Shaheen Afridi opens up about Hasan Nawaz's exclusion

Pakistan ODI captain Shaheen Afridi opened up on the exclusion of middle-order batter Hasan Nawaz from the white-ball squads.

A day earlier, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) released the 23-year-old from the ODI squad for the series against Sri Lanka and the T20I tri-series team.

“Hasan has been released to participate in the ongoing Quaid-e-Azam Trophy – the country’s premier first-class tournament. The seventh round of the competition commences from 11 November,” the statement said.

“Left-handed batter Fakhar Zaman will replace Hasan in the T20I squad, while no player will be added to the ODI squad as Hasan’s replacement,” it added.

Hasan made headlines after scoring a record ton in a T20I against New Zealand earlier this year. However, after playing a vital role with the bat for the national side in numerous games, his form dipped, eventually resulting in his release from the squad.

Speaking to the reporters ahead of the first ODI against Sri Lanka, Shaheen congratulated Nawaz on the arrival of his baby boy, noting that he could not spend time with his family due to national commitment.

“First of all, congratulations to Hasan Nawaz. He was blessed with a baby boy when we were in Rawalpindi for the match against South Africa, but he could not spend time with his family and was with the team,” said Shaheen.

The skipper also pointed out that Hasan is facing competition from others due to his batting spot and expressed the belief that his game will improve after participating in domestic cricket.

“Secondly, the number at which Hasan is playing currently, he faces competition from a lot of batters, so when he plays domestic cricket, he will improve,” he maintained

“And Hasan Nawaz’s exclusion does not mean that he has completely vanished from the team. He is the future of Pakistan,” the 25-year-old concluded.