Four South Africa Tests-bound players ‘given opportunity’ to play domestic cricket

LAHORE: Four members from the 18-member Pakistan squad will feature in the opening round of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy (QEAT) ahead of the first Test against South Africa, sources told Geo News on Friday.

According to the details, the four players being provided with the opportunity to fine-tune their skills by featuring in the first round of the premier first-class tournament on the directives of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi are Mohammad Rizwan, Hasan Ali, Salman Ali Agha and Sajid Khan.

As a result, the players have been released from the national team’s ongoing training camp for the two-match series.

The insiders further revealed that Rizwan and Sajid will represent Peshawar Region in the 10-team tournament, while T20I captain Agha and experienced pacer Hasan will play for Sialkot and Lahore Whites, respectively.

Notably, the first round of the QEAT will conclude on October 9, two days before the commencement of the opening Test against South Africa here; thus, the players released from the training camp will be able to rejoin the squad in time.

For the unversed, the upcoming home assignment will launch Pakistan’s ICC World Test Championship 2025-27 campaign against the reigning champions, South Africa.

Pakistan squad for South Africa Tests:

Shan Masood (c), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Asif Afridi, Babar Azam, Faisal Akram, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Kamran Ghulam, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Rizwan (wicket-keeper), Noman Ali, Rohail Nazir (wicket-keeper), Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha, Saud Shakeel and Shaheen Shah Afridi.