Abrar Ahmed, Kamran Ghulam removed from squad as Pakistan set to field all-pace attack in 1st Test vs Bangladesh

Pakistan National Cricket Team has made a huge change to their squad for the first Test against the Bangladesh National Cricket Team. Spinner Abrar Ahmed and Uncapped top-order batter Kamran Ghulam have been released from the squad.

Pakistan will be hosting Bangladesh in the two-match Test series. The game is all set to take place at Rawalpindi from the 21st of August while the second game is scheduled to take place from the 30th of August in Karachi. The two games will also be part of the ICC World Test Championship.

Abrar Ahmed after getting released from the Pakistan squad will be featured in the Pakistan Shaheens squad in the second four-day match against Bangladesh ‘A’. The match between the teams will take place at the Islamabad Club on Tuesday, 20 August.

Abrar Ahmed has been released from the squad for the first Test against Bangladesh because the selectors are eager to go with the all-pace attack. Therefore instead of benching him, they want the wrist spinner to play for Pakistan Shaheens and get some game time under his belt ahead of the second match.

Pakistan Cricket Board releases official statement on Abrar Ahmed

Releasing the official statement about the same, the Pakistan Cricket Board stated:

"Wrist spinner Abrar Ahmed has been released from the Pakistan Test side and he will now represent Pakistan Shaheens in the second four-day match against Bangladesh ‘A’, which will start at the Islamabad Club on Tuesday, 20 August.

"The decision was made after the selectors opted to go with an all-pace attack in the first ICC World Test Championship match against Bangladesh at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Wednesday, 21 August. Instead of benching him for the Test, the selectors named him in the Shaheens squad so that he can gain some match practice ahead of the second Test, which will start in Karachi on 30 August."

On the other hand, Kamran Ghulam will also be featuring the Pakistan Shaheens side for the second four-day match against Bangladesh A. He has been appointed as the captain of the team as well for the second game. The PCB also mentioned that both players will be joining the Team ahead of the second Test.

With Pakistan releasing Abrar Ahmed and opting for the all-pace attack, it is also confirmed that they will be playing on a green track. There were reports which stated that the team had asked the pitch curators to prepare a green pitch for the Rawalpindi Test. This is because Bangladesh batters are good against spinners but can be exploited easily on grassy pitches, giving an advantage to the home team.

Mir Hamza, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Huraira, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Sarfaraz Ahmed, and Saud Shakeel, who were part of the Pakistan Shaheen squad for the first Test have now joined the national team. Abrar Ahmed, Ali Zaryab Asif, Awais Anwar, Imam Ul Haq, Niaz Khan, Qasim Akram, Rohail Nazir, and Sharoon Siraj have replaced them in the Shaheens squad.

Here's the Pakistan Shaheens squad (for the second four-day)

Kamran Ghulam (captain), Abrar Ahmed, Ali Zaryab, Ghulam Mudassar, Imam-ul-Haq, Mehran Mumtaz, Mohammad Awais Anwar, Niaz Khan, Qasim Akram, Rohail Nazir (wicket-keeper), Saad Baig (wicket-keeper), Saad Khan, Sharoon Siraj and Umar Amin