By Syed Mahmood Sharazi
The Pakistan Cricket Board’s selection committee has announced the sixteen-member squad for the two-Test series against New Zealand. Kamran Ghulam, a middle-order batsman from Upper Dir region of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, has also been included in the squad. Kamran Ghulam has not yet played any test match for Pakistan. He has been made a part of the sixteen-member Test squad.
Kamran Ghulam has been included in the squad in place of Azhar Ali, who announced his retirement from international cricket before the third and final Test match against England.Twenty-seven-year-old Kamran Ghulam has so far scored 3268 runs at an average of 47.36 in his first-class career in 44 matches, including ten centuries and eighteen half-centuries. Kamran Ghulam was previously included in the squad for the Test series against Bangladesh, but he was not given a place in the final XI.
The selectors have also recalled fast bowler Hasan Ali to the squad. Hasan Ali last played a Test against Sri Lanka in July 2022 but was overlooked for the England tour. Now apparently the selection committee needs the experience of Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf in their absence. Hasan Ali has taken 77 wickets in 21 Test matches so far.
Fast Bowler Haris Rauf has not been included in the squad as he was injured while fielding in the Rawalpindi Test. However, fast bowler Naseem Shah, who was ruled out of the Multan and Karachi Tests due to a shoulder problem, is being declared fit and has been retained in the squad. All-rounders Faheem Ashraf and Fast bowler Muhammad Ali have been dropped for the series against New Zealand.
The announced squad will consist of Babar Azam (Captain), Abdullah Shafiq, Abrar Ahmed, Hasan Ali, Imamul Haq, Kamran Ghulam, Muhammad Nawaz, Muhammad Rizwan, Muhammad Wasim Jr., Naseem Shah, Nouman Ali, Sarfraz Ahmed, Salman Ali Agha, Saud Shakeel, Shan Masood and Mohammad Zahid.
There will be a series of two Test matches between Pakistan and New Zealand and the first Test match will be played from December 26 in Karachi while the second Test match will be played in Multan from January 3.
Talking about the series against England earlier, this series will be remembered as a black spot in the history of Pakistan cricket. Because for the first time, Pakistan has been whitewashed by a team by 3-0 on their own soil and for the first time they have lost four Test matches in a row at their own soil, which is a bad record.
Another failure in Pakistan’s Test cricket is that the Pakistan Cricket Board has ignored the players performing in domestic cricket. When Saud Shakeel was given a place in the Test team against England on the basis of his domestic performance, he has proved his selection right. Saud Shakeel has made a brilliant start to his career by scoring 346 runs with the help of four fifties at an average of 57.66 in three matches against England. In this Test series, Abrar Ahmed was given a place in the team on domestic basis, so he also proved his choice right Took 17 wickets in just 2 test.
Similarly, now Kamran Ghulam has been included in the team after criticism, so it is also because of his excellent record in Domestic.
As long as we have the tradition of selecting the Test team on the basis of T20 cricket, the results will be the same as the England series. On the other hand, the way England has introduced a new dimension in the Test is also commendable, due to which the interest of the fans has also increased in five-day cricket.
Therefore, the cricket board administration has to give a chance to those players who play the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy all year round and by playing five-day cricket, they understand its nuances and requirements. With the Test series against New Zealand starting on the 26th, looking at the current team, it seems that the result of this series will not be a surprise either.
Looking at the defeat in the series against England, not much can be expected from the Pakistan cricket team against New Zealand.
