On Tuesday, 9th April, the Pakistan Cricket Board announced their official 17 member squad for the upcoming New Zealand T20i series. The Pakistan vs New Zealand five match T20i series is set to commence from 18th April.
The Men in Green will host New Zealand for a five match T20 International Series from 18th April. The first three T20i’s will be played at Rawalpindi’s Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on 18th, 20th and 21st April. The two sides will then travel to the Gaddafi Stadium of Lahore for the remaining two games.
Babar Azam has once again been reappointed as the captain of Pakistan in all the white ball formats and is set to lead the Shaheens in the T20i series against New Zealand and he will be handling the leadership duties in the upcoming 2024 T20 World Cup as well.
Fast Bowler Mohammad Amir has made his much awaited return to the National squad of Pakistan after a gap of four years. He last played for the Shaheens way back in August 2020.
Along with Amir, spin bowling All – Rounder Imad Wasim who came out of retirement recently has been picked in the squad for the New Zealand series as well.
Fast bowler Haris Rauf, who was recently reinstated in the central contract list of Pakistan Cricket, is not a part of the squad for the New Zealand series as he has not recovered completely from the shoulder injury which he suffered during PSL 2024.
“Our decision of including Mohammad Amir and Imad Wasim in the squad was a pretty easy one as they made themselves available for selection for the T20i series against New Zealand. The decision to include them was made in consideration of Mohammad Nawaz’s poor form and Haris Rauf’s injury. Imad and Amir are proven match winners and they have helped Pakistan Cricket to achieve success in the past and we have full faith that they will give their best to help our team achieve our goals,” Senior Team’s manager and selection committee member Wahab Riaz said in a press statement released by the Pakistan Cricket Board.
Pakistan’s squad for the T20i series against New Zealand:
Babar Azam (Captain), Azam Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Iftikhar Ahmed, Fakhar Zaman, Abbas Afridi, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Rizwan, Naseem Shah, Irfan Khan, Shadab Khan, Saim Ayub, Usama Mir, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Zaman Khan and Usman Khan.
Reserves- Mohammad Ali, Haseebullah Khan, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Salman Ali Agha and Sahibzada Farhan.
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