Pakistan’s newly-appointed T20I captain Shaheen Shah Afridi on Thursday brushed aside any whiff of controversy surrounding the change in the T20I opening pair, insisting that the management wanted to try new combinations and test the bench strength before the T20I World Cup.
Shaheen was appointed as T20I captain in November; days after Babar Azam gave up the all-format captaincy. Shaheen will lead Pakistan for the first time in a five-match T20I series against New Zealand.
“Amidst speculations, it’s crucial to understand our perspective,” Shaheen said during the pre-match press conference in Auckland.
“We have 17 games before the World Cup, which is later this year. We want to make sure we have our combination locked in time for that but we also want to ensure that we have a strong bench, in case of injuries during the tournament.”
He said the management will test younger talent and rotate the players so that they have clarity about combination by the time the team plays series against England.
Responding to a question about his absence from the crucial third Test against Australia, which Pakistan lost by 8 wickets, Shaheen said he took rest “because of body fatigue.”
“I had bowled over 100+ plus overs in two Tests, so my body felt sore. Therefore, the management advised me to take rest to avoid an injury scare.”
The much-anticipated series will kick off on January 12 at Eden Park in Auckland. The first ball of the match will be bowled at 11:10 am PKT. Here is Pakistan’s squad and complete schedule of the series.
Pakistan’s squad for tour of New Zealand
Shaheen Shah Afridi (captain), Mohammad Rizwan (vice-captain, wicket-keeper), Aamir Jamal, Abbas Afridi, Azam Khan (wicket-keeper), Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah (wicket-keeper), Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Usama Mir and Zaman Khan.
Full Schedule
- 1st T20 – 12 January 2024 at Eden Park, Auckland
- 2nd T20 – 14 January 2024 at Seddon Park, Hamilton
- 3rd T20 – 17 January 2024 at University Oval, Dunedin
- 4th T20 – 19 January 2024 at Hagley Oval, Christchurch
- 5th T20 – 21 January 2024 at Hagley Oval, Christchurch
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