Mohd. Rizwan Named Captain For The Boxing Day Test

Mohd. Rizwan has been named captain for the Boxing Day Test in New Zealand that will also be the first of the two match series. So, here is a look at the development.

Read: The Least Offensive Memes We Could Find After India Was 36 All Out Against Australia

Mohd. Rizwan Named Captain

Test vice-captain Mohd. Rizwan is all set to skipper the green shirts for the first time ever in absence of regular skipper i.e. Babar Azam who is out owing to a thumb injury. 

Read: Mohd. Amir’s Retirement: Why It Should Matter And Why It Shouldn’t

So, What’s The Squad For The Game?

Pakistan’s squad for the opening encounter includes the following players.

Pakistan squad for first Test: Mohammad Rizwan (capt), Abid Ali, Azhar Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Fawad Alam, Haris Sohail, Imran Butt, Mohammad Abbas, Naseem Shah, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Afridi, Shan Masood, Sohail Khan, Yasir Shah.

Separately, the team management has also named a strong Shaheen’s squad for the five T20s that Pakistan’s A-team is all set to play against the Kiwi A-side.

Pakistan Shaheens for T20s: Rohail Nazir (capt & wk), Abdullah Shafiq, Amad Butt, Danish Aziz, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Hussain Talat, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Hasnain, Musa Khan, Usman Qadir, Wahab Riaz, Zafar Gohar, Zeeshan Malik.

Read: Shan Masood Terms Quarantine Period In NZ As A “Blessing in Disguise”

Misbah-ul-Haq Hopeful Of A Better Performance 

Following the development, Misbah-ul-Haq sounded hopeful of a better performance from the Test side. The Head coach then was quoted by pcb.com.pk as saying,

“Although it will be nearly two weeks to Babar’s injury when the first Test starts, it will be hard on him and the team to play him without any net sessions. I remain confident and optimistic that other players will rise to the occasion in Mount Maunganui and use the opportunity to rise to the occasion and put the disappointment of the T20I series behind them,” Misbah was quoted as saying by pcb.com.pk.

“Contrary to the T20I side, the Test side appears to be pretty organised and we boast some experienced cricketers, both in batting and bowling departments. With some competitive cricket on the tour now under the belt, I am hoping we will be a better outfit in the longer version of the game. 

“It is disappointing to lose the T20I series against a well-settled New Zealand side, who utilised their resources and conditions to their advantage. We need to up skill and improve our individual and team performances, including in Tuesday’s match, and the sooner we get these sorted the better it will be in term of player confidences and team results as 2021 will not be any easier as we have two major events”.