Asia Cup: Pakistan chief Mohsin Naqvi finally breaks silence on Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan snub - 'Don’t have even 1% role'

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) stunned many when it announced its 17-member squad for the upcoming UAE tri-series and Asia Cup 2025 without star batters Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan. Amid the speculation, PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi has clarified that the decision was purely the work of selectors.“First of all, I don’t have even 1% role in putting players into the team or taking them out,” Naqvi told reporters on Saturday. “We have a selection committee and then an advisory body, they all sit together. The process goes through a lot — discussions that last 8–10 hours, sometimes for 2–3 days. Definitely, if a team is being selected, it’s in good hands, all professionals are there. I’ve only told them one thing — whatever decision they take, it should be on merit, and I will support that.”

Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!The Asia Cup squad sees a greater emphasis on power-hitters, with Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan and Fakhar Zaman expected to shoulder the top-order responsibility. Neither Babar nor Rizwan has featured in a T20 international since December 2024.Naqvi underlined the long-term vision, adding, “With whatever lot was available, I polished it and carried it forward. Now our effort is to bring in as many new players as possible so that there is more competition in cricket and the best of the best can come forward.”

Head coach Mike Hesson, meanwhile, elaborated on the call, saying Babar had been asked to improve “in some areas” including his strike rate and play against spin. “At the moment, the players that we have, (they) have performed exceptionally well,” Hesson had said. “But certainly a player like Babar has an opportunity to play in the BBL and start to show that he’s improving in those areas in T20s. He’s too good a player for us not to consider.”Salman Ali Agha will captain Pakistan in the tri-series and Asia Cup, with senior names like Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf and Hasan Ali joined by promising youngsters Hasan Nawaz and Mohammad Haris.Pakistan squad: Salman Ali Agha (c), Abrar Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Hasan Nawaz, Hussain Talat, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Haris (wk), Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Waseem Jnr, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Salman Mirza, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Sufyan Moqim.