Babar, Afridi, Naseem Return as PCB Announces Squads for Tours of Australia and Zimbabwe

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has announced the squads for the upcoming tours of Australia and Zimbabwe, marking the return of key players Babar Azam, Shaheen Shah Afridi, and Naseem Shah to the national team for the ODI and T20I series against Australia next month. This trio had been omitted from Pakistan's last two Tests against England but will now play in both white-ball formats. However, they will not participate in the subsequent ODI or T20I series in Zimbabwe.

While the PCB's statement did not name a captain, it indicated that chairman Mohsin Naqvi would reveal the captain during a press conference in Lahore later today. Mohammad Rizwan, who is considered a strong candidate for the captaincy in both formats, has been rested from the T20Is against Zimbabwe. Another potential captain, Salman Ali Agha, is included in all four white-ball squads for both tours.

Shadab Khan has been dropped from the squad, with left-arm wrist spinner Sufiyan Muqeem added to both T20I traveling parties. Off-spinning allrounder Qasim Akram will join the team in Zimbabwe for the T20Is.

Wicketkeeper Mohammad Haris has fallen out of favor and does not feature in any of the squads, while Haseebullah Khan, who played one T20I in New Zealand in January, has been included in all four. Saim Ayub, a top-order power hitter primarily known for T20s, did not make the T20I squads after a difficult run but is included in both ODI squads.

Squad Details:

Australia Tour (Nov 4-18)

• ODI Squad: Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Arafat Minhas, Babar Azam, Faisal Akram, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah (WK), Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Rizwan (WK), Muhammad Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi
• T20I Squad: Arafat Minhas, Babar Azam, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah, Jahandad Khan, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Rizwan (WK), Muhammad Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Omair Bin Yousuf, Sahibzada Farhan, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufiyan Moqim, Usman Khan

Zimbabwe Tour (Nov 24 - Dec 5)

• ODI Squad: Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Ahmed Daniyal, Faisal Akram, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah (WK), Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Rizwan (WK), Muhammad Irfan Khan, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shahnawaz Dahani, Tayyab Tahir
• T20I Squad: Ahmed Daniyal, Arafat Minhas, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah (WK), Jahandad Khan, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Hasnain, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Omair bin Yousuf, Qasim Akram, Sahibzada Farhan, Salman Ali Agha, Sufiyan Moqim, Tayyab Tahir, Usman Khan