Abdul Razzak & Kamran Akmal have been axed from Pakistan's combined ODI & Twenty20 squad for the upcoming tour of West Indies, while senior players Umar Gul & Younis Khan have been rested. Shahid Afridi remains in charge of a team that will feature a brand new wicketkeeper, Mohammad Salman.
The Check squad will be named at a later date & it is expected that Gul & Younis - the former had asked selectors for a rest from the limited overs portion of the tour - will return.
Kamran's wicketkeeping has been a source of concern for some time now, though various selectors have persisted with him in the belief that his batting provides the side with flexibility. But a poor World Cup campaign, with bat & gloves - the low hit in the game against New Zealand where he dropped centurion Ross Taylor times, including once early on, as well as fluffs in games against Sri Lanka & the semi-final with India - have finally proved much. Coach Waqar Younis had hinted that it was time for a brand new wicketkeeper to be blooded, & Salman got the nod.
With 103 first-class games to his name, the Karachi-born Salman, 29, has been on the fringes of choice for some time. A few years ago he was thought by lots of to be the best wicketkeeper in the land though in recent times, he had been overlooked behind Sarfraz Ahmed, Zulqarnain Haider & Adnan Akmal.
"He is the best of the lot," Rashid Latif, former Pakistan captain & wicketkeeper, told ESPNcricinfo. Salman was Latif's deputy at Allied Bank Limited (ABL) in 2000 & worked with him later as well. "He came in to ABL as my deputy wicket keeper & I worked with him then. After that they both joined Port Qasim Authority team in 2006, me as coach & Salman as a main wicketkeeper. He is an athletic man & a lovely batsman for all formats."
Though the Check squad has not yet been announced, it is likely Kamran's more youthful sister Adnan will retain his spot in the side as the wicketkeeper.
Pakistan have also embarked on a search for a brand new allrounder, with the highly-rated Hammad Azam drafted in to replace Razzaq. The veteran Razzaq had a unusual World Cup, playing all matches but as a spare part in the XI, taking only wickets & making 104 runs.
He did not complete his quota of ten overs even two times, & managed only a single half-century, though he usually batted as low as number two. He was often given the new ball, but taken off after short opening spells to make way for Gul & the spinners. After the first couple of games, he had expressed a desire to play a bigger part in Pakistan's World Cup campaign, but continued to play a peripheral role.
"At the moment there is no place for Abdul Razzaq & Kamran Akmal in the team," chief selector Mohsin Khan told reporters. "We need to try out few babies & that is why they have picked those players who have performed outstandingly in the domestic circuit."
Azam was a central figure in Pakistan's last U-19 World Cup campaign & was chosen in the squad for the World T20 in the Caribbean last year, but he did not feature in a single game.
The tour kicks off with a warm-up game from April 18, while the only Twenty20 will be played on April 21 in St Lucia. The five-match ODI series will start on April 23, & the Check leg of the tour will commence on May 12.
Lefthand opening batsman Taufeeq Umar, who recently worked his way back in to the Check side, is another surprise inclusion for the shorter formats. Aizaz Cheema, the 31-year-old seamer who plays for Punjab, has also received a call-up to replace Gul. Cheema has 221 wickets from 62 first-class matches, & will tussle for the new ball with Wahab Riaz, Tanvir Ahmed & Junaid Khan. Usman Salahuddin, another youngster who made an impression at the Under-19 level, also got the selector's nod for the tour. Salahuddin scored 927 runs in the Quaid-e-Azam trophy last year & will fight for a middle-order spot.
Squad: Shahid Afridi (capt), Mohammad Hafeez, Ahmed Shehzad, Taufeeq Umar, Usman Salahuddin, Misbah-ul-Haq, Asad Shafiq, Umar Akmal, Abdur Rehman, Saeed Ajmal, Tanvir Ahmed, Wahab Riaz, Junaid Khan, Hammad Azam, Aizaz Cheema & Mohammad Salman (wk)
Reserves: Rameez Raja (jnr), Sadaf Hussain, Asif Zakir, Sohail Khan, Zulifqar Babar
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