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Shaheen Afridi (Source: Twitter)
The Pakistan cricket team is currently in Australia for a three-match Test series starting December 16. The series will be crucial for both teams in the 2023-25 World Test Championship (WTC) cycle. Pakistan, who have not won a Test series in Australia, will be led by Shan Masood for the first time as Babar Azam recently announced his decision to step down from captaincy in all formats.
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The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced an 18-member squad last month, but their pace attack will be without veteran Haris Rauf. The 30-year-old pacer was offered selection but decided to decline, inviting a lot of criticism. There were reports that Wahab Riaz, Pakistan’s newly appointed chief selector, expressed his disappointment with Rauf’s decision.
Amidst all this, Pakistan's T20I captain Shaheen Shah Afridi backed his teammate, saying that every player has the right to choose the formats he wants to play. The left-arm pacer noted that Rauf feels he "doesn't have a big impact in red-ball cricket". Notably, Rauf was also absent from the team's last Test assignment.
"Haris was not part of the last series as well in Tests. Haris is a strength for Pakistan cricket in white-ball cricket. He will continue to be a main bowler in white-ball cricket. His impact in white-ball cricket is very high. I think it (not playing Test series in Australia) is his opinion. I think every player has to have his own opinion. It's about the rights of the individual. I think there was a discussion with him before the tour. I think he feels he doesn't have a big impact in red-ball cricket," Shaheen told reporters in Canberra.
His remark came ahead of Pakistan's Warm-up match against Prime Minister's XI at the Manuka Oval from December 6 to 9. Pakistan have not won a single Test match in Australia since 1995. In the last tour, the Asian team had lost both the Tests by an innings margin.
Pakistan squad for Australia Tests: Shan Masood (captain), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Noman Ali, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Saud Shakeel and Shaheen Shah Afridi