Pakistan pick uncapped Rohail Nazir, Asif Afridi and Faisal Akram for Tests against SA

Three uncapped players - spin-bowling allrounder Asif Afridi, left-arm wristspinner Faisal Akram, and wicketkeeper-batter Rohail Nazir - have been included in an expanded 18-man Pakistan squad for the two-Test series at home against South Africa. The squad, though, which will be trimmed closer to the start of the first Test, which begins on October 12 in Lahore.

As reported earlier, Shan Masood will continue as captain, and the squad - minus the players who are returning from the Asia Cup - will take part in a training camp in Lahore starting this evening and running till October 8. Abrar Ahmed, Hasan Ali, Salman Agha and Shaheen Shah Afridi, the players at the Asia Cup, will join the camp on October 4.

The camp will be overseen by red-ball head coach Azhar Mahmood and NCA coaches.

Of the newcomers, 38-year-old Afridi is very experienced with 57 first-class appearances, in which he has taken 198 wickets at an average of 25.49.

Twenty-two year old Akram, meanwhile, is almost at the other end of the age spectrum. He made his first-class debut only in December 2023, and has played nine games in the format for 44 wickets at an average of 30.95. Akram has also played three ODIs, in which he has five wickets.

The two of them will add to Pakistan's spin options, which also has regulars Sajid Khan, Noman Ali and Abrar.

Nazir, the third of the new faces, is a 23-year-old who is thought of highly in the domestic circles in Pakistan. He has already made his T20I debut, at the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games, and has played 43 first-class matches since making his debut in the 2018-19 season, averaging 34.45 with the bat.

The fast-bowling options, meanwhile, for Pakistan are the tried-and-tested Shaheen Afridi, Hasan Ali and Aamir Jamal, while the batting department wears an experienced and solid look, with Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Saud Shakeel and other regulars joining captain Masood.

The second Test will be played in Rawalpindi from October 20, and will be followed by a three-match T20I series and a three-match ODI series.

Shan Masood (capt), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Asif Afridi, Babar Azam, Faisal Akram, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Kamran Ghulam, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Noman Ali, Rohail Nazir (wk), Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha, Saud Shakeel, Shaheen Shah Afridi