Batsman Umar Akmal and pacer Wahab Riaz have been recalled as Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Saturday announced the 16-member ODI squad for the home series against South Africa in UAE. Batsman Sohaib Maqsood, who played two T20s in Zimbabwe, has also been included in the ODI squad for the five-match series against South Africa. However, pacers Anwar Ali and Asad Ali and batsman Haris Sohail who featured in the ODI matches against Zimbabwe have been excluded from the ODI squad.
It may be noted that Pakistan cricket team will play first ODI on October 30 at Sharjah, second ODI on November 1 at Dubai, third ODI on November 6 at Abu Dhabi, fourth ODI on November 8 at Abu Dhabi and fifth ODI will be played on November 11 at Sharjah.
Squad: Misbah-ul-Haq (Captain) Ahmed Shehzad, Nasir Jamshed, Mohammad Hafeez, Umar Amin, Umar Akmal, Shahid Afridi, Saeed Ajmal, Abdur Rehman, Mohammad Irfan, Junaid Khan, Sohail Tanvir, Wahab Riaz, Sohaib Maqsood, Asad Shafiq and Sarfraz Ahmed (WK).
Moreover, as per the latest Reliance ICC test team rankings‚ Pakistan's seven wickets' victory in Abu Dhabi brought the team to the fourth position. Pakistan skipper Misbah-ul-Haq jumped to seventh position on rankings for Test batsmen. Misbah (39) was rewarded for his 100 and 28 not out with a jump of five places that has put him in seventh position‚ just one place and seven ratings points behind Younus Khan.
AFP adds: Opener Mohammad Hafeez Saturday returned to the Pakistan squad for five one-day internationals against South Africa after being left out of the Tests due to poor form. The 32-year-old opener failed in the two-match Test series in Zimbabwe last month, scoring just 59. But he fared considerably better in the one-day matches, scoring a hundred and winning man of the series. That prompted selectors to include Hafeez in the one-day series against the Proteas which starts in Sharjah on October 30.
Also returning to the one-day squad is left-handed opener Nasir Jamshed after being ignored for the Tests. Former captain Shoaib Malik, Kamran Akmal and Abdul Razzaq are still being overlooked and haven't been included. Umar Akmal, who was withdrawn from the Zimbabwe tour following a suspected seizure, is also back in the squad after doctors cleared him last month.