The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had announced a preliminary 15-man squad last month for the 2019 World Cup. But they have chopped and changed some of the names, as they went for experience in English conditions. Veteran pacer Wahab Riaz, Asif Ali and Mohammed Amir have found a place in the squad while Junaid Khan has failed to make the cut.
Junaid also found himself at the receiving end as his name was missing from the reserved players’ list as well. Wahab and Amir were snubbed in the previous list of players but the duo will be joined by Hasan Ali to put up a formidable bowling pack.
Pakistan were below-par against England
Pakistan’s recent ODI series against England didn’t go as planned. They lost the contest by a 0-4 margin and were found wanting on most cases. Their poor bowling pushed the selectors to press the panic button and head towards experienced campaigners.
Mohammad Rizwan named in the reserves list, Amir likely to recover in time
The men in green managed to go past the 300-run mark at will but failed to get over the line as England had the last laugh on all occasions. Amir has an impressive record in England and he was instrumental in Pakistan lifting the 2017 Champions Trophy.
Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Rizwan and Abid Ali have made it to the reserved players’ list.“Mohammad Rizwan, Abid Ali and Faheem Ashraf will remain in England. They’ll play cricket to stay in touch with the conditions and if we feel the need for any of them as replacements then we’ll have them as a backup,” chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq said while speaking to the reporters on Monday. Pakistan will kick-start their World Cup campaign on May 31, where they will clash against Windies at Trent Bridge in Nottingham.
Meanwhile, Shadab Khan has been declared fit to travel to England. Yasir Shah was named as his replacement but the leggie has been released from the final squad announced on Monday.