Former England captain Kevin Pietersen took a dig at Pakistan’s recent Test team overhaul in the middle of the series vs England where the Pakistan Cricket Board called back 7 players from the ongoing tour and replaced them with a fresh set of cricketers. The changes were made after Pakistan lost the first two Tests of the tour in Headingly and Lord’s respectively. The third and final Test is set to take place in Edgbaston from September 9.
“When a captain is interviewed before every game, the interviewer asks about changes in their team. Could be a v v v v long interview for my buddy, Babar! Maybe the toss should start the night before??,” Pietersen joked on his X profile.
On Monday, the PCB had announced that Mohammad Rizwan, Imam-ul-Haq, Salman Ali Agha, Ali Usman, Aamir Jamal, Muhammad Awais Zafar and Khurram Shahzad have all been released from the squad. The Board also released head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed and bowling coach Umar Gul, replacing them with Mike Hesson and Ashley Noffke, respectively.
The seven replacements are Saim Ayub, Abdullah Fazal, Arafat Minhas, Saad Baig, Muhammad Randhawa, Razaullah and Muhammad Imran Jnr. Of the seven, five have played international cricket, while two – Muhammad Randhawa and Razaullah – are yet to represent Pakistan at any level. Saim Ayub and Abdullah Fazal have played eight and two Tests respectively, while left-arm spin-bowling all-rounder Arafat Minhas has represented Pakistan in three ODIs and four T20Is.
The other four players include left-arm fast bowler Mohammad Imran Jnr, wicketkeeper-batter Saad Baig, who was the Player of the Tournament in the 2025-26 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, and right-arm pace-bowling all-rounders Mohammad Imran, also known as Imran Randhawa, and Razaullah. The players will join the Pakistan squad ahead of the third Test in Birmingham.
The changes were made after Pakistan lost the first two Tests of the tour in Headingly and Lord’s respectively.
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