Umar Gul and Mohammad Irfan have been named in a 14-man Pakistan A squad for a one-off Twenty20 against Afghanistan A in Islamabad on November 15. Sohaib Maqsood, who led Pakistan A to a 2-1 series win over UAE recently, will continue as captain.
Gul has not played international cricket since the World T20 in April due to an ongoing knee problem but has put together four strong appearances in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy. He has taken 25 wickets including two five-wicket hauls and the selectors feel the time is now right to begin a push back towards the full Pakistan side.
“The inclusion of Umar Gul is part of the selection panel’s strategy of slowly bringing him back into international cricket,” chief selector Moin Khan said. “Umar is an experienced campaigner who has recently struggled with a knee injury, but his [form] in the ongoing Quaid-e-Azam Trophy is an indication that he is getting up to speed in terms of being match-fit as well as wicket-taking form”.
Irfan, who is tipped to make an impact at the 2015 World Cup, has not been used during Pakistan’s current Test campaigns in the UAE in order to manage his workload ahead of the tournament in Australia and New Zealand. The T20 against Afghanistan is being used as a way to ease him back into competitive cricket.
The hard-hitting wicketkeeper batsman Mohammad Rizwan - who last year was a strong contender for the national side - has once again been preferred to Bismillah Khan. However, opener Sharjeel Khan has been dropped after making 5 and 15 against UAE and has been replaced by Rawalpindi opener Awais Zia.
“The squad for the Twenty20 match against Afghanistan is a balanced one - a decent blend of seniors of proven calibre but trying to regain fitness and form as well as youngsters knocking at the door of international cricket on the back of performances in our first class cricket,” Moin said.
Why on earth people think that Gul can still do some miracle I mean being a super senior bowler 30 for 0. It should be an eye opener for the selectors who thinks he still has some cricket.
Pakistan A v Afghanistan A, Islamabad
Najibullah sets up crushing win
ESPNcricinfo staff
November 15, 2014
[RIGHT] | A[/RIGHT]
Afghanistan A 154 (Najibullah 60) beat** Pakistan A** 100 for 9 (Nabi 2-18, Alam 2-21) by 54 runs* Scorecard
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Najibullah Zadran’s blistering half-century helped Afghanistan A crush a star-studded Pakistan A by 54 runs in a Twenty20 match in Islamabad. In a game shortened to 15 overs a side, Najibullah’s 32-ball 67, that included four fours and the same number of sixes, propelled Afghanistan to a strong 154 for 4 before their bowlers stifled Pakistan’s chase and restricted them to 100 for 9.
Opting to bat, Afghanistan started with a flurry of boundaries against Umar Gul and Mohammad Irfan but lost three wickets in three overs to be reduced to 48 for 3 after six. Najibullah was aggressive from the outset, his second scoring shot a six off Raza Hasan, and did not let the scoring rate drop. Afghanistan were 92 for 4 after 10 overs and raised the tempo further in the last five.
Sixty-two runs came in those overs, with Bilawal Bhatti leaking 21 in the 13th. Najibullah started that over with a brace of boundaries, which brought up his fifty off 26 balls, before Samiullah Shenwari smashed consecutive sixes off the last two balls. Then Shenwari ensured a solid finish with 13 runs from the last over bowler by Anwar Ali and was unbeaten on 27 off 14 balls.
Mohammad Nabi then struck with the first ball of Pakistan’s innings, catching Nasir Jamshed off his own bowling. Sohaib Maqsood was dismissed in the next over but the innings suffered the momentum-robbing blows between the ninth and the 11th overs as Pakistan lost four wickets for four runs to be reduced to 71 for 7. They could only add a further 29.
what a useless bowler.