Pakistan’s squad for Champions Trophy largely confirmed, PCB waiting for clarity on Saim Ayub

by · Inside Sport India

Saim Ayub has been exceptional batter for Pakistan in ODIs, where in 9 ODIs he has scored 515 runs at an average of 64.

As per a fresh report in Cricket Pakistan, PAK’s squad for the Champions Trophy is largely decided, but the final announcement will only be made after getting a clarity on batter Saim Ayub‘s injury. The report says that the likes of Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, and Naseem Shah will be there in the squad for sure.

Pakistan to Reveal Champions Trophy Squad Soon

But then, Saim is yet to get a clearance from the doctors. In fact, a review will be done for every player in the mix, and the names will be submitted to the PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi post that. It is interesting to note that Pakistan is the only team left to announce their squad. Team India too named theirs on Jan 18.

While the provisional squad was to be named by Jan 12, the changes can be made until Feb 11. But truth be told, it seems unlikely that Saim Ayub will be able to make it to the squad eventually. He had suffered an ankle injury during the South Africa series, and was expected to be out for 6 weeks.

Saim Ayub Could be Out

As far as India’s squad is concerned, there weren’t many surprises, where Rohit Sharma would lead with Shubman Gill as his deputy. The team also has Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant, with two main pacers Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami in the lineup. Four spinners in Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Washington Sundar and Axar Patel were given a chance.

Predicted Pakistan Squad For Champions Trophy

Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Salman Ali Agha, Kamran Ghulam, Tayyab Tahir, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf, Abrar Ahmed, Sufyan Maqeem, Irfan Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Hasnain, Haseebullah, and Imam-ul-Haq.