Pakistan Announce Test Squad for Sri Lanka Series: Babar Azam Leads, Three Uncapped Batters Called Up, Shan Masood Dropped
By NajamSports Team | October 24, 2026
This is the selection call I have been waiting for all week, and I will be honest — it is bolder than I expected. Pakistan have announced a 14-member Test squad for the home series against Sri Lanka, Babar Azam will captain the side, three uncapped batters have earned their first call-ups, and former captain Shan Masood is not in the squad at all. After days of speculation about who would survive and who would go, the PCB has finally put names on paper, and those names tell a very clear story about where Pakistan's red-ball cricket is heading.
The headline facts: the two-Test series, part of the ICC World Test Championship 2025-27, starts on November 9 at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, with the second Test from November 17 at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore. The squad announced on Saturday, October 24, is an initial 14 — two fast bowlers will be added after the three-day warm-up match between PCB Patron's XI and Sri Lanka from November 4 to 6 at Islamabad Club.
The Full Squad
- Captain: Babar Azam
- Batters: Abdullah Fazal, Azan Awais, Sameer Minhas, Mohammad Taha, Mohammad Suleman, Saud Shakeel, Salman Ali Agha
- All-rounder / keeper options: Arafat Minhas, Razaullah
- Wicketkeepers: Mohammad Ghazi Ghori, Saad Baig
- Bowlers: Mohammad Abbas, Ali Usman
- Uncapped: Sameer Minhas, Mohammad Taha, Mohammad Suleman — all three on their first Test call-up
- Notable omission: Shan Masood, the former captain, is not in the 14
The Three New Faces — And Why They Earned It
I like this part of the selection, because none of these three picks looks like a favour. They look like first-class cricket doing its job. Mohammad Taha, 26, is the leading run-scorer in this season's President's Trophy Grade-I first-class tournament with 730 runs in seven matches. Mohammad Suleman is fifth on that same list with 652 runs. Sameer Minhas, playing his maiden first-class season, has made 405 runs in seven matches — and readers will remember his unbeaten 74 that won Pakistan a match at the Under-19 World Cup earlier this year.
That is the right order of things, in my opinion. If domestic runs do not lead to Test selection, then domestic cricket is just decoration. Here, the runs have actually been rewarded, and that sends a message to every young batter grinding through the first-class season: score heavily, and the door is open.
Shan Masood Out — The Hardest Call of All
Let me not pretend this is a small decision. Shan Masood captained Pakistan not long ago, led a 2-1 home series win over England in 2024, and since losing the captaincy has still produced a century against the West Indies and 95 against England. What has worked against him is a left calf injury picked up playing for SNGPL in the President's Trophy, which cost him match practice at exactly the wrong time — and, frankly, a Test record as captain that included defeats in Australia and at home against Bangladesh.
My own view is that this is less a punishment and more a reset. Pakistan are bottom of the World Test Championship table. When you are bottom, keeping the same group and hoping for different results is not a plan. Dropping a former captain hurts, and it will divide opinion, but it is the kind of call that tells you the selectors are serious about change rather than just talking about it.
Babar Azam's Captaincy — The Real Test Begins Now
For Babar, this series is a different kind of examination. We know what he can do with the bat — he crossed 16,000 international runs earlier this month, a milestone I covered here on NajamSports. What this series will test is whether he can lead a young, changing side to a home series win that actually moves Pakistan off the bottom of the WTC table. Sri Lanka are seventh, not world-beaters on paper, but they have already named a settled 15-man squad for this tour and they will arrive with a plan.
Babar's job is complicated by the two missing pace spots. Mohammad Abbas, who was joint player of the series in Pakistan's most recent red-ball assignment, will lead the pace attack for now, but the final shape of the bowling unit depends on who impresses in the Patron's XI warm-up — Saad Baig captains that side, and its pace attack of Mohammad Salman, Shoaib Akhtar Jnr, Ali Shabbir, Saqib Khan and Ubaid Shah will be bowling for two Test places. That is a genuine audition, not a formality.
My Analysis: Why This Squad Matters Beyond November
First, this is a youth bet, and youth bets only work if the young players are actually played. There is no point picking Sameer Minhas, Taha and Suleman and then leaving all three on the bench for both Tests while the same old middle order fails again. If the selectors have the courage to pick them, the team management needs the courage to play at least one or two of them in Rawalpindi.
Second, the balance of this squad worries me slightly — and I say this as someone who wants this rebuild to work. Only two frontline bowlers are named in the initial 14, with the rest to come from the warm-up. That is understandable given the audition plan, but it means Pakistan's bowling combination will be decided very late, with almost no time to settle before the first Test. Rawalpindi has not always been kind to late decisions.
Third, and most importantly, this series is Pakistan's chance to stop the WTC slide before it becomes a habit. A 2-0 home win over Sri Lanka would not fix everything, but it would change the mood around this team completely — and with a tri-series against England and Sri Lanka already giving these players white-ball form, there is no excuse about rustiness. The pieces are there. November will show whether the selectors' courage is matched by the players' performances.
For background on the captain, you can read our report on Babar Azam crossing 16,000 international runs, our report on Pakistan's 37-run win over Sri Lanka in the 1st ODI, and our preview of the Pakistan, England and Sri Lanka ODI tri-series.
What Comes Next
The warm-up match runs November 4 to 6 at Islamabad Club, after which two fast bowlers join the squad. The first Test is November 9 to 13 in Rawalpindi, the second November 17 to 21 in Lahore. Watch three things: which of the uncapped trio actually plays in Rawalpindi, which two pacers win the warm-up audition, and whether Babar's batting — the one thing Pakistan can always rely on — holds up under the extra weight of leading a rebuild.
Conclusion
Pakistan have announced a 14-member Test squad for the Sri Lanka series, with Babar Azam as captain, maiden call-ups for Sameer Minhas, Mohammad Taha and Mohammad Suleman, and no place for Shan Masood. It is a brave, youth-driven selection, announced on October 24, for a series that starts in Rawalpindi on November 9. If the young batters are trusted and the pace audition produces two genuine wicket-takers, this could be the start of something better. If they are picked and then parked on the bench, it will be just another announcement.
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Sources
- ICC: Pakistan bring in fresh batting talent for Sri Lanka Tests, October 24, 2026
- Geo News: Three uncapped players included as Pakistan announce Test squad for Sri Lanka series, October 24, 2026 (17:45 PKT)
- Geo Super: Agha returns to Pakistan's new-look squad for home Test series against Sri Lanka, October 24, 2026
- Samaa TV: Pakistan name new-look Test squad for Sri Lanka series, October 24, 2026