Fawad misses out again as Pakistan announce squad for Ireland, England Tests

Fakhar Zaman, Usman Salahuddin, Saad Ali and Imamul Haq receive maiden calls for longest format

National selection committee on Sunday announced a 16-man Test squad for the tour of Ireland and England and as expected Fawad Alam was once again not selected.

At first glance, the squad looks very inexperienced with the inclusion of five players who will make their Test debut over the course of three Test matches.

Limited-overs opener for Pakistan Fakhar Zaman will make his first appearance in the white jersey for Pakistan, while Imamul Haq, Usman Salahuddin and Saad Ali received their maiden calls for the longest format.

Leggie Yasir Shah, who will miss the tour due to a hip injury, was replaced by Pakistan’s limited-overs-favoured leg-spinner Shadab Khan.

"Yasir's absence is a big loss for us," Inzamam said. "If we look at his numbers for the last two years, he has more wickets than any other bowler for Pakistan. He was our strike bowler, all the games we've won he played a big part in. I hope he recovers quickly from his injury because we have some big home Test series coming up after this series too, and we will need him in the UAE."

 Squad

Sarfraz Ahmed (c), Azhar Ali, Imamul Haq, Sami Aslam, Haris Sohail, Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Saad Ali, Asad Shafiq, Usman Salahuddin, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Abbas, Hasan Ali, Rahat Ali, Faheem Ashraf.