Pakistan on Tuesday revealed their playing XI for the third and final Test against Australia with left-handed batter Saim Ayub set to make his Test debut.
Opener Imam-ul-Haq and fast bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi are the two notable absentees with 21-year-old Saim and 30-year-old Sajid Khan have been drafted into their place.
Also Read: CBI Closes 2019 IPL Betting Cases Over Lack of Evidence
Ayub, who made his T20I debut in March last year, comes in the team on back of impressive List A performances for Karachi.
In the 8 T20Is he has played so far, Ayub has scored 123 runs at a strike-rate of 123.
Sajid returned to the Test arena after a gap of nearly two years having last played during Australia’s 2022 tour of Pakistan. He has a decent record in Tests with 22 wickets in seven games.
Pakistan captain Shan Masood said Afridi has been rested to manage his workload. “Shaheen Afridi has bowled most overs in world cricket in recent times. He gives his 150% in the training sessions as well. He keeps motivating his teammates. He is our main player. We’ll make sure we look after Shaheen Afridi really well,” said Masood.
Earlier on Tuesday, Australia revealed their playing XI for the Sydney Test against Pakistan, beginning on Wednesday, with the skipper confirming no changes.
The third Test will be played in Sydney from January 3 to 7. Australia have an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series and are currently No.3 on the ICC World Test Championship table.
The match is also the final of David Warner’s career who will retire after the Test.
Pakistan Playing XI: Saim Ayub, Abdullah Shafique, Shan Masood (captain), Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel, M Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Salman Ali Agha, Sajid Khan, Hassan Ali, Mir Hamza, Aamir Jamal
Comments
0 comment