Pakistan Cricket Board regularly drops new pieces worthy of discussion. Which, as a fan of their work, is an immense privilege. However, it does make the fans question their own sanity. Even get a few to think if they have followed the sport enough? Are they missing out on some big piece of information? Because the story is not aligning as it should. Ideally, the players that form the core of your team should not be forced out of the squad 48 hours before the game. But ideally, you also don’t sack the selection committee shortly after losing a match. Ideally, you also do not stick to playing on the same strip that humiliated you a few days ago. Ideally, you don’t use the word ideally for PCB.
Pakistan have decided to drop Babar Azam, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sarfaraz Ahmed, and Naseem Shah from the squad that has yet to play England in two Test games. From the reports, it was a decision taken by the newly formed selection committee consisting of Aaqib Javed, Azhar Ali, and Aleem Dar with almost no input from the captain and coach. In their stead, the management has called up Kamran Ghulam, Haseebullah, and Mehran Mumtaz, all of who have a collection of zero Test caps. In addition, Sajid Khan and Noman Ali have also been added to a squad that is already light on pacers. You can only make this up if you have spent enough time examining and studying the pattern of behavior and the love for kamikaze-ing that Pakistan’s management shows.
The second Test of the series is scheduled to begin on 15th October at Multan Cricket Stadium. Pakistan will play on the same strip that allowed one shy of 1600 runs to be scored over the course of the game by both teams during the first Test match. The strip has been dried more with ginormous fans at both ends of the strip, and that justifies Pakistan’s inclination towards a spin-heavy attack. The team will have to field less experienced pacers to complement the spinners including Aamer Jamal, Mir Hamza, and Mohammad Ali.
In place of Babar, who is Pakistan’s most capped active Test player, the young Mohammad Huraira or Kamran Ghulam will be brought in, though this might also affect Saim Ayub or Abdullah Shafique’s place in the team.
Babar has struggled to maintain his form, and so have his numbers shown. It has been 18 innings since the last time he scored a Test fifty. Even the flat pitch of Multan could not see him put some big scores on the board. A break would surely do wonders for him, however, dropping three of the main players in one go can hurt the team rather than do any good.
Pakistan squad for the remaining Test tour against England: Shan Masood (captain), Saud Shakeel (vice-captain), Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Haseebullah (wicket-keeper), Kamran Ghulam, Mehran Mumtaz, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Huraira, Mohammad Rizwan (wicket-keeper), Noman Ali, Saim Ayub, Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha and Zahid Mehmood.
