Shadab to lead new-look team against Afghanistan T-20 series: Najam Sethi

LAHORE (Monitoring Desk) : Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Management Committee Chairman Najam Sethi said on Monday Shadab Khan would be leading the Pakistan cricket team in the T-20 series against Afghanistan.

Addressing a press conference alongside Chief Selector Haroon Rasheed, Mr Sethi said Babar Azam, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf and Muhammad Rizwan would be rested and new players would be afforded an opportunity to prove their mettle.

Mr Sethi added that some players of the national team needed rest. The government, he said, wanted the national team to play with Afghanistan. Preparations for the next world cup had started and series against Afghanistan would be taken as a training round, he added.

Mr Sethi said the youngsters had been given a chance to play against Afghanistan in the three-match series. He said India wanted to shift world cup from Pakistan.

He said earlier it was rumoured that captain of the team was going to be changed. He said the senior players including Babar Azam had already been taken into confidence in this regard.

Meanwhile, Chief Selector Haroon Rasheed announced the Pakistan squad. The players are: Shadab Khan (Captain), Fahim Ashraf, Imad Wasim, Azam Khan, Ihsanullah, Mohammad Haris, Muhammad Waseem Junior, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Tayab Tahir, Shan Masood, Abdullah Shafique, Iftikhar Ahmad, Zaman Khan, Abrar Ahmad, Haseebullah, Usama Mir and Muhammad Nawaz.