PCB finalises pace unit for West Indies and England Test tours

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Cricket Board’s management committee has settled on the pace bowling group for the national side’s upcoming Test tours of the West Indies and England, with Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Ali, Khurram Shehzad and uncapped fast bowler Ubaid Shah selected as the specialist seamers. Aamer Jamal has also been picked as the pace-bowling all-rounder for the two assignments.

The decision means Shaheen Shah Afridi, Hasan Ali and Hammad Butt, all of whom were part of the squad for the Bangladesh tour, have not been included this time. The squad’s pace attack combines returning players with one new face in 20-year-old Ubaid, a right-arm seamer from Lower Dir, who is set for his first call-up to Pakistan’s Test setup.

Selected bowlers and recent records

Ubaid has taken 72 wickets in 16 first-class matches at an average of 25.20. He is also the younger brother of Pakistan Test fast bowler Naseem Shah. Among the selected pacers, Abbas is the most experienced, having claimed 110 wickets in 29 Tests at an average of 23.23.

Mohammad Ali is returning to the national side after his last appearance for Pakistan in the Rawalpindi Test against Bangladesh in September 2024. The right-arm fast bowler has taken six wickets in four Tests at an average of 66.67. Khurram Shehzad, a 26-year-old pacer from Mandi Bahauddin, completes the specialist fast-bowling group, bringing 28 wickets from seven Tests at an average of 27.39.

Aamer Jamal has also returned to the side. His most recent Test outing came against South Africa in Cape Town in January 2025. In eight Tests for Pakistan, the Mianwali-born all-rounder has scored 352 runs and taken 21 wickets.

Tour schedule

Pakistan are expected to leave for the West Indies on July 13, where they are scheduled to play a four-day warm-up match starting on July 18. The two-match Test series in Trinidad and Tobago is set to run from July 25 to 29 and from August 2 to 6.

After the West Indies leg, Pakistan will head to England for a three-Test series. The opening Test is due to begin at Headingley in Leeds on August 19, followed by the second at Lord’s from August 27. The third and final Test is scheduled to start at Edgbaston in Birmingham on September 9.