In-form left-handed opener Nasir Jamshed, pacers Mohammad Irfan and Ehsan Adil and Haris Sohail are the fresh inclusions to a Pakistan Test side that is a mix of a few veterans, some tried and tested names making comebacks and several who have cemented their places in the transitional phase that squad recently went through.

With Jamshed’s recent run in India, the temptation to play him will be great but as an opener, the two men he could possibly replace are Taufeeq Umar and Mohammad Hafeez. Hafeez’s ability with the ball gives him an added advantage but Taufeeq has also been consistent ever since making a comeback to the Test side in 2010 after a gap of almost four years.

There is a possibility of Hafeez moving down and taking the gamble of putting Taufeeq behind the stumps, the latter unlikely to happen on such a challenging tour, but clearly Jamshed’s inclusion could give Pakistan some much-needed impetus at the top.

Sarfraz Ahmed will look to cement his place after already having received several chances but Adnan Akmal’s omission comes as a surprise keeping in mind his stable performances.

Irfan and Adil’s addition to the pace attack will excite Pakistan fans and together with Junaid Khan, Umar Gul, Saeed Ajmal and Abdur Rehman they should give the Pakistan management some selection headaches before the first Tests starts.

HAVE YOUR SAY:

What will your final XI be out of the names below? Do you agree with the squad picked and who do you think has missed out on a deserving spot?

Misbah-ul Haq (capt), Mohammad Hafeez, Azhar Ali, Nasir Jamshed, Asad Shafiq, Younis Khan, Mohammad Irfan, Sarfraz Ahmed, Umar Gul, Junaid Khan, Ehsan Adil, Saeed Ajmal, Abdur Rehman, Haris Sohail, Faisal Iqbal, Taufeeq Umar