Pakistan will be resting skipper Babar Azam and three other key players for their upcoming ODI series against Afghanistan, ESPNcricinfo stated in a report. Babar, alongside pacers Shaheen Afridi, Hasan Ali and wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Rizwan, will be provided a much-needed break before getting on with preparations for the T20 World Cup.
Pakistan have identified the Afghanistan series as an opportunity to rest the four cricketers, who have spent excessive time within bio-security bubbles due to the COVID-19 pandemic amid a busy, all-format international and domestic calendar.
Besides the successive tours to South Africa, Zimbabwe, England and West Indies since April, players have also played the Pakistan Super League 2021 in two separate legs at home and in Abu Dhabi.
Rizwan and Babar have featured in 44 and 40 of Pakistan’s 45 internationals since cricket resumed after an elongated break last year. And though Shaheen (37) and Hasan (20) have been less busy, the four all-format stars require their workloads to be managed carefully.
“We wanted to rest because for the last year we have continuously been playing cricket. Luckily, our cricket has increased but at the same time, the major issues are we are living in bubble where life is tough.”
“Our focus is on the next big event, the T20 World Cup, and so we wanted a rest so we were mentally and physically up for it.”
Rizwan said in a virtual press conference, as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.
While the squad will be out officially on Friday, Pakistan look set to be led by wrist-spinner Shadab Khan for their upcoming ODIs. The absence of Babar, Rizwan, Hasan and Shaheen would give the selectors and the management a great chance to test the bench strength and see which players can fill in if an opportunity arrives in the near future.
The squad picked for the series will assemble at the National High Performance Center in Lahore before flying across to Sri Lanka, where Hambantota will play host to the three ODIs on September 3, 5 and 8.
The ODI series is part of the two teams’ campaign in the ICC Super League. The Super League finalises direct qualification spots for the 2023 World Cup.
