Pakistan Squad For ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 Announced, Naseem Shah Ruled Out

Cricket World Cup 2023: Pakistan Cricket Board chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq on Friday announced the 15-man squad for the ODI World Cup which will travel to India.

The announcement was made via a press conference conducted at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.

Inzamam-ul-Haq also announced three reserve players who will travel with the team to India and may be called upon in case of any injuries to the squad.

With this announcement, 8 teams out of the 10 participating in the ICC World Cup 2023 have announced their 15-player squad for the ODI world cup starting next month.

Only Sri Lanka and Bangladesh are the two teams left who are yet to announce their squads for the CWC 2023.

Pakistan Squad: Babar Azam (c), Shadab Khan (vc), Abdullah Shafique, Faqar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imam-Ul-Haq, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Wasim Jr., Salman Agha,Saud Shakeel, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Usama Mir

Reserve players: Mohammad Harris, Ibrar Ahmed, Zaman Khan

Here's what Inzamam said after selecting the squad for the ICC Cricket World Cup: "World Cup is the most important event in any cricketer’s life and I want to congratulate all the cricketers who have made it to the squad through their impressive performances. This team has performed wonderfully well over the last couple of years and that is why we have shown faith in the same bunch."

“We were forced to make one change because of an unfortunate injury to Naseem Shah. We had a few injury scares in the recent Asia Cup, but I am glad to share that all the players are fully fit and are eager to perform for their country in the all-important tournament. I have received encouraging reports from our medical panel about Haris Rauf. He has started to (shadow) bowl at the National Cricket Academy and will be available for selection," Inzamam said.

“I have a firm belief that this squad can bring the World Cup trophy to Pakistan and make the whole nation proud with their incredible performances. It is time to get behind our team and provide them with the backing and support that they need," he added.

As of September 22, the following teams have declared their 15-player provisional squads for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023

• England (final squad confirmed)

• India

• South Africa (final squad confirmed)

• Australia

• Netherlands

• New Zealand

• Afghanistan

• Pakistan

As per the rules set by ICC, all ten teams are required to announce their 15-player squads before September 28. Any replacements after this date will only be authorized post approval from the ICC board.

Pakistan will begin their ODI World Cup campaign by playing two warm-up games against New Zealand on September 29 and against Australia on October 3 before their tournament opener against the Netherlands on October 6.