Naseem Shah on Tuesday was included in the Pakistan squad for the first Test against Australia, beginning here on Friday, after Haris Rauf was ruled out due to Covid-19.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Rauf helped Lahore Qalandars win the PSL final on Sunday evening and as a result, he joined the squad on Monday. However, in a test on Tuesday, he was tested positive for the virus. As a result, Naseem, who was originally a travelling reserve, has been added to the squad.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The 28-old pacer will now remain in isolation for five days following the positive test and will rejoin the squad once his quarantine is over.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Meanwhile, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) also confirmed that the rest of the squad and support staff were retested following Rauf's positive result with all tests coming out negative.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"Following Rauf's positive test on Tuesday, the rest of the squad members and support personnel were retested. All these tests have come out negative," the PCB said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Even though Rauf has never played a Test match for Pakistan, he is now a regular member of the white-ball squads and was in running to make his debut in red-ball cricket in Rawalpindi following injuries to Hasan Ali and Faheem Ashraf.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
On the other hand, the 19-year-old Naseem, whose last Test appearance came in January 2021 in Christchurch, is now likely to battle it out with Mohammad Wasim Jr for a spot in the playing XI for the first Test.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The three-Test series is the first time Australia will play in Pakistan since 1998.<\/p>\r\n\r\n