Pakistan name squad for Champions Trophy

Pakistan have dropped opener Kamran Akmal from their 15-man squad for June's Champions Trophy to be held in England, but recalled his younger brother Umar and former skipper Azhar Ali.

The 35-year-old Kamran was part of Pakistan's squad which won the three-match one-day international series 2-1 in the West Indies earlier this month, managing scores of 47, 21 and 0.

Squad: Sarfraz Ahmed (captain), Azhar Ali, Ahmed Shehzad, Mohammad Hafeez, Babar Azam, Shoaib Malik, Umar Akmal, Fakhar Zaman, Imad Wasim, Hasan Ali, Fahim Ashraf, Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Amir, Junaid Khan, Shadab Khan

The four-member selection committee headed by former captain Inzamam-ul-Haq included Umar in the squad after being dropped for the Caribbean series because he'd failed fitness tests.

Former one-day captain Azhar returns to the squad following his absence in the Windies.

Inzamam said the squad was selected keeping English conditions in mind.

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"Ali is making a comeback in the team after looking at his good track record in English conditions, while Umar also returns after considerable improvement in his fitness,"Inzamam explained.

Wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed will again lead the squad after replacing Azhar as captain for the West Indies tour.

Pakistan will play arch-rivals and defending champions India in their first Group B match at Birmingham on June 4 followed by matches against South Africa (June 7 in Birmingham) and Sri Lanka (June 12 in Cardiff).

Group A comprises of hosts England, Australia, New Zealand and Bangladesh.

The top two teams from each group will qualify for the semi-finals.

Champions Trophy 2017 Guide

Squads: Every Champions Trophy squad named so far

Group A: Australia, New Zealand, England, Bangladesh.

Group B: India, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Pakistan.

Schedule

Warm-up matches

26 May – Australia v Sri Lanka, The Oval

27 May – Bangladesh v Pakistan, Edgbaston

28 May – India v New Zealand, The Oval

29 May – Australia v Pakistan, Edgbaston

30 May – New Zealand v Sri Lanka, Edgbaston

30 May – Bangladesh vs India, The Oval

Tournament

1 June – England v Bangladesh, The Oval (Day)

2 June – Australia v New Zealand, Edgbaston (D)

3 June – Sri Lanka v South Africa, The Oval (D)

4 June – India v Pakistan, Edgbaston (D)

5 June – Australia v Bangladesh, The Oval (D/N)

6 June – England v New Zealand, Cardiff (D)

7 June – Pakistan v South Africa, Edgbaston (D/N)

8 June – India v Sri Lanka, The Oval (D)

9 June – New Zealand v Bangladesh, Cardiff (D)

10 June – England v Australia, Edgbaston (D)

11 June – India v South Africa, The Oval (D)

12 June – Sri Lanka v Pakistan, Cardiff (D)

14 June – First semi-final (A1 v B2), Cardiff (D)

15 June – Second semi-final (A2 v B1), Edgbaston (D)

18 June – Final, The Oval (D)

19 June – Reserve day (D)