Pak vs NZ: PCB to announce Green Shirts' squad for T20I series today

As fans gear up for the Pakistan cricket team's upcoming contests against New Zealand, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is set to announce the national squad for the T20I home series today.

The development comes after PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi, on Sunday, revealed that the Green Shirts' squad will be announced on April 9 (today) instead of the earlier expected date of April 8.

The upcoming series will commence on April 18 and will see the Black Caps taking on the Men in Green in five matches of which three will be played in Rawalpindi, whereas the rest of the two matches will be played in Lahore with the series culminating on April 27.

A day earlier, the board announced the team management for the NZ series with former pacer Azhar Mahmood and veteran batter Mohammad Yousuf being appointed as the team's head and batting coach, respectively alongside Wahab Riaz who will perform duties as senior team manager.

With Saeed Ajmal continuing as the team's spin bowling coach, other members of the team management include Mansoor Rana (team manager) Aftab Khan (field coach), Cliffe Deacon (physiotherapist), Drikus Saiman (strength and conditioning coach), Talha Butt (analyst), Irtiza Komail (security manager), Raza Kitchlew (media and digital manager), Zain Maqsood (videographer), Dr Khurram Sarwar (doctor), and Mohammad Imran (masseur).

A day earlier, sources told Geo News that squad players are set to report in Islamabad on April 14, sources say that the 18-member squad will be announced by the selectors in a press conference.

Players, as per the sources, who are expected to be part of the national side include Imad Wasim and Mohammed Amir — both of whom retracted their retirement from international cricket after discussions with the PCB.

Other players likely to make the team include Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Shadab Khan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Azam Khan, Shaheen Afridi, Zaman Khan, Agha Salman, Sahibzada Farhan, Fakhar Zaman and Abbas Afridi.

For spinners, either Usama Mir or Abrar Ahmed will be part of the Men in Green's squad, the sources added.

Meanwhile, Haris Rauf is unlikely to be part of the national side due to his injury.

United Arab Emirates's (UAE) Usman Khan, owing to his impressive performance in the Pakistan Super League's ninth edition (PSL 9), will also feature for the national side as he has been declared eligible to do so by PCB chairman.