‌Naseem Shah returns as Pakistan announce Playing XI for Rawalpindi Test 

Under Shan Masood’s leadership, Pakistan aims to continue its dominance in the red-ball format against Bangladesh. Having played just one Test versus Australia, Saim Ayub retained his spot at the top of the order. He scored a silver duck on debut before a 33-run knock in the Sydney Test last year. 

Muhammad Hurraira, who amassed 218 against Bangladesh High Performance XI in a four-day game in Darwin, has to wait for his chance. Apart from him, Sarfaraz Ahmed is the only batter left out from the XI. 

As for Aamer Jamal, the all-rounder was ruled out of the Test series despite being ‘subject to fitness’ earlier. He is currently rehabilitating at the National Cricket Academy, Lahore after failing to pass the fitness benchmark. 

Mohammad Ali and Khurram Shahzad will accompany Shaheen and Naseem in the pace battery as PCB opted to go without a regular spinner. Saud Shakeel and Salman Ali Agha are likely to roll their arm when the captain requires spin options. 

Shahzad made his debut against Australia in Perth last year where the medium pacer bagged five wickets across two innings. However, Naseem’s return to red-ball cricket (since his last game in July 2023) is one of the most positive news for the Pakistani side. 

Pakistan XI for the Bangladesh first Test

Abdullah Shafique, Saim Ayub, Shan Masood (c), Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Ali.