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The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) have named a 16-member squad for the two-Test series against Bangladesh, set to get underway from May 8 in Dhaka. Shan Masood will lead the Test side, while Abdullah Fazal, Amad Butt, Azan Awais and Muhammad Ghazi Ghori are four uncapped players named in the squad, as per a PCB statement.
The opening match of the two-Test series, part of the ICC World Test Championship, is scheduled to take place at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Dhaka from May 8 to 12. The second Test will be held at the Sylhet International Cricket Stadium, running from May 16 to 20. Five members of the squad announced, Azan Awais, Imam-ul-Haq, Muhammad Ghazi Ghori, Noman Ali and Sajid Khan are currently participating in the ongoing NCA red-ball camp in Lahore. The squad will regroup in Karachi for another training camp beginning on 27 April. This camp will run until 1 May, after which the team is set to depart for Bangladesh on 2 May. Players included in the Test squad who are currently involved in the ongoing Pakistan Super League will join the camp once their respective teams complete their campaigns. Those whose teams progress to the final will travel to Bangladesh after the tournament concludes. The PCB has also announced the red-ball coaching staff for the Bangladesh tour, naming former Test captain Sarfaraz Ahmed as the team's head coach. Sarfaraz, who led Pakistan to two ICC titles--the ICC U19 World Cup in 2006 and the ICC Champions Trophy in 2017--recently guided the Pakistan U19 team to victory in the ACC Men's U19 Asia Cup as a mentor/manager in December last year. Former Test cricketers Asad Shafiq and Umar Gul will serve as batting and bowling coaches, respectively, during the tour. Asad appeared in 147 international matches--77 Tests, 60 ODIs, and 10 T20Is--amassing 6,188 runs, which included 12 centuries and 36 half-centuries. Meanwhile, right-arm fast bowler Umar played 237 internationals--47 Tests, 130 ODIs, and 60 T20Is--claiming a total of 427 wickets. Pakistan squad for the Test series in Bangladesh: Shan Masood (captain), Abdullah Fazal, Amad Butt, Azan Awais, Babar Azam, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Muhammad Ghazi Ghori (wk), Noman Ali, Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha, Saud Shakeel and Shaheen Shah Afridi. (ANI)
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