For the ODIs and T20Is, which will be played in three cities including Karachi, Lahore, and Rawalpindi, both teams have named their full-strength squads.
After the Afghanistan series, the Pakistan cricket team will consist of a mix of seasoned and junior players, with Babar Azam serving as the team’s captain. Mohammad Rizwan and Shaheen Shah Afridi have also rejoined the squad. Shadab will take over the vice-captain role he previously held.
Shaheen was finishing up his recovery after the first Test against Sri Lanka in Galle in July after missing five Tests and three ODIs against England and New Zealand following the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 due to a knee injury.
The ACC Asia Cup in the UAE, the second Test against Sri Lanka, the ODI series against the Netherlands, and the seven-match T20I series in Pakistan were also missed by him.
In the HBL Pakistan Super League (PSL) 8, the 22-year-old bowler, who has taken 99 Test, 62 ODI, and 58 T20I wickets, mounted a spectacular return when he motivated Lahore Qalandars to become the first team to successfully defend the championship.
Along with Shaheen, Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, and Mohammad Rizwan are all returning to both squads. For the three-match T20I series against Afghanistan last month in Sharjah, all of these players had taken a break.
Following impressive performances in Sharjah, three young guns—Ihsanullah, Saim Ayub, and Zaman Khan—have been kept in the T20I squad. Ihsanullah has also been added to the ODI squad for the first time in his career.
For both the ODI and T20I formats between PAK and NZ, wicket keeper batsman Tom Latham will captain the visiting squad. Latham, who last wore the national jersey in September, will assume the reins of command in the absence of Williamson, the regular captain of New Zealand.
The 15-member T20 team includes prospective debutants Chad Bowes and Henry Shipley, as well as several players returning to international T20 cricket on the strength of outstanding international and domestic form. The Kiwis have announced a young 15-member squad for the upcoming PAK vs NZ series.
Ben Lister and Cole McConchie have joined the Black Caps for ODIs and could make their debuts. McConchie was chosen because of a good season that saw him score 1140 runs across all forms and take eight wickets, whereas Lister was a member of the New Zealand team for the just finished ODI series against Sri Lanka but was unable to make the starting XI.
The 15-man squad additionally gave Chad Bowes, Rachin Ravindra, and Henry Shipley with further ODI debut opportunities. Those fresh faces are countered by an experienced core that includes six players from the team that reached the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup final.
Nine members of the team had recently played in Pakistan as well; they were members of the Test or ODI squads that competed in Karachi earlier this year.
The T20 squad included numerous players who were making their international T20 cricket comebacks as well as debutants Chad Bowes and Henry Shipley.
New Zealand Squad:
T20I: Tom Latham (c, wk), Chad Bowes, Mark Chapman, Dane Cleaver, Matt Henry, Ben Lister, Adam Milne, Cole McConchie, Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Rachin Ravindra, Henry Shipley, Ish Sodhi, Blair Tickner, Will Young.
ODI: Tom Latham (c), Tom Blundell, Chad Bowes, Matt Henry, Ben Lister, Cole McConchie, Adam Milne, Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Henry Nicholls, Rachin Ravindra, Henry Shipley, Ish Sodhi, Blair Tickner, Will Young.
Pakistan Squad:
T20I: Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Ihsanullah, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shan Masood and Zaman Khan.
ODI: Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Abdullah Shafique, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Haris Sohail, Ihsanullah, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Naseem Shah, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shan Masood and Usama Mir.
