Batter Azam Khan has been ruled out of the playing XI of the Pakistan team in their face-off against India today at the Nassau County International Stadium in New York.
Following his continuous poor-performance, the Pakistan team have decided to replace Azam Khan with all-rounder Imad Wasim in the mega-blockbuster match against India.
The decision was taken based on his performance against the USA, when the right-handed batter was dismissed on a duck on the very first ball, while he did not perform well in the T20I series as well. In Pakistan’s final match of the three-match series against Ireland, Azam was dismissed without scoring any runs for the team.
Similarly, in Pakistan’s face off against England in the final match of the four-match T20I series, Khan was dismissed on 0 off 5 deliveries. The 25-year-old is trolled over his physical fitness as well as on-field performance.
According to the sources, the captain of the team Babar Azam and coach Gary Kirsten have lost faith in Azam as he was seen standing idle during the net practice and was not given a single ball to play.
Meanwhile, skipper Babar and wicket-keeper Muhammad Rizwan will be opening the innings against India.
On the other hand, Pakistan’s head coach Kirsten revealed that the all-rounder Imad Wasim has recovered and will be playing the high-voltage match against the Men in Blue.
"Imad Wasim will be available for the match against India,” Kirsten confirmed in a presser. “We will make a comeback."
The son of legendary wicket-keeper Moin Khan has played 14 innings for the team but scored only 88 runs. He made his international debut back three years ago in July 2021.
The fans were frustrated over the loss against the USA and especially over Azam's selection in the same.
"We have been so much disappointed. Azam Khan has no place in the team but they are still including him. He doesn't know fielding and he got out on the first ball," said one of the spectators.
Moreover, the national team have finalised their playing XI for today’s match and are all set to enter the field with four fast bowlers, two all-rounders, and a spinner.
The playing squad, as per the sources, includes captain Babar Azam, wicket-keeper-batter Muhammad Rizwan, batsman Usman Khan, left-handed batter Fakhar Zaman, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Imad, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, Muhammad Amir and Naseem Shah.
Syed Yahya Hussaini- Azam Khan
- Imad Wasim
