SA vs PAK: Babar Azam Returns As Pakistan Announce Playing XI For Boxing Day Test In Centurion – News18

Last Updated:December 25, 2024, 20:40 IST

Along with the return of Babar Azam, Pakistan will face South Africa with a four-man pace attack to spearhead their bowling efforts.

Star batter Babar Azam returns as Pakistan announced their playing XI for the Boxing Day Test against South Africa on Wednesday. The former captain returns after being dropped following the first Test against England in Multan last October. Meanwhile, Kamran Ghulam, who debuted during Azam’s absence in the England series, retains his place in the team, adding depth to the batting lineup.

In an interesting move, Pakistan has opted against including a specialist spinner for the first of the two Tests. Instead, they have chosen a four-man pace attack to spearhead their bowling efforts. Naseem Shah, stepping up in the absence of Shaheen Shah Afridi, will lead the pace battery, supported by Aamir Jamal, Khurram Shahzad, and Mohammad Abbas.

The Shan Masood-led side is entering the series with mixed form. They recently claimed a hard-fought 2-1 home series victory against England in Test cricket, showcasing resilience and grit. However, the team is still recovering from the sting of a 0-2 defeat at home against Bangladesh, a series that exposed vulnerabilities in their game.

While addressing the pre-match press conference, Pakistan skipper Shan Masood said the return of pacers Khurram Shahzad and Mohammad Abbas is a welcome development for his team.

Shahzad is back after a rib injury that kept him out of action after Pakistan lost to Bangladesh 2-0 in August, while Abbas is in the Test set-up after last playing the longer format for the side in August 2021.

“The return of pacer Khurram Shahzad, who did really well on his debut in Australia and the seasoned campaigner Mohammad Abbas is a welcome development for Pakistan’s Test side looking to bag wins in one of the toughest conditions for overseas teams,” said Masood.

The two-match Test series against South Africa is Aqib Javed’s first red-ball coaching assignment after taking charge of the team in the white-ball series against Zimbabwe last month. In their ongoing tour to South Africa, Pakistan lost the three-match T20I series 2-0, but came back strongly to get a historic 3-0 win in the ODI series.

Pakistan would be aiming to get a Test win in South Africa after 18 years, while a win for South Africa at Centurion would guarantee their place in next year’s World Test Championship Final at Lord’s.

Location :

Centurion, South Africa