Mohammad Haris receives maiden call-up for New Zealand ODIs; Sarfaraz dropped

Pakistan have announced a 20-man squad for the three-match ODI series against New Zealand starting later this month, and the list sees four players - Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Shahnawaz Dahani and Zahid Mahmood - receive maiden ODI call-ups. 

Dahani, who was a part of Pakistan’s Test squad that toured Zimbabwe earlier this year, finds himself in the squad on the back of a stunning showing in PSL 2021, in which he finished as the highest wicket-taker, while 20-year-old wicket-keeper batsman Haris has been picked following an impressive showing in the 2020/21 Pakistan Cup (50-over competition) where he averaged 41.28 and struck at 102.84 for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Both Wasim Jnr and Zahid Mahmood made their T20I debuts earlier this year, and the duo have seen themselves now get called-up to the 50-over squad. 

Left-hand batsman Khushdil Shah, who was overlooked for the three-match ODI series against England which Pakistan lost 0-3, returns, as does Iftikhar Ahmed, who also did not travel to the UK. Meanwhile, youngsters Abdullah Shafique and Saud Shakeel, both of whom were in the squad for the tour of England, retain their places. 

The biggest omission is that of former captain Sarfaraz Ahmed, who has been overlooked for the three-match series. Sarfaraz featured in the three-match ODI series against England only as a substitute, and the inclusion of young Haris has seen the selectors look beyond the 34-year-old, who is no longer a starter in any of the three formats. Since November 2019, the veteran has featured in just a solitary ODI. 

The three-match ODI series will be played in Rawalpindi from September 17. 

Pakistan ODI squad

Babar Azam (captain, Central Punjab), Abdullah Shafique (Central Punjab), Faheem Ashraf (Central Punjab), Fakhar Zaman (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Haris Rauf (Northern), Hasan Ali (Central Punjab), Iftikhar Ahmed (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Imam-ul-Haq (Balochistan), Khushdil Shah (Southern Punjab), Mohammad Haris (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Mohammad Hasnain (Sindh), Mohammad Nawaz (Northern), Mohammad Rizwan (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Mohammad Wasim Jnr (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Saud Shakeel (Sindh), Shadab Khan (Northern), Shaheen Shah Afridi (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Shahnawaz Dahani (Sindh), Usman Qadir (Central Punjab) and Zahid Mahmood (Southern Punjab)