ENG vs PAK: Babar Azam's Pakistan kick Hasan Ali out of the squad ahead of England series

Pakistan's right-arm pacer Hasan Ali has been withdrawn from the National team's squad for the T20I series in England by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). 

Hasan Ali was selected for Pakistan's European tour which first saw them play a 3-match T20I series in Ireland which they won by a margin of 2-1. Now the Men in Green will take on Jos Buttler's England for a 4-match series in the shortest format and it will be their last stop to prepare for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2024. 

Pakistan will be aiming to take one step forward in trying and winning the T20 World Cup this year after their failed attempts across the last two editions. The Men in Green were semi-finalists in the 2021 edition as they lost to eventual winners Australia and in the 2022 edition, Babar Azam's side remained on the losing side against the same England team they will be facing later today. 

Why has Hasan Ali been withdrawn? 

Hasan Ali has been released by the Pakistan Cricket Board due to the bowler having a contract with the Warwickshire team in the current English county season. The right-arm seamer will be fulfilling his commitments in the county cricket circuit and his participation at the T20 World Cup 2024 also seems dicey now.

The fast bowler was selected in the squad as a cover bowler for the injury-prone pacer Haris Rauf who will have a crucial role to play at the World Cup. Hasan Ali had also traveled with the Pakistani team for their series in Ireland wherein he only played the last T20I in Dublin where Pakistan had won by 6 wickets to clinch the series. 

But in that match, Hasan Ali's bowling was highly questionable as he conceded 42 runs at an economy rate of nearly 15 from 3 overs. He wasn't also able to scalp a single wicket in that game.

"Fast bowler Hasan Ali has been released from the T20I squad. The team management has decided to let Hasan Ali continue his commitments in county cricket. Initially, Hasan was selected as an injury cover for Haris Rauf," PCB. 

Before featuring in Pakistan's tour of Ireland, Hasan Ali had last played for Pakistan in the 3-match Test series in Australia back in December-January. In that Test series, too, he had a disappointing performance, picking up only 2 wickets from the 2 Tests he played in Melbourne and Syndey. 

With his exclusion confirmed, Hasan Ali is now looking unlikely to appear at the T20 World Cup 2024 in the USA and West Indies. Hasan was a part of the team that had travelled to UAE for the 2021 T20 World Cup edition but he didn't play a single match at the 2022 edition. 

Pakistan's schedule for the T20 World Cup 2024

Pakistan will begin their T20 WC 2024 campaign against the USA on June 6th in Dallas followed by the high-octane clash against India on June 9th in New York. The Men in Green will conclude the group stages with a clash against Canada on June 11th before taking on Ireland on June 16th in Florida.