Pak vs NZ: Pakistani cricketers playing in CPL to return by Sept 12

• Cricketers named in the T20 squad will return to Pakistan after playing in the Caribbean Premier League as per schedule. 
• Pakistan-New Zealand series to kick off on September 17. 
• Mohammad Hafeez, Azam Khan, Imad Wasim and Asif Ali are playing in the CPL.

LAHORE: Pakistani cricketers playing in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) who have been selected for the upcoming series against New Zealand, will return to the country on September 12, revealed the PCB Tuesday. 

Cricketers Mohammad Hafeez, Azam Khan, Imad Wasim and Asif Ali, who got the T20 nod from the PCB selectors for the upcoming series against the Black Caps, are playing in the CPL. 

Usman Qadir has already joined the ODI squad after returning from the West Indies.

The cricketers included in the T20I squad will be tested for Covid-19 at their homes on September 13, said the PCB.

On September 16, cricketers will enter the biosecure bubble and will be tested for coronavirus at their hotel.

After spending a day in isolation, the cricketers will start training from September 18 in Lahore. 

Pakistan and New Zealand will play three ODIs at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on September 17, 19 and 21. The three ODIs will be part of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Super League ODIs, confirmed both boards.

The two teams will also lock horns in the five-match Twenty20 series to be played from September 25 to October 3 at the Gaddafi Stadium Lahore. 

Pakistan Squad for ODI series

Babar Azam (captain, Central Punjab), Abdullah Shafique (Central Punjab), Faheem Ashraf (Central Punjab), Fakhar Zaman (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Haris Rauf (Northern), Hasan Ali (Central Punjab), Iftikhar Ahmed (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Imam-ul-Haq (Balochistan), Khushdil Shah (Southern Punjab), Mohammad Haris (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Mohammad Hasnain (Sindh), Mohammad Nawaz (Northern), Mohammad Rizwan (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Mohammad Wasim Jnr (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Saud Shakeel (Sindh), Shadab Khan (Northern), Shaheen Shah Afridi (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Shahnawaz Dahani (Sindh), Usman Qadir (Central Punjab) and Zahid Mahmood (Southern Punjab)

Pakistan squad for ICC Men's T20 WC and T20 series vs NZ

Chief Selector Muhammad Waseem on Monday announced Pakistan's squad for the upcoming ICC Men's T20 Cricket World Cup, which is scheduled to take place from October 17.

Waseem announced a 15-man squad, with three players selected as reserves. The same team will play the home series against New Zealand and England in the coming weeks.

The 15-man squad

Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Asif Ali, Azam Khan (wicketkeeper), Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Imad Wasim, Khushdil Shah,

Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sohaib Maqsood

Traveling reserves — Fakhar Zaman, Shahnawaz Dahani, and Usman Qadir

The bio-secure bubble created for players

The PCB has got around 220 rooms booked on three different floors of a seven-star hotel for the biosecure environment, according to a hotel executive.

The executive added that the rooms and floors are solely meant for the cricket series between New Zealand and Pakistan and all three floors will be a part of the biosecure bubble.

The hotel executive confirmed that the staff members working on the floors will also be a part of the biosecure environment. "The staff members will serve teams and stay within the same secure environment till the departure of the teams to Lahore,” the official said.

The executive further stated that the number of hotel rooms booked has increased since the players' families are also staying with them in the hotel.