Misbah will captain Pakistan in Test matches
Pakistan middle-order batsman, Misbah-ul-Haq has been named the captain of the Pakistan side for the Test match format of the game. This means that after Mohammad Yousuf, Shahid Afridi and Salman Butt, Misbah is the fourth captain of the Pakistani team this
year and sixth in two years.
The move comes as a big surprise given that Misbah was not even in the Test squad on the controversial Test match tour of England. Misbah had been given the sack after some poor performances in recent times and is said to have contemplated retirement.
The Test squad was also announced today and there were a few comebacks in the squad. Taufeeq Umar has been recalled to the side and will open the batting with Imran Farhat. Abdur Rehman, the left arm spinner has also been included in the squad, while Zulqarnain
Haider will be the wicket-keeper.
Amongst the bowlers, while Wahab Riaz continues to hold on to his place, there is place for Mohammad Sami and Sohail Tanvir thanks to the suspensions of Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif.
Shahid Afridi continues to be the captain of the Pakistani side for the shorter format of the game. Afridi was the captain of the Test team for one Test match against the Aussies but he had quit playing the longer format of the game after that. Butt had subsequently
been appointed the skipper of the Test team but he was suspended by the International Cricket Council after his alleged involvement in spot-fixing.
Earlier, in a surprising move, the Pakistani selectors had named the ODI and T20I squad on Thursday but did not name the captain of the team.
Test squad:
Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), Taufeeq Umar, Imran Farhat, Mohammad Yousuf, Asad Shafiq, Azhar Ali, Umar Akmal, Danish Kaneria, Saeed Ajmal, Zulqarnain Haider, Abdur Rehman, Mohammad Sami, Umar Gul, Wahab Riaz, Tanvir Ahmed, Sohail Tanvir
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