The PCB has left out Babar Azam and named six uncapped players in Pakistan’s ODI squad for the Bangladesh series, signaling major changes after the T20 World Cup setback.
PCB Drops Babar Azam, Picks 6 Uncapped Players For Bangladesh ODIs After T20 World Cup Exit | Image Source - AFP
On Wednesday, the Pakistan Cricket Board announced a fresh-looking squad for Pakistan's upcoming series against Bangladesh, and the board has left many surprised with the big changes. PCB has named six uncapped players in the 15-member squad for the upcoming three-match away series starting March 11.
Because of the ongoing fight disruptions linked to the Iran war, there was some uncertainty around the tour. However, now that the PCB has announced the squad, the series is full steam ahead.
The inclusion of six uncapped players clearly shows that PCB is all set to completely transform the Pakistani squad, especially after their disappointing run in the T20 World Cup 2026, where they were knocked out at the Super 8 stage.
One of the biggest surprises is the absence of Babar Azam and Saim Ayub from the ODI squad. There were calls for dropping Babar Azam and Saim Ayub from the T20 squads, following their embarrassing performances of late. However, his omission from the 50-over format caught many off guard. During the T20 World Cup 2026, Babar Azam was seen struggling to score runs. He was able to amass only 91 runs in six matches at a strike rate of 112.34.
The uncapped players in the squad are Maaz Sadaqat, Shamyl Hussain, Ghazi Ghori, Saad Masood, and Abdul Samad. All of them recently featured for Pakistan Shaheens against England Lions in Abu Dhabi. That series, however, was called off with three ODIs still to be played because of regional tensions.
Pakistan will travel to Dhaka on March 9, and all three ODIs will be played at the Shere Bangla National Cricket Stadium.
Schedule:
All matches will take place at the same venue in Dhaka.
Shaheen Shah Afridi (captain), Abdul Samad, Abrar Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Faisal Akram, Haris Rauf, Hussain Talat, Maaz Sadaqat, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Muhammad Ghazi Ghori (wk), Saad Masood, Sahibzada Farhan, Salman Ali Agha, and Shamyl Hussain.
