Merit or Media Pressure? Analysis of Pakistan’s CT 2025 Squad: The defending champions and hosts of Champions Trophy 2025, the Pakistan cricket team announced their squad for the mega event on 31st January 2025. Despite being the last team to announce the squad and taking too much time for selection, the Pakistani selectors once again failed to satisfy the fans in terms of squad selection.
From the return of Faheem Ashraf, Saud Shakeel, Khushdil Shah, and Fakhar Zaman to the absence of Imam-ul-Haq or Abdullah Shafique, the Pakistani squad had plenty of talking points. Cricket fans believed that the squad selection was based on media pressure rather than merit.
While the fans are not happy with the squad selection, we’ll take a look in this article on the Pakistani squad to determine whether this squad is good enough or not to defend the Champions Trophy. We will also dissect the fact that whether the selections were done on merit or not.
No Specialist Opener with Fakhar Zaman
Pakistan team has no specialist opening batter for the Main Event except Fakhar Zaman. Selector Asad Shafiq stated that one between Babar Azam and Saud Shakeel could open the innings with Fakhar. Cricket pundits and experts also say that Captain Mohammad Rizwan or Usman Khan can open the innings with Fakhar Zaman.
The options that Pakistan had to open the innings with Fakhar Zaman were Imam-ul-Haq and Abdullah Shafiq, but both were not considered for the event. Interestingly, Imam-ul-Haq played four matches in the President’s One Day Cup 2024, scoring 157 runs at an average of 78.5 and a strike rate of 95.15.
Imam-ul-Haq had good enough stats in this event to be picked for the event, and the Pakistan team needed a specialist opener for the mega event, but still, the selectors did not want him in the team. Many believe that Imam-ul-Haq’s ODI strike rate has been a problem and that led the selectors to not pick him in the Champions Trophy squad.
Abdullah Shafique was not considered for the squad after he scored three consecutive ducks against South Africa in the ODI series played in the latter half of 2024. Before that, Abdullah Shafiq had good scores at the Cricket World Cup and in the Zimbabwe series as well, yet the selectors decided not to include him in the Champions Trophy squad.
Read also: https://icasportsplus.com/the-hundred-2025-full-schedule-new-signings/
Not considering Abdullah and Imam can lead to disturbing Babar Azam’s position which won’t be good for Pakistan. However, Saud Shakeel opening the innings can be a blessing in disguise for Pakistan. Saud has opened the innings in PSL and knows how to utilize the PowerPlay overs. This could be a massive gamble and it can backfire as well.
The Return of Faheem Ashraf and Khushdil Shah
The Pakistan cricket fans did not like the return of Faheem Ashraf. Faheem Ashraf is a seasoned campaigner and has plenty of experience playing cricket in Pakistan. While many are against his selection, Faheem Ashraf actually scored 264 runs and was the second-highest run-getter in President’s Cup 2024. He scored 264 runs at an average of 66 and had a strike rate of 129 with three half-centuries.
Faheem Ashraf provides fast-bowling utility along with his batting, which is a rare commodity in the Pakistan cricket team. Faheem Ashraf also had a dream run in the Bangladesh Premier League. He has taken 20 wickets in the event at an average of 13.9, which means that he has got plenty of good bowling rhythm. Fahim Ashraf also registered a 5-wicket haul in the Bangladesh Premier League 2025. While many believe that Faheem Ashraf’s selection is not justified, this could be a brave move because he has prior experience of international cricket and he is in great form.
Read also: https://icasportsplus.com/sarfaraz-ahmed-to-make-limited-overs-return-after-three-years/
Fans were happy on the return of Khushdil Shah. Khushdil Shah has picked 17 wickets in the Bangladesh Premier League and has also scored close to 300 runs in the event at an average of 59 and a strike rate of 175. Khushdil Shah had always been good in 50-over cricket but due to his lack of performances in the T20I format, the selectors had axed him from the ODI team as well. Khushdil Shah’s spin bowling would be very crucial because the Pakistan team has got only one specialist spinner in their lineup which is Abrar Ahmed.
Only one Specialist Spinner
Despite the tournament being played in the Asian conditions, the Pakistan team opted for only one specialist spinner, Abrar Ahmed. Khushdil Shah and Agha Salman are their other options for spin bowling but both of them are all-rounders. Abrar Ahmed himself has played only four ODI matches. Although he has taken 10 wickets in these four games, he is still raw in ODI cricket.
Sufiyan Muqeem showed great potential early on in his career, but the Pakistan team did not opt for Sufiyan Muqeem for the event. Many believe that Sufiyan Muqeem’s rare ability of left-arm wrist-spinning could have helped Pakistan trouble many batting line-ups. But they decided against it.
Moreover, they also looked past Shadab Khan. Shadab Khan was not too impressive with the ball in domestic cricket, but his ability to deliver in clutch moments, especially with the bat, remains his plus point. Not having Shadab Khan in an already struggling middle order could cost Pakistan big time.
Can Pakistan win with this lineup?
Conclusively, we can say that the Pakistan team has made plenty of bold calls and all of these bold calls can backfire, especially the selection of Faheem Ashraf and Usman Khan. However, the Pakistan cricket team still has got plenty going in their favor. They recently defeated Australia and South Africa in the ODI series and they are indeed favorites to win this contest.
If Mohammad Rizwan’s mastermind works well, the Pakistan team can make the best use of these players and shock the world by defending their Champions Trophy. Pakistan team will begin their Champions Trophy campaign on 19th Feb against New Zealand at the newly constructed National Bank Cricket Arena in Karachi.
Pakistan’s 15-player squad:
Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Tayyab Tahir, Faheem Ashraf, Khushdil Shah, Salman Ali Agha (vice-captain), Mohammad Rizwan (captain), Usman Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah, and Shaheen Shah Afridi.
