Haris Rauf is included in Pakistan’s test squad while Shaheen Shah Afridi is not as he was “unavailable” for selection after he underwent appendicitis surgery.

The team for the forthcoming three-match Test series against England was announced by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Monday. The series is scheduled to start on December 1. Shaheen Shah Afridi, a star sprinter, was left off the roster because he was “unavailable for selection after undergoing appendix surgery on Sunday, which would require three to four weeks’ rest before he can continue his two-week rehabilitation on his right knee.”

Pakistan has named an 18-player squad for its three ICC World Test Championship matches against England in December. Mystery spinner Abrar Ahmed and fast bowler Mohammad Ali have received their first Test calls-ups as a result of their outstanding first-class performances. Uncapped The other two players who have returned to the team are Mohammad Wasim Jr. and Zahid Mehmood, who were both a part of the Test squad for the three Tests against Australia earlier this year.

The team has undergone four changes since Pakistan’s most recent Test match, which was played in Sri Lanka and resulted in a 1-1 tie in the two-match series. Hasan Ali, Fawad Alam, Yasir Shah, and Shaheen Shah Afridi are the four players who aren’t on the team. “Fawad managed 33 runs in four innings of three Tests against Australia earlier this year, while he scored 25 runs in his only Test in Sri Lanka. Hasan Ali took five wickets in his last four Tests against Australia and Sri Lanka, while Yasir Shah bagged nine wickets in Sri Lanka but has managed only 14 wickets in seven Quaid-e-Azam Trophy matches to date,” stated an official media release.

The three Test matches are scheduled to take place in Rawalpindi (1-5 December), Multan (9-13 December), and Karachi as part of the ICC World Test Championship (17-21 December). In the 2021–23 cycle, each of the nine teams plays six series—three at home and three away. Pakistan’s next series will be their last one, which will be two Test matches against New Zealand in December 2022 and January 2023. English participation in the second World Test Championship will end with these three Test matches.

Pakistan squad for England Tests Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Azhar Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Haris Rauf, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Naseem Shah, Nauman Ali, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Saud Shakeel, Shan Masood and Zahid Mehmood