||Desk Report||

Shaheen Afridi and Saad Ahmed have earned their maiden Test call-ups ahead of Pakistan’s two-match series against New Zealand. Fakhar Zaman, who made his Test debut for Pakistan in their last series against Australia, has been rested along with Shadab Khan.

Afridi has been brilliant in the ongoing three-ODI series between Pakistan and New Zealand, claiming back-to-back four-fors in the first two matches. He has featured in only two first-class games so far, taking 11 wickets at an average of 17.27.

Saad put up a brilliant batting display, playing an innings of 144 runs for Pakistan A in their unofficial Test against New Zealand A. The uncapped batsman has played 58 first-class matches, amassing 3979 runs at 46.81.

“Shaheen Shah Afridi has been included in the squad keeping his current form. Saad Ali included in the side after performing in domestic cricket and recent Pakistan 'A' series in the UAE,” Inzamam ul Haq, the Pakistan chief selector, said in a media release.

Mohammad Amir has been ignored for the Test series while Wahab Riaz, who played in the series against Australia, lost his place in the team.

Hasan Ali did not feature in any of the two Tests against Australia and Mir Hamza was not impressive in his debut match in that series. Afridi could be seen spearheading the seam attack for Pakistan alongside Mohammad Abbas, who took 17 wickets in the team’s series win against Australia. 

The first Test between Pakistan and New Zealand will start from 16 November in Abu Dhabi and the second Test will take place from 24 November in Dubai.