Shaheen Afridi (Source: AFP)
The PCB, on July 5, 2026, announced the Pakistan squads for the Test series against West Indies and England.
The biggest talking points of the announcement were the return of Babar Azam as Pakistan Test captain, replacing Shan Masood, and Shaheen Afridi getting dropped from the red-ball format.
There have been more notable changes to the squad that lost 2-0 in Bangladesh in May, as apart from Shaheen, Hasan Ali and Noman Ali were also dropped from the Pakistan Test squad.
Speaking to the media, PCB's Director of Cricket, Aaqib Javed, revealed the reason behind Shaheen's exclusion from the team.
No Shaheen Afridi in Babar Azam-led Pakistan Test squad
Aaqib Javed insisted that Babar was the only candidate proposed by the selection committee to succeed Masood. In 2023, Babar led Pakistan in Test cricket during their 2-0 series whitewash of Sri Lanka.
Pakistan lost 12 out of 16 Tests in which Shan Masood captained them in the last three years. No captain in Test history has ever lost 12 of their first 16 Tests. He also lost his last seven Tests, which is the joint-highest in Pakistan's history.
Also Read: 3 Major Problems To Address For Babar Azam As Pakistan's Test Captain
Meanwhile, Babar Azam's return to the helm coincided with the ouster of Shaheen Afridi after the pacer was dropped from the Pakistan playing XI for the second Test against Bangladesh earlier this year.
Considering Shaheen's reputation as a global superstar, his exclusion from the team raised a million eyeballs.
Aaqib Javed reveals the reason behind Shaheen Afridi's Test snub
When neither Shaheen Afridi nor Noman Ali was included in a list of 22 players invited to a red-ball camp at the NCA last month, it was clear that Pakistan was trying to move on from them.
Since recovering from a knee injury in 2023, Shaheen has been a shell of the bowler he was in the longer format. After taking five wickets for 167 runs in two innings during Bangladesh's 104-run victory in Dhaka, he was benched for the Sylhet Test.
He has only taken 27 wickets at a strike rate of 67.6 and an average of 40.11 in 16 innings since returning to Test cricket in Galle.
"Shaheen is an outstanding bowler. At times, you have to assess which format of cricket you want to focus on and where your greater interest lies. To address all these aspects, we recently introduced the idea of central contracts based on different formats. If a player is not focusing enough on a particular format, we will try to encourage them to increase their focus so they can deliver better performances for Pakistan,” Aaqib Javed told media reporters.
PCB National Selection Committee is worried about the pace of the fast bowlers
Aaqib Javed further highlighted how the PCB National Selection Committee was worried about a sharp decline in the pace of the Pakistani fast bowlers, including Shaheen Afridi.
According to the former fast bowler, the lack of pace from several bowlers in the Bangladesh series forced the selectors to pick Ubaid Shah, who mostly operates in the higher side of 140 kph.
"We are concerned with the pace of our fast bowlers. It is unacceptable that their speeds drop to 126kph on the second or third day of a Test, which was the case in Bangladesh. We have brought in Ubaid Shah for that purpose, and we have made these changes on the basis of evidence, which included the use of speed guns, that we gathered over the recent camp," he said.
"We feel we need pace for the next two series, and these bowlers, who have been selected for the next five Tests, also have to cement their places with performances. This (selection) is about the conditions,” Javed added further.
Pakistan will first visit West Indies for a two-match Test series starting from July 25. The Babar Azam-led side will then travel to England for three Tests, running from August 19-September 13.
Also Read: Shaheen Afridi Out! Changes In Pakistan Test Squad Vs England, West Indies Explained
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