Pakistan makes last-minute changes to its Test squad vs Sri Lanka: Know full details

Pakistan have made a few last-minute changes to their Test squad for the upcoming two-match Test series against Sri Lanka, releasing two players and calling up another four players. They have added two fast bowlers. The uncapped duo of Saqib Khan and Ali Shabbir, who were part of the warm-up defeat against Sri Lanka, join the squad.  

The seam-bowling all-rounder of the side, Aamer Jamal, has also been included, as has the 20-year-old batter, Tayyab Tahir. Their opener, Abdullah Fazal, and the spinner, Ali Usman, meanwhile, are no longer part of the squad for the two red-ball games.

Pakistan Test squad vs Sri Lanka: Who is in, Who is out and why the changes were made

The PCB media release has confirmed the changes but didn’t give any explanation to Abdullah Fazal and Usman for their removal. The former made his debut against Bangladesh after his ‘Man-of-the-Match’ award performance in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy final last year. 

The changes also indicate that the home side has made up their mind about the kind of surfaces they would get for the Rawalpindi Test. The 16-man squad is included of just one player, who counts the spin bowling as his primary skills- Arafat Minhas.

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Pakistan need to turn around a tough World Test Championship (WTC) 2025/27 that has put them at the bottom of the points table. The first Test will be played in Rawalpindi on November 09 before the second clash moves to the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on November 17.

Updated squad for Pakistan vs Sri Lanka-

Babar Azam (captain), Aamir Jamal, Ali Shabbir, Arafat Minhas, Azan Awais, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Ghazi Ghori (w.k), Mohammad Suleman, Mohammad Taha, Muhammad Tayyab Arif, Razaullah, Saad Baig (w.k), Salman Ali Agha, Sameer Minhas, Saqib Khan and Saud Shakeel

Pakistan vs Sri Lanka Test head-to-head: How the two sides have fared in recent meetings

Pakistan and Sri Lanka have faced each other on a few occasions in the last few weeks during the tri-series, in which the Shaheen Afridi-led side earned the victory in the final against the Kusal Mendis-led side. But the challenge will be new in the Tests.

Pakistan and Sri Lanka have faced each other in 59 Tests, out of which 23 victories have gone to Pakistan’s way, with 17 defeats and 19 drawn encounters. They also have got nine wins in this aspect.

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The last time these two teams faced each other was in 2023, when the Babar Azam-led side collected the two wins by four wickets and innings and 222 runs.