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The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Friday confirmed the omission of opener Saim Aub from the upcoming ICC Men's Champions Trophy 2025 which is scheduled to be played in Pakistan and in the United Arab Emirates after he was ruled out of the game for the next 10 weeks as he is still recovering from his injury in England, as per the ICC.
While Ayub will still miss Pakistan's ICC Champions Trophy defence at home, he has not yet been ruled out of the white-ball tour of New Zealand in March. "His availability for the New Zealand tour will be subject to clearing all fitness tests and medical requirements," the statement from PCB read as quoted by ICC. Pakistan are scheduled to play five T20Is and three ODIs between March 16 and April 5. Ayub had been a major name missing in Pakistan's squad for the upcoming major tournament. On his exclusion from the Champions Trophy squad, Pakistan's national selection committee member Asad Shafiq had explained, "We understand how much he was looking forward to the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 and recognise how devastating it must be for him to miss a global event, especially when he is in such exceptional batting form. However, as a valuable asset to our team, we are committed to prioritising his long-term health over making any rushed decisions." The Men in Green won the last Champions Trophy event held in 2017. This time, Pakistan are hosting this 2025 edition, along with the UAE. Mohammad Rizwan will lead the team, having done so since Babar Azam stepped down from the role after the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup in 2023. This is the first 50-over ICC tournament since then. Pakistan's Group Stage Fixtures: February 19 - Pakistan vs New Zealand, Karachi. February 23 - Pakistan vs India, Dubai. February 27 - Pakistan vs Bangladesh, Rawalpindi. Pakistan squad: Mohammad Rizwan (c), Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Tayyab Tahir, Faheem Ashraf, Khushdil Shah, Salman Ali Agha, Usman Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi. (ANI)
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