Pakistan squad for England tour

The Pakistan cricket selectors Tuesday announced a 16-man squad for next month's tour to England. Pakistan will play three one-day internationals on a three-week tour.

The chairman of selectors Aamer Sohail, in a statement, said he was delighted with the progress the young team was making. "We won in Sharjah and were the losing finalist in Sri Lanka which means that we are on the right track. And keeping this in mind, we have tried to make minimum changes in the squad."

The selectors left out allrounder Abdul Razzaq, opener Taufeeq Umar, middle-order batsman Faisal Iqbal. Taufeeq has been replaced by Imran Nazir, Misbah-ul-Haq comes in for Faisal, Azhar Mahmood, who was one the nine players to be dropped after the World Cup, has also been recalled whereas uncapped Bilal Asad replaces Abdul Razzaq.

"Azhar Mahmood has been included keeping in view his excellent form with the bat and the ball in the English County Championships for Surrey. He is a utility player who, we strongly believe, will make a difference to the outlook of the team," Aamer Sohail said.

He said Imran Nazir was back as he has been in touch with the game. "Besides, is not only a popular choice of the followers of the game but we also tested him in nets on Monday evening. He looked in good nick."

The former captain defended the exclusion of Taufeeq saying: "He looked completely out of sorts in Sharjah and Sri Lanka. Although he is an excellent prospect and a future asset, he is getting out in a similar fashion which means that he has a flaw in his technique. I am sure he will sort out his problem."

Misbah-ul-Haq, who played in Sharjah but was left out for Sri Lanka, further strengthens the middle-order. "Misbah was a borderline case for the tour to Sri Lanka and I think he was very unlucky to miss the bus. But he was never out of reckoning as evident from the fact that he is back in the side. I think his inclusion will give more batting options to the captain."

On the exclusion of Abdul Razzaq, Aamer Sohail said, "Razzaq has struggled with his bowling and looks a bit tired. In his place, we have included Bilal Asad who is a batting allrounder and has performed exceptionally well in the domestic circuit averaging 63 in the just concluded domestic season and 1,260 first-class runs at 42 in the 2001-2002 season."

Inzamam-ul-Haq, one of the mainstays of Pakistan middle-order batsman, was not considered for selection because "he has not played cricket recently. But we are aware of his talent, experience and potential and it is just a matter of time that he will be back in the side.

"In the rebuilding phase, consistency has to be the key and I think we have more or less stuck to the select group of players. The tour to England will be a grueling and testing one for the youngsters but I am sure that it will be a great learning experience for them as well. The conditions there test your abilities to the limits and the England team has also done well in the recent months," Aamer Sohail said.

Squad:
1-Mohammad Hafeez
2-Imran Nazir
3-Faisal Athar
4-Yasir Hameed
5-Yousuf Youhana (vice-captain)
6-Younis Khan
7-Misbah-ul-Haq
8-Shoaib Malik
9-Bilal Asad
10-Azhar Mahmood
11-Rashid Latif (captain, wicketkeeper)
12-Shoaib Akhtar
13-Mohammad Sami
14-Shabbir Ahmed
15-Umar Gul
16-Danish Kaneria

Itinerary:
June 5: Arrive and transfer to Edinburgh
June 7: One-dayer vs Scotland, West of Scotland CC, Glasgow
June 9: One-dayer vs Essex, Chelmsford (d/n)
June 11: One-dayer vs Northamptonshire
June 14: One-dayer vs Leicestershire, Grace Road
June 17: First one-day international, Old Trafford (d/n)
June 20: Second one-day international, AMP Oval
June 22: Third one-day international, Lord's
June 23: Departure

Samiul Hasan
General Manager - Media
Mobile + 92 300 8424 389
27 May 2003