Pakistan team for New Zealand tour announced

The Pakistan team for the series against New Zealand was announced and wicket-keeper Kamran Akmal wasn’t given a selection. The selectors announced the teams for the T20Is and the Test matches and Akmal wasn’t afforded a place in either of the sides.

In place of Kamran Akmal, his younger brother Adnan Akmal has been given another chance.

Apart from Akmal’s exclusion, Shoaib Malik continued to remain out of the side as well after consistent failures on the tour of England. Malik was not selected for the series against South Africa either.

However, the plot thickened when it was announced that the non-inclusion of the pair was because the Pakistan Cricket Board had not given the clearance to the Pakistani selectors to get them in. According to the Pakistan chief selector, Mohsin Khan, there were
many players who were discussed but the PCB failed to give clearance to the aforementioned duo.

Amongst others, even Mohammad Yousuf wasn’t selected in the Test squad. Yousuf’s fitness has been of a concern in recent times after he was selected for the series against South Africa, but pulled up before the first Test match and had to return back home.
Earlier, he had not been selected before the ODIs as well because of a troublesome groin.

Mohsin said, “Yousuf is a great player we all know that, but we are concerned over his fitness levels and so have not picked him.”

Shahi Afridi will continue to lead the T20I side while Misbah ul Haq will captain the side in the Test matches. Younis Khan also gets an opportunity in the T20Is after he had announced his retirement from the format in 2009.

Some of the others who were axed from the side that played in the series against South Africa are Mohammad Sami and Imran Farhat.

Pakistan T20I squad: Shahid Afridi (capt), Ahmed Shahzad, Mohammad Hafeez, Umar Akmal, Younis Khan, Adnan Akmal (wk), Fawad Alam, Abdur Rehman, Saeed Ajmal, Umar Gul, Abdul Razzaq, Tanvir Ahmed, Shoaib Akhtar, Sohail Tanvir, Wahab Riaz.

Pakistan Test squad: Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), Taufeeq Umar, Younis Khan, Mohammad Hafeez, Asad Shafiq, Umar Akmal, Azhar Ali, Adnan Akmal (wk), Abdur Rehman, Saeed Ajmal, Tanvir Ahmed, Umar Gul, Sohail Tanvir, Wahab Riaz.