Pakistan Announces T20I Squad for Sri Lanka Series, Includes BBL Players

Pakistan has announced its squad for the three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka in January. Shadab Khan has returned to the team, while young batter Khawaja Nafay has earned his first call-up.
The series will serve as the final preparation for the T20 World Cup, to be held in India and Sri Lanka in February-March. Salman Agha will lead the side.
Shadab last played in June this year against Bangladesh, in a three-match series which Pakistan won 3-0. In that series, Shadab picked up four wickets and scored 55 runs. Following an injury and a long rehabilitation period, he returned to competitive cricket on December 16 for Sydney Thunder in Australia’s Big Bash League.
Other Pakistan players currently playing in the BBL, including Shaheen Shah Afridi, Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Haris Rauf, and Hasan Ali, have not been included in the squad.
The Sri Lanka vs Pakistan T20I series will be played on January 7, 9, and 11, with all matches taking place in Dambulla.
23-year-old Khawaja Nafay recently participated in the Abu Dhabi T10 league and has also been part of the Pakistan Shaheens squad. In 32 T20 matches, he has scored 688 runs at a strike rate of 132.81.
Pakistan Squad:Salman Agha (captain), Abdul Samad, Abrar Ahmad, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Khawaja Nafay, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Salman Mirza, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Shadab Khan, Usman Khan, Usman Tariq