Pakistan have left out Shaheen Afridi from squad, allowing him time to spend with his newly born son
Rain on Friday delayed toss for the second Test match of two-match series between Pakistan and Bangladesh at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.
The teams have not yet left their hotel as heavy rains soaked the city with the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) forecasting sporadic rain throughout the day. The forecast also threatens a washout of the match’s opening day.
Since morning, intermittent showers have been lashing the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad.
Because of the downpour, most of the stadium is marshy. The pitch has been fully covered and a roller will be brought in to prepare it when the rain fully stops.
It is a bad omen for a Pakistan team desperate to square the two-match series after Bangladesh won the first Test, also in Rawalpindi, on Sunday.
Bangladesh’s 10-wicket victory was their first in 14 Tests against Pakistan.
After upsetting a normally formidable home team, Bangladesh are hoping to secure a first Test-series victory over Pakistan.
Pakistan have left out pace spearhead Shaheen Shah Afridi from their 12-member squad, allowing him time to spend with his newly born son.
Star pacer Afridi struggled to find his rhythm through much of the innings, with Pakistan’s head coach Jason Gillespie saying he will be rested to allow him to spend time with his new-born son and family.
“Obviously Shaheen will miss out on this game. We had a good conversation with him and he fully understands and appreciates the thinking behind it. We are just looking at what our best combination is for this game,” Gillespie said.
The hosts have been struggling through a lean spell of late, bowing out early in this year’s T20 World Cup. Their last Test series was a whitewash in a three-match tour to Australia.
Pakistan team:
Shan Masood (captain), Saud Shakeel (vice captain), Mohammad Rizwan (wicket keeper), Abrar Ahmed, Mohammad Ali, Salman Ali Agha, Saim Ayub, Babar Azam, Mir Hamza, Abdullah Shafique, Naseem Shah, Khurram Shehzad
Pakistan played four fast bowlers in the series opener — Shaheen, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Ali and Naseem Shah — as Masood opted to go with a pace attack, but things went awry.
