Lahore, May 21 (IANS) Pakistan have named a 16-player squad for their upcoming T20I series at home against Bangladesh with former skipper Babar Azam, veteran keeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan and pace spearhead Shaheen Afridi being the notable absentees.

PCB said that the selection of the squad was based upon performances during the ongoing Pakistan Super League (PSL) season. This isn’t the first time Babar, Rizwan, and Afridi have been dropped from T20 setup. Earlier in April, the trio was also axed from the T20I series against New Zealand, but they were part of the ODI matches.

The three-match series, slated to take place at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore, will be Mike Hesson’s first series in charge as coach, with the schedule to be announced in the coming days.

Batter Salman Ali Agha will continue as skipper with all-rounder Shadab Khan his deputy, while experienced white-ball performers Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah are also included.

Pakistan will be boosted by the return of swashbuckling batter Saim Ayub to the lineup, after his bout with injury. Ayub had been ruled out midway through Pakistan’s tour of South Africa earlier this year after he fractured his ankle while fielding in the second Test in February. The left-handed batter had marked his comeback to competitive cricket in the ongoing PSL season.

Meanwhile, 29-year-old batter Sahibzada Farhan has been rewarded for his performances at the PSL by winning a recall back into the T20I setup for the first time since 2018. He has scored 394 runs from his 10 outings so far in the PSL at a strike rate of 154.50, and leads the run-scoring charts at the event.

Pakistan squad: Salman Ali Agha (c), Shadab Khan (vc), Abrar Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Hassan Nawaz, Hussain Talat, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub

–IANS

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