Update · 24 Oct 2026, 6:21 PM PKT: PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi said the Test squad is 80% to 90% new players, with only a few experienced cricketers retained. Speaking at a Lahore Qalandars player development event in Lahore, Naqvi said the board had prepared a new batch of players in six months and aimed to bring young players forward.
Naqvi said the board was giving considerable attention to school cricket to develop young talent. He urged players to stay committed to training, saying he had seen many players wasted after abandoning practice once they gained some fame.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has named an initial 14-member Test squad for the two-match ICC World Test Championship series against Sri Lanka. The matches are scheduled for Rawalpindi and Lahore, running from 9 to 21 November. Babar Azam is set to keep the captaincy of the Test side.
A separate 13-member PCB Patron’s squad will play a three-day warm-up match against Sri Lanka at the Islamabad Club, from 4 to 6 November. Selectors will add two pacers from that group to the Test squad once the warm-up ends on 6 November.
Test squad keeps several senior players and adds newcomers
Abdullah Fazal, Arafat Minhas, Azan Awais and Mohammad Abbas have kept their places in the squad. The same is true of wicketkeepers Mohammad Ghazi Ghori and Saad Baig, along with Razaullah and Saud Shakeel. Left-arm spinner Ali Usman and batter Salman Ali Agha have also been included.
Also read: Pakistan Pulls Out of 2027 Over-50s Cricket World Cup in India
Three batters have received their first Test call-ups. They are left-hander Mohammad Taha, right-hander Sameer Minhas and Mohammad Suleman.
Taha, Suleman and Sameer post strong first-class returns
Taha, a 26-year-old left-handed batter, is the leading run-scorer in the President’s Trophy Grade-I first-class tournament, which began in September. He has scored 730 runs in seven matches, including three centuries and a best of 225. Suleman sits fifth on the batting charts in the same competition, with 652 runs and three hundreds.
Sameer is playing his first full first-class season. He has made 405 runs in seven matches, following a promising spell with Pakistan U19s.
Saad Baig to lead Patron’s XI in warm-up match
Wicketkeeper-batter Saad Baig is set to captain the Patron’s XI against Sri Lanka’s Test squad. Fazal, Ali Usman, Awais, Suleman, Taha and Sameer will also feature in that three-day contest.
The Patron’s XI pace attack includes Mohammad Salman, Shoaib Akhtar Jnr, Ali Shabbir, Saqib Khan and Ubaid Shah. Batter Mohammad Tayyab Arif is also part of the group.
