The development comes a day after Pakistan made wholesale changes following their 194-run defeat to England at Lord’s, which left them 2-0 down in the three-match Test series.
Former Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq has offered his resignation from the Pakistan men’s national selection committee following the Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) decision to make major changes to the Test squad and coaching staff during the ongoing tour of England, according to Cricinfo. The PCB is yet to accept Misbah’s resignation, according to the report. He has also decided to step down from his role as a batting consultant at the National Cricket Academy in Lahore.
The PCB released seven players from the Test squad ahead of the third Test at Edgbaston, beginning September 9. Pakistan have brought in five uncapped players along with Saim Ayub and Abdullah Fazal, who have a combined experience of just 10 matches. Misbah, who retired as Pakistan’s most successful Test captain in 2017, has held several positions within the PCB over the years. He was appointed head coach and chief selector in 2019, before stepping down as chief selector in October 2020 to focus on his coaching responsibilities. He later resigned as head coach in 2021. He was subsequently appointed as one of five mentors for the men’s Champions Cup in 2024 and also worked with women’s domestic teams. Last month, he coached the Pakistan Gold side to victory in the 50-over National Champions Cup in Multan under captain Shaheen Afridi.
Mohammad Rizwan, Imam-ul-Haq, Salman Agha, Ali Usman, Aamer Jamal, Awais Zafar and Khurram Shahzad were among the players released from the squad. Sarfaraz Ahmed and Umar Gul were also removed from their roles as head coach and bowling coach, respectively. The five uncapped players added to the squad are Arafat Minhas, Mohammad Imran Jnr, Saad Baig, Mohammad Imran Randhawa and Razaullah. Pakistan squad for Birmingham Test against England: Babar Azam (captain), Abdullah Fazal, Arafat Minhas, Azan Awais, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Ali, Muhammad Imran, Mohammad Imran Jnr, Muhammad Ghazi Ghori (wk), Razaullah, Saad Baig (wicketkeeper), Saim Ayub, Sajid Khan, Saud Shakeel, Shan Masood, Abdullah Shafique, Ubaid Shah.
