and was declared the best batsman of the tournament. Khurram Shahzad, a fast bowler from Faisalabad, has taken 36 wickets at an average of 20.31 in this year's Quaid-e-Azam Trophy.

   Khurram Shahzad took 13 wickets while bowling well in the Pakistan Cup One-Day Tournament. Apart from this, all-rounder Faheem Ashraf, who played the last Test match in England's tour of Pakistan, has returned to the team.

   Similarly, Mohammad Wasim Jr. and Mir Hamza have also returned to the Test team. Both of them were part of the team in the home series against New Zealand.

   Chief selector Wahab Riaz says that the team has been selected keeping in mind the Australian pitches and challenging conditions.

   Chief selector Wahab Riaz says that Saeem Ayub has been included in the team for his excellent performance in domestic cricket, he has performed in both the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy and the Pakistan Cup.

   Wahab Riaz says Pakistan started the ICC World Test Championship with a win in Sri Lanka this year and hopes to maintain the momentum in Australia. We have included all the necessary resources in the selection to help you succeed in Australia.

   The Pakistan test team will assemble in Rawalpindi on November 22 for the training. This camp will continue from 23rd to 28th. The team will leave for Australia from Lahore on November 30. 

   The Pakistan Cricket Board has also invited some additional players for the training camp including Usama Mir, Shahnawaz Dhani, Arshad Iqbal, Kashif Ali, Shadab Khan, Muhammad Nawaz, and Usman Qadir.