No place for Hafeez in Pakistan's unchanged Test squad for Australia

Selection committee announces same 16-member squad which is currently touring New Zealand

Opening batsman Mohammad Hafeez has once again failed to cement his place in the squad, this time for the upcoming three-Test series in Australia.

An unchanged 16-member squad was announced for the tour of New Zealand on Monday, as the team management and captain Misbahul Haq opted to back the current lot for the tough tour Down Under.

36-year-old Hafeez, who recently went through a test to clear his bowling action in Australia, was expected to return to the mix of things after the struggles of openers Sami Aslam and Azhar Ali in the ongoing series against New Zealand.

However, the selection committee, under chairman Inzamamul Haq, decided not to include the veteran top-order batsman, who was dropped after a disappointing tour of England.

Another veteran, Kamran Akmal, who was in contention for a place in the 16-member squad as a specialist batsman after scoring three centuries in his last four matches in the ongoing Quaid-e-Azam trophy, was also denied a chance to make a comeback in the national team after a gap of more than three years.

Squad:

Misbahul Haq (captain), Azhar Ali, Sami Aslam, Younus Khan, Asad Shafiq, Babar Azam, Sarfraz Ahmed, Mohammad Amir, Wahab Riaz, Yasir Shah, Rahat Ali, Sohail Khan, Imran Khan, Sharjeel Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan.