KARACHI, Feb 17: With the Pakistan squad for the first Test against Sri Lanka likely to be announced on Wednesday, chairman of the national selection committee Abdul Qadir has backed the credentials of batsman Asim Kamal for the series opener in Karachi.

Talking to reporters on Tuesday during the warm-up fixture between the PCB Patron’s XI and the touring Sri Lankans here at the Southend Club Cricket Stadium, Qadir spoke highly about Asim being recalled for his first Test in more than three years.

“Asim deserves to be in the team because is a kind of batsman who has both the ability and the experience to offer solidity in the middle-order batting. His temperament merits his inclusion in the team after being unfairly sidelined for the past three years,” Qadir stated.

The legendary leg-spinner of the 1980s said the selection committee, which includes Saleem Jaffer and Shoaib Mohammad as its members, was looking for the right balance to counter the Sri Lankans.

“We need a blend of experience in the squad because Pakistan are lacking the services of a seasoned batsman like Mohammad Yousuf and spearhead Shoaib Akhtar for different reasons. Sri Lanka cannot be taken lightly since they have some world-class cricketers in their line-up,” he pointed out.

Qadir expressed his satisfaction after watching openers Ahmed Shahzad and Azhar Ali making centuries for the Patron’s XI on Tuesday.

“There are a number of contenders in the opening department. We have three openers [Salman Butt, Nasir Jamshed and Khurram Manzoor] participating in the conditioning camp. Now we can say that five openers if we add these two young players [Ahmed Shahzad and Azhar Ali] who excelled today,” Qadir noted.

The chief selector, however, was stumped for an answer when he was asked whether Shoaib Malik, Younis Khan’s predecessor as Pakistan captain, was being considered as an opener for the Karachi Test that starts at the National Stadium on Saturday.

“You guys seem to know more than us [the selectors],” came the abrupt reply when pressed whether the selectors and the team management were thinking on that line. “That could be a possible option, but we may think otherwise.”

Malik, who has opened innings in six of his 21 Tests, as an opener scored a match-saving 148 not out — his only three-figure knock at the highest level — against Sri Lanka at Colombo’s SSC Ground in March 2006.

Qadir also indicated that the selectors, in consensus with skipper Younis and Pakistan coach Intikhab Alam, could spring a surprise or two when the squad is finalised.

“We do have the options of picking players outside those who were named for the conditioning camp and this game here because there are a few talented individuals who might get selected,” Qadir remarked. “Personally speaking Mohammad Aamir [the 16-year-old left-arm paceman who has taken 42 wickets for National Bank in the ongoing Quaid-i-Azam Trophy] has impressed me a lot.”