ISLAMABAD: Key all-rounder Aamir Jamal has been released from the Test squad against the Bangladesh series due to injury, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced on Monday, dealing a blow to the hosts ahead of the two-match series scheduled to commence later this week.
Jamal has been recovering from a back injury that he sustained while playing county cricket this year. The right-arm pacer was earlier included in Pakistan’s squad subject to fitness clearance. The PCB said Jamal has been advised to improve his fitness at the National Cricket Academy in Lahore.
“Right-arm fast bowler Aamir Jamal has been released from the Test squad ahead of the series against Bangladesh,” the PCB said.
The first Test match between Bangladesh and hosts Pakistan will commence from August 21 at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium while the second match of the series will also be played in Rawalpindi from August 26.
Rawalpindi will host both matches in the series after the PCB moved the second Test from Karachi due to the ongoing renovation work at the National Bank Stadium for next year’s Champions Trophy.
On Sunday, Pakistani all-rounder Salman Ali Agha said he was excited at the prospect of being the country’s only off-spin option against Bangladesh. Pakistan’s only specialist leg-spinner Abrar Ahmed was left out from the squad as the hosts aim to prepare a green-top wicket to help their fast bowlers in the first match.
“When I go out to bat, I only think that I am a batsman,” Agha told reporters at a news conference on Sunday. “Similarly, when I go out to bowl, I always think about bowling.”
The monsoon rains in Pakistan are expected to disrupt the first test in Rawalpindi, but Salman said the home team is not concerned about the overcast conditions and is focused on beating Bangladesh.
“Rain is not in our control, we don’t think much about it,” he said. “What we know is that the conditions are not new to us, and we know it will help our fast bowlers.”
Pakistan squad
Shan Masood (captain), Saud Shakeel (vice-captain), Abdullah Shafique, Babar Azam, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Huraira, Mohammad Rizwan (wicket-keeper), Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wicket-keeper) and Shaheen Shah Afridi
Setback for Pakistan as injury rules out all-rounder Aamir Jamal from Bangladesh series
https://arab.news/n7vrm
Setback for Pakistan as injury rules out all-rounder Aamir Jamal from Bangladesh series
- Jamal has been recovering from back injury sustained earlier this year while playing county cricket
- Pakistan play first of two Test matches against Bangladesh at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Wednesday
At ECO meeting, Pakistan proposes ‘Regional Innovation Hub’ to curb natural disasters
- Pakistan hosts high-level 10th ECO Ministerial Meeting on Disaster Risk Reduction in Islamabad
- Innovation hub to focus on early warning technologies, risk informed infrastructure planning
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has proposed to set up a “Regional Innovation Hub on Disaster Risk Reduction” that focuses on early warning technologies and risk informed infrastructure planning, the Press Information Department (PID) said on Wednesday, as Islamabad hosts a high-level meeting of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO).
The ECO’s 10th Ministerial Meeting on Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) is being held from Jan. 21-22 at the headquarters of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) in Pakistan’s capital.
The high-level regional forum brings together ministers, and senior officials from ECO member states, representatives of the ECO Secretariat and regional and international partner organizations. The event is aimed to strengthen collective efforts toward enhancing disaster resilience across the ECO region, the PID said.
“Key agenda items include regional cooperation on early warning systems, disaster risk information management, landslide hazard zoning, inclusive disaster preparedness initiatives, and Pakistan’s proposal to establish a Regional Innovation Hub on Disaster Risk Reduction, focusing on early warning technologies, satellite data utilization, and risk-informed infrastructure planning,” the statement said.
The meeting was attended by delegations from ECO member states including Pakistan, Türkiye, Azerbaijan, Iran, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Representatives of regional and international organizations and development partners were also in attendance.
Discussions focused on enhancing regional coordination, harmonizing disaster risk reduction frameworks, and strengthening collective preparedness against transboundary and climate-induced hazards impacting the ECO region, the PID said.
ECO members states such as Pakistan, Türkiye, Afghanistan and others have faced natural calamities such as floods and earthquakes in recent years that have killed tens of thousands of people.
Heavy rains triggered catastrophic floods in Pakistan in 2022 and 2025 that killed thousands of people and caused damages to critical infrastructure, inflicting losses worth billions of dollars.
Islamabad has since then called on regional countries to join hands to cooperate to avert future climate disasters and promote early warning systems to avoid calamities in future.
