Asia Cup 2025: Pakistan Announces Squad Without Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan

Pakistan’s squad for the Asia Cup 2025, beginning on September 9th, has been revealed. The team will be captained by Salman Ali Agha. A surprising development is the omission of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan from the squad. The squad members include: Salman Ali (C), Abrar, Faheem, Fakhar, Rauf, Hasan Ali, Hasan Nawaz, Talat, Khushdil Shah, Haris (WK), Nawaz, Waseem Jnr, Farhan, Saim Ayub, Salman Mirza, Shaheen, and Sufyan Moqim. This selection strategy appears to be a response to recent disappointing performances, particularly the ODI series loss to the West Indies. The West Indies won the third ODI by 202 runs, securing the series 2-1. Pakistan was bowled out for 92 while pursuing a target of 295. Saim Ayub, Abdullah Shafique, Mohammad Rizwan, and Abrar Ahmed all failed to score any runs. Salman Ali Agha managed a score of 30. Babar Azam’s low score of 9 runs further highlights his struggles, with his century drought now at 72 international innings.