LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has made late additions to the ongoing red-ball and upcoming white-ball training camps at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) as preparations for the national team’s upcoming assignments continue.
According to the board, players Abdullah Shafiq, Kamran Ghulam and Hamza Nasser have been included in the red ball camp, while emerging batsman Shahzaib Khan has been included in the white ball camp squad.
The players participating in the Test camps are currently engaged in situation-based practice matches at the LCCA ground, where batsmen and bowlers are assigned specific goals and objectives to reflect various match situations, helping coaches assess their performance under different conditions.
Sources revealed that the PCB decided to call extra players for the red ball camp due to fitness concerns involving several members of Pakistan’s Test squad.
National and academy coaches are keeping a close eye on the players throughout the training programme, with the latest additions to the camps coming amid growing concerns over the fitness of key players ahead of Pakistan’s upcoming Test tours of the West Indies and England.
The red-ball camp, which began on June 8, will continue till July 10, while the white-ball camp is scheduled to continue till September 18 and will feature 27 players.
Earlier reports suggested that wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Rizwan and middle-order batsman Saud Shakeel are doubtful for Pakistan’s upcoming Test matches.
Rizwan, who joined the Red-Ball camp a week late, is rehabilitating under the supervision of the medical staff and is scheduled for a fitness assessment on July 6 ahead of the West Indies tour.
Meanwhile, Shakeel is also being rehabilitated and is on the mend. His availability remains uncertain, forcing the selectors to consider alternative middle-order options.
Notably, Pakistan are scheduled to leave for the West Indies on July 13 ahead of their Test campaign later that month.
The two-match Test series against the West Indies will be played in Trinidad and Tobago, with the first Test scheduled from 25 to 29 July and the second from 2 to 6 August.
Following the West Indies tour, Pakistan will focus on England in a three-match Test series.
The series will begin on August 19 at Headingley in Leeds, followed by the second Test at Lord’s on August 27. The third and final Test begins on September 9 at Edgbaston in Birmingham.