The Pakistan team management has decided to play specialist off-spinner Sajid Khan in the Boxing Day Test against Australia starting at Melbourne from Tuesday. The team management announced 12 players for the Test but a source said that Sajid would play with three specialist pacers and Salman Ali Agha as the fifth bowler. (Streaming | Cricket News)
Pakistan went into the first Test at Perth with just two specialist bowlers in Shaheen Shah Afridi and debutant Khurrum Shahzad but the source said this time the visitors would be playing either Mir Hamza or Hasan Ali with Shaheen and all-rounder Aamer Jamal and Sajid Khan.
The management has already dropped wicketkeeper-batsman Sarfaraz Ahmed for the second Test and recalled Mohammad Rizwan.
Pakistan have suffered a string of injury problems with their players before and during the series, first losing mystery spinner Abrar Ahmed for the first two Tests due to a side injury and then Khurrum to a rib cage fracture.
The third player to be ruled out was left-arm spinner, Noman Ali, who had to undergo an emergency appendicitis operation in Melbourne.
Sajid Khan was initially rushed to Australia before the first Test as a backup for Abrar but was not played as according to team director, Mohammad Hafeez, he had not recovered from jet lag.
Sajid last played for Pakistan in March 2022, finishing with just four wickets in three Tests after conceding 477 runs.
Pakistan's squad for second Test: Shan Masood (capt), Imam ul Haq, Abdullah Shafique, Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel, Muhammad Rizwan, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Hasan Ali, Mir Hamza, Sajid Khan. Aamer Jamal.
