PCB announces Shaheen Afridi’s replacement in Asia Cup 2022

LAHORE: Mohammad Hasnain will replace Shaheen Shah Afridi in the Pakistan squad for the T20 Asia Cup, which will be played in the UAE from 27 August to 11 September, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced today.

Afridi was ruled out of the tournament and the England series due to a knee injury dealing a major blow to Pakistan’s chances of winning the Asia Cup 2022.

Hasnain, who has represented Pakistan in 18 T20Is in which he has taken 17 wickets, will join the Pakistani team from the United Kingdom, where he is representing Oval Invincibles in The Hundred competition.

Meanwhile, Asif Ali, Haider Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed and Usman Qadir will leave for Dubai in the wee hours of Tuesday. They will replace Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Haris, Salman Ali Agha and Zahid Mehmood, who were part of the 16-member ODI squad against the Netherlands.

Pakistan will take on India in their opener in Dubai on Sunday, 28 August, while their second Group A fixture will be against a qualifier (UAE, Kuwait, Singapore or Hong Kong) in Sharjah on Friday, 2 September. The Super Four matches will be played from 3-9 September.

Squad

Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Asif Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Naseem Shah, Shahnawaz Dahani and Usman Qadir.