Pakistan named a 14-member squad for the two-Test home series against Sri Lanka
Babar Azam will captain the side after the selection shake-up
Shan Masood, Mohammad Rizwan and Imam-ul-Haq were left out of the squad
Pakistan have named a 14-member squad for their two-Test home series against Sri Lanka. Babar Azam will captain the side. Shan Masood and Mohammad Rizwan are out. Salman Ali Agha is back, while three uncapped players have earned maiden Test call-ups.
Imam-ul-Haq is also missing as Pakistan lean towards youth for the series. Earlier on Saturday, Mohsin Naqvi described the Test squad as full of young blood. Rizwan and Imam are still under investigation over their conduct on the England tour.
Selection Shake-up
The omissions are the main talking point.
Former captain Masood, Rizwan and Imam have all been left out of the squad. Rizwan and Imam are still under investigation over their conduct on the England tour, which makes their absence from this series more notable.
Masood’s exclusion also draws attention. Masood was said to be 'fearful' of a possible drop, despite his 90 in the series finale against England.
Agha is back in the squad after Pakistan left him out during the August-September tour of England. He answered with a triple century and a century for Kingsmen Academy in the ongoing President’s Trophy Grade-I 2026/27.
New Faces And Returns
Left-arm spinner Ali Usman is back after missing Pakistan’s third Test against England. In August, he became the first overseas player since 1972 to take a five-wicket haul at Headingley.
Pakistan have also given first-time call-ups to Sameer Minhas, Mohammad Taha and Mohammad Suleman. Their selection follows strong domestic form in the President’s Trophy.
Taha tops the tournament’s run charts with 730 runs in seven matches, including three centuries and a best of 225. Suleman has 652 runs, while Sameer has 405.
Schedule And Squad
Veteran seamer Mohammad Abbas keeps his place after sharing Player of the Series honours in Pakistan’s latest red-ball outing.
Two more fast bowlers will be added after a three-day warm-up against Sri Lanka’s Test squad in Islamabad from November 4 to 6.
The first Test is set for Rawalpindi from November 9 to 13, and the second for Lahore from November 17 to 21. The series is part of the ICC World Test Championship 2025-27.
Pakistan Squad: Babar Azam (c), Abdullah Fazal, Ali Usman, Arafat Minhas, Azan Awais, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Ghazi Ghori (wk), Mohammad Suleman, Mohammad Taha, Razaullah, Saad Baig (wk), Salman Ali Agha, Sameer Minhas and Saud Shakeel.
