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Pakistan have promoted Saud Shakeel to the role of vice-captain as the Pakistan Cricket Board announced a 17-player squad for their two-match Test series against Bangladesh that commences later this month.
Shakeel will take over the crucial job of vice captain from Shaheen Afridi, with selectors advising the star quick to have his workload managed over the coming months, with the side scheduled to play nine Tests, 14 T20Is, and at least 17 ODIs between now and the start of April next year, as per the ICC. The promotion of Shakeel to partner skipper Shan Masood in the leadership positions is among the biggest surprises from Pakistan's announcement, as the Asian side named a new-look 17-player squad for their first Test series under head coach Jason Gillespie. Opener Imam-ul-Haq drops out of the squad completely, Hasan Ali and Mohammad Wasim Jr aren't considered due to injury, while Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Nawaz, Noman Ali and Sajid Khan are all notable absentees for the first squad selected by Gillespie. Pakistan have recalled pace duo Naseem Shah and Mohammad Ali following a long absence from Test cricket and handed batters Mohammad Huraira and Kamran Ghulam call-ups for potential debuts at Test level after some impressive performances in domestic cricket. In total, 13 of the 17 players selected were involved in Pakistan's recent Test series in Australia over the new year. Huraira, Ghulam, Ali and Naseem are the fresh faces for the two matches against Bangladesh. The series is set to commence in Rawalpindi on August 21, with the second test scheduled to be held in Karachi on August 30. Pakistan currently sits in fifth place on the ICC World Test Championship standings and will be looking for a pair of positive results against Bangladesh to remain in touch with the pacesetters of the competition, as per the ICC. Pakistan squad: 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 Afridi. (ANI)
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