Babar Azam Named Captain of Pakistan Test Squads for West Indies and England Tours

Babar Azam has been named captain of Pakistan's Test squads for their forthcoming tours to the West Indies and England, the Pakistan Men’s National Selection Committee announced on Sunday.

A 16-member squad has been selected for the West Indies series, scheduled from July 25 to August 6, featuring a two-match Test series. Following this, Pakistan will travel to England for a three-match Test series from August 19 to September 13, for which a 17-member squad has been finalized.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) made the announcement during a press conference at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. The squad lineup was also formally released in a press statement. Notably, the selections include several uncapped players, such as left-arm spinner Ali Usman, right-handed batter Muhammad Awais Zafar, right-arm fast bowler Ubaid Shah, and wicket-keeper batter Muhammad Ghazi Ghori.

This decision comes after reports indicated that some key decision-makers were hesitant about reinstating Azam as captain or assigning the Test leadership role to T20 skipper Salman Ali Agha. Azam himself faced scrutiny earlier in the year when he was moved down the batting order during Pakistan's T20 World Cup match against Namibia due to slow scoring.