Sarfraz names 12-member team for 1st T20 against West Indies

Pakistan Super League (PSL) stars Hussain Talat and Asif Ali are expected to make their international debut as both have been named in the 12-member team to face West Indies in the first T20 international at National Stadium on April 1.

Addressing to a press conference at National Stadium Karachi, Pakistan skipper Sarfraz Ahmed confirmed the final 12 for the first T20I.

Both of Islamabad United’s hard-hitting batsman Asif Ali and all-rounder Hussain Talat could make their debut for Pakistan on Sunday.

Ahmed Shehzad, Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Shoaib Malik, Asif Ali, Sarfraz Ahmed (captain, wicketkeeper), Hussain Talat, Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Nawaz, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Amir and Hasan Ali.

Returning pacers Rahat Ali and Usman Khan Shinwari and Lahore Qalandars’ speed sensation Shaheen Shah Afridi have been omitted from the lineup for the opening T20.

Sarfraz Ahmed has set eyes on a clean sweep of the West Indies in order to retain the top T20 team ranking for Pakistan.

A 3-0 victory will take Pakistan four points clear of Australia, who had closed in on them following a 2-0 series win over New Zealand last month. Pakistan and Australia are both currently on 126 points, with Pakistan ahead on decimal points, as per the International Cricket Council (ICC) rankings.

"Definitely, we [are aiming for] clean sweep, but [we won't be taking West Indies lightly]. Their team is quite strong, their players have been playing a lot of T20 cricket," said the skipper.

Sarfraz said that all attempts will be made to give opportunities to the youngsters in the team.

"We have very important tours coming up. England, South Africa.. We want to give confidence to the youngsters to [prepare them for the World Cup 2019]."

The 30-year old hailed the return of international cricket to Karachi after a hiatus of nine years.

"We are very excited to play in front of our home crowd after so long," he said, and thanked the foreign players who have visited [and are visiting] Pakistan.