Shehzad, Akmal included in 31 probables for West Indies tour

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has announced 31 probables for the West Indies tour scheduled to be played from March 26. Veteran wicketkeeper-batsman Kamran Akmal and out-of-favor batsman Ahmed Shehzad have been included in the side. While Akmal had been sidelined from the side from quite some time, Shehzad had to face the ouster from the national setup due to disciplinary issues post the World T20 held in India last year.

Kamran Akmal’s last match in Pakistani colors was way back in April 2014. It is his current run of form that sees him drafted in the probables for the tour. He had finished as the leading run-scorer of the recently concluded second edition of the Pakistan Super League. He had amassed 353 runs in 11 matches with the only century of the tournament being under his name.

His Quaid-e-Azam performances were stellar too. Shehzad, on the other hand, also had a decent outing in the PSL for the Quetta Gladiators. However, it was the National One Day cup that set the base for his selection. He had finished as the top run scorer of the tournament with 653 runs in 9 innings. Among the other notable performers from the PSL who have been rewarded with the call-up are Hussain Talat, Usama Mir and Shadab Khan.

The 31 probables named by the PCB will undergo a training camp that will be held from March 11 to Match 17. On the tour to West Indies, Pakistan will play 4 T20Is, 3 ODIs and 3 Test matches. The last time these two sides had met in a bilateral series was in UAE last year. The Pakistani team had managed to whitewash the West Indies side in the T20Is and the ODIs. They had also won the Test series.

Pakistan 31 Probables for West Indies tour:

Ahmed Shehzad, Mohammad Hafeez, Fakhar Zaman, Azhar Ali, Shan Masood, Babar Azam, Shoaib Malik, Umar Akmal, Asif Zakir, Saad Ali, Sarfraz Ahmed, Kamran Akmal, Amad Butt, Mohammad Amir, Fahim Ashraf, Hussain Talat, Hasan Ali, Wahab Riaz, Rahat Ali, Rumman Raees, Sohail Khan, Junaid Khan, Sohail Tanvir, Mohammad Abbas, Usman Shinwari, Usama Mir, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Asghar, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Yasir Shah.