Moin Khan’s son Azam surprise inclusion in Pakistan squad for tour of England

Lahore: Pakistan Cricket Board selectors on Friday announced the surprising inclusion of hard-hitting batsman Azam Khan in the T20I squad for the tour of England and West Indies from late June to August.

Azam, son of former  wicketkeeper Moin Khan, was the surprise pick because the 22-year-old has played just one first-class game in his life but has gained fame for his six-hitting prowess in 36 T20 matches.

Middle-order batsman Harris Sohail has been named in the ODI side while Imad Wasim made his comeback to the T20I squad for the tour.

The PCB has also retained leg-spinner Zahid Mahmood, left-arm spinner Nauman Ali and off-spinner Sajid Khan for the West Indies Tests.

Leg-spinner Yasir Shah’s inclusion is subject to fitness as he is yet to fully recover from a knee injury that sidelined him from the Zimbabwe Test series.

Pakistan are scheduled to play three ODIs and three T20Is in England starting July 8 in Cardiff, following which they will depart for the Caribbean on July 21 to play five T20Is and two Tests.

Squads:

ODIs: Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-capt), Abdullah Shafique, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Haris Sohail, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Saud Shakeel, Shaheen Afridi, and Usman Qadir

T20Is: Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-capt), Arshad Iqbal, Azam Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Mohammad Wasim Jr, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Shaheen Afridi, Sharjeel Khan, and Usman Qadir

Tests: Babar Azam (captain), Mohammad Rizwan (vice-capt/wk), Abdullah Shafique, Abid Ali, Azhar Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Fawad Alam, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Imran Butt, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Nauman Ali, Sajid Khan, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Saud Shakeel, Shaheen Afridi, Shahnawaz Dahani, Yasir Shah (subject to fitness) and Zahid Mahmood

(With IANS inputs)