Pakistan to launch new programme to scout talent headed by Abdul Razzaq

Abdul Razzaq to head Pakistan scouting programme (Source: Pakistan Cricket/Twitter/X)

The Pakistan team will be hosting the Champions Trophy which will take place on the 19th of February. They are set to enter the tournament as the defending champions and win their fourth ICC event overall. The men in green would want to make the most of the opportunity to win the tournament at home.

The next ICC event that will be following the Champions Trophy is the T20 World Cup which will be beginning next year. The tournament will be hosted by India and Sri Lanka and the team will want to make a comeback after a horrible performance in the last edition. This has led the Pakistan Cricket Board(PCB) to launch a program called ‘Strike Force’ which will be held by former Pakistan all-rounder Abdul Razzaq. This is a programme that will be used to scout talent who could have the potential to be power hitters in the shortest format of the game and can help them pick the perfect squad for the 2026 T20 World Cup. The head of Pakistan domestic cricket department Abdullah Khurrum has also given the details of how this programme is going to work.

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“Initially that was the idea, but, due to logistical challenges we decided to launch the strike force programme by holding a 90-day specialised camp for 25 players who have either already played for Pakistan, done well in domestic or under-19 level, or in T20 leagues in the country, In the phase which begins from 13th under Razzaq’s supervision, he will see how many players can be shortlisted for specialised roles in the T20 squad,” Khurrum said.

The Program will involve players who have represented Pakistan with little success which will including Haider Ali, Khushdil Shah, Usman Khan, and Azam Khan along with some young and new talented players who have performed in T20 and domestic cricket. The players are Abdul Samad, Saad Masood, Khawaja Nafay, Mubashir Khan, Hasan Nawaz, Imran Randhawa, Muhammad Akhlaq, Jahandad Khan, Abbas Afridi, Muhammad Faiq and Muhammad Faizan.