Babar Azam To Captain Pakistan On West Indies And England Test Tours

Babar Azam To Captain Pakistan On West Indies And England Test Tours (Image Source: AFP)

Pakistan on Sunday replaced struggling Test captain Shan Masood with Babar Azam, who will start a third stint as skipper on the tours of the West Indies and England starting later this month.

Masood, 36, took over from Azam in December 2023 and led the side to 12 defeats in 16 Tests. Pakistan finished ninth and last in the last World Test Championship cycle.

They again lie ninth in the current cycle after a 2-0 series defeat in Bangladesh in May.

"Azam will be our new Test captain as we feel that Masood could not lead as desired," said Pakistan selector Aaqib Javed at a news conference to announce the squad on Sunday.

"The selection committee discussed who could be the best player to lead Pakistan and Azam is the best option," said Javed.

This will be top-order batsman Azam's third spell in charge of the side, having stepped down in November 2023 and then again in October 2024.

Pakistan will play the first of two Tests against the West Indies in Tarouba, Trinidad, from July 25. The second begins in Port-of-Spain from August 2,

Pakistan will then travel to England for Tests at Headingley, beginning August 19, Lord's from August 27 and Edgbaston starting on September 9.

Fast bowlers Shaheen Shah Afridi and Hasan Ali were omitted after being part of the squad that lost 2-0 in Bangladesh.

Selectors awarded a place to 20-year-old uncapped fast bowler Ubaid Shah, the younger brother of Naseem, who was left out of the squad.

Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Abbas and Mohammad Ali were the three other fast bowlers selected.

Uncapped middle-order batsman Awais Zafar and left-arm spinner Ali Usman were included for the first time.

Pakistan squad: Babar Azam (captain), Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Fazal, Ali Usman, Azan Awais, Imam-ul-Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Rizwan, Awais Zafar, Ghazi Ghori, Sajid Khan, Salman Agha, Shan Masood, Ubaid Shah, Saud Shakeel (subject to fitness for England)