The five-match series starts on April 18 and will finish on April 27, with matches to be played in Rawalpindi and Lahore. It marks the return of Babar Azam as white-ball captain for Pakistan.

Imad and Amir back from retirement

Imad Wasim and Mohammad Amir recently took back their retirements and made themselves available to play for Pakistan. They have now been selected for the New Zealand T20Is.

Imad had announced his retirement from international cricket in November 2023 to focus on franchise cricket; he had last played for the national team in April earlier that year.

He had a successful PSL 2024 campaign, where he took 12 wickets including five in the final, and made handy contributions with the bat. In fact, he won Player of the Match in each of the three playoff games that Islamabad United played.

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Amir, on the other hand, had retired from international cricket in 2020 after claiming he had been “mentally tortured” by the team management at the time. Since his international retirement, Amir has played T20s across the globe and has done exceedingly well, picking 126 wickets from 111 games.

Both will now get opportunities to feature in the Pakistan side for the New Zealand T20Is, where they will like to make a case for themselves for the T20 World Cup.

Usman and Irfan receive maiden Pakistan calls

UAE-based cricketer Usman Khan, who recently shifted allegiance to Pakistan and was subsequently banned by the Emirates Cricket Board, has received his first Pakistan call up. He had a stellar PSL campaign, becoming the first batter to score two centuries in a single edition of the tournament earlier this year.

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Muhammad Irfan Khan has also been named in the squad for the first time. He was adjudged the Emerging Player of the Tournament in PSL 2024 and is an exciting attacking batter to look out for.

“Being chosen to represent one’s country is the ultimate dream and goal for any athlete. Today, I am absolutely thrilled and filled with joy as the selectors have granted me the opportunity to be part of the upcoming series against New Zealand,” said Usman on his selection. Irfan, on the other hand, expressed his gratitude: “I am deeply honoured to have been selected in the Pakistan squad for the upcoming T20I series against New Zealand.”

Pakistan squad for New Zealand T20Is

Babar Azam (c), Abrar Ahmed, Azam Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohmmad Amir, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Usama Mir, Usman Khan, Zaman Khan

Non-travelling reserves: Haseebullah, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Sahibzada Farhan, and Salman Ali Agha