Pakistan to hand out debut caps to multiple players in first ODI against Bangladesh

Pakistan seem to have hit the reset button in the 50-overs format as captain Shaheen Shah Afridi confirmed that they will hand out debut caps to Sahibzada Farhan, Shamyl Hussain, and Maaz Sadaqat in the first ODI against Bangladesh in Mirpur on Wednesday, March 11. Shaheen also clarified that senior players like Babar Azam, among others, were not "dropped" for the series.

"All the teams are very good in their home conditions and similarly Bangladesh have done well in their home ground as well. As a team we are prepared well and we have won our previous two ODI series at home against South Africa and Sri Lanka," Shaheen said at the pre-match presser.

“There will be three debutants for us in the first game. Sahibzada Farhan and Maaz Sadaqat will open the batting, while Shamyl Hussain will bat at three. I hope they will play their own game and show their skills. We are all excited to see them play for Pakistan not just for one series but future as well."

Hussain, who was part of Pakistan's squad at the ICC Men's U19 World Cup 2024 in South Africa, has promising numbers to showcase in List A cricket. The southpaw has aggregated 556 runs in 13 games at an average of 46.33 at a strike rate of 100.18, including two centuries and three fifties.

Maaz, 20, represented Pakistan at the ICC Men's U19 World Cup 2022 in the Caribbean and hogged the limelight for his Player of the Match (POTM) performance against India A at the Asia Cup Rising Stars tournament in Doha last year. The batting allrounder had bagged 2/12 in his three-over spell and scored an unbeaten 79 off 47 balls at a strike rate of 168.08 to help Pakistan Shaheens beat India A by eight wickets. 

He finished the tournament as the leading run-scorer (258) at an astounding average of 129.00 and a strike rate of 177.93, including two fifties. He also snared seven scalps across five games and played a pivotal role in helping Pakistan Shaheens win the tournament.

As for Shahibzada, he is being rewarded for his consistently brilliant performances in the T20I circuit. He enjoyed a memorable time with the bat during the recently concluded ICC Men's T20 World Cup, co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka. He finished the tournament with 383 runs - the most by a player in a single edition of the tournament, shattering Virat Kohli's tally of 319 (2014) in the process.