Champions Trophy squad

With big cricket action coming up later this month - well, much of it on our own Pakistani turfs - cricket enthusiasts are in frenzy. Long queues were witnessed outside designated centres as tickets for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 matches went on sale yesterday.

Team Pakistan is all set to defend the prestigious title. Its quest starts on February 19 with the match against New Zealand in Karachi which is going to burst the much-anticipated tournament, comprising eight top-ranking teams, open. Led by Mohammad Rizwan, Team Pakistan is a competitive mix of young and seasoned players. While in batting, much will depend on experienced Rizwan, Babar Azam and comeback star Fakhar Zaman, young ones like Saud Shakeel, Salman Ali Agha, Usman Khan, Tayyab Tahir, Kamran Ghulam and Khushdil Shah have shown quite a lot of promise of late, and are capable enough to complement the senior lot. Bowling, as always, is going to be our main weapon with all the pacers - Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah and Mohammad Hasnain - in an envious form. Experienced all-rounder Fahim Ashraf, who was also a part of the 2017 title-winning side, has been called back to give depth to the batting line.

Sorely missed from the high-profile tournament will be young Siam Ayub who has lately mesmerised the cricket world with his brilliant batting talent. The unfortunate lad - a rare mix of aggression and composure - was not considered for the 50-over format Champions Trophy due to an ankle injury. Since the PCB maintains that Ayub's career cannot be risked means he is unlikely to make it to the final 15-man squad which can still accommodate any replacements till February 11, based on medical grounds. Coming up, in the meanwhile, as a good dress-rehearsal opportunity for Pakistan is a short ODI tri-series from February 8 to 14 on local venues, also featuring two top Champions Trophy contenders - New Zealand and South Africa.