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Uncapped Trio Earn Surprise Pakistan Test Call-Ups
30 Sep
Summary
- Asif Afridi, Faisal Akram, and Rohail Nazir named in 18-man squad
- Shan Masood to continue as Test captain despite poor record
- Five spinners selected, suggesting low and slow pitches
On September 30, 2025, the Pakistan Cricket Board announced an 18-man squad for the upcoming two-match Test series against South Africa. The squad includes three uncapped players: Asif Afridi, Faisal Akram, and Rohail Nazir.
Despite a captaincy record of just three wins from 12 games, Shan Masood will continue to lead the Test side. He will be joined at the top of the order by Abdullah Shafique and Imam-ul-Haq, while the middle-order features Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Kamran Ghulam, Salman Ali Agha, and Saud Shakeel. Nazir is another wicket-keeping option for the hosts.
On the bowling front, Pakistan have named five spinners - Noman Ali, Sajid Khan, Abrar Ahmed, and left-arm bowlers Afridi and Akram. This suggests the pitches for the series might be low and slow. The pace attack is rounded off by Aamir Jamal, Hasan Ali, Khurram Shahzad, and Shaheen Shah Afridi.
The two-match Test series, which marks the start of Pakistan and South Africa's ICC World Test Championship 2025-27 cycle, will be played from October 12 to October 20. South Africa are the defending champions of the World Test Championship mace, while Pakistan finished at the bottom of the standings last time around, winning only five of their 14 Tests.
