Pakistan Cricket Board on Monday announced the squad for the first test match against New Zealand to be played from December 26^th in Mount Maunganui.

According to PCB, Babar Azam and opener Imam-ul-Haq have been ruled out of the first Test starting in due to their injuries.

Babar had fractured his right thumb a day after Imam had fractured his left thumb during training sessions in Queenstown last week. Both are yet to return to nets with the team’s medical staff closely monitoring their progress.

The decision on their participation in the second Test, which commences in Christchurch on 3 January, will be made closer to the time.

Mohammad Rizwan will captain the Pakistan side in the first Test in place of Babar Azam. He will also become Pakistan’s 33^rd captain to lead the side in the traditional format of the game as soon as he steps out for the toss.

Moreover Head Coach Misbah-ul-Haq said that It is disappointing to lose the T20I series against a well-settled New Zealand side, who utilized their resources and conditions to their advantage. We need to up skill and improve our individual and team performances, including in Tuesday’s match, and the sooner we get these sorted the better it will be in term of player confidences and team results as 2021 will not be any easier as we have two major events.

Pakistan squad for Tests: Mohammad Rizwan (captain for 1^st Test), Abid Ali, Azhar Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Fawad Alam, Haris Sohail, Imran Butt, Mohammad Abbas, Naseem Shah, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Afridi, Shan Masood, Sohail Khan and Yasir Shah.

Test Match Schedule

26-30 Dec – 1^st Test v New Zealand, Mount Manganui

3-7 Jan – 2^nd Test v New Zealand, Christchurch