Senior Pak Players to be Rested Against Kiwis

Karachi: Feeling let down by the senior players in the Champions Trophy, the Pakistani selectors are contemplating resting some of them and drafting in new faces in the one-day series against New Zealand in Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

Chief selector Iqbal Qasim said the selectors would be sitting down to finalize the team for the ODI series after the second round matches of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy are completed.

"That is why we have asked all the senior and Pakistan team players to play in the Quaid Trophy, it is mandatory," Qasim, a former Test spinner, said.

Pressure has mounted on the board and selectors to look at fresh blood after the inconsistent form of senior players including Imran Nazir, Misbah-ul-Haq and Umar Gul.

The success of youngsters Umar Akmal and Mohammad Aamer has bolstered the argument that Pakistan cricket is in dire need of fresh blood.

But Qasim said the selectors would not panic and start dropping the senior players.

"That is not going to happen but yes, we do want a gradual induction of some new players and we also want to have another look at players who have been dropped from the team recently," he added.

Fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar has already been ruled out of the series since he is due to undergo a knee surgery in England and will take at least six weeks to recover.

The selection of Mohammad Asif remains unclear until the board gets clearance from the Dubai authorities that he can play in the emirates following his 19-day detention in Dubai last year in a drug possession case.

Captain Younus Khan has also struggled in the Champions trophy, managing 53 runs in four matches and his form will also be a big concern for the selectors, who would keep a close watch on him in the Quaid Trophy starting from October 10.

Discarded openers Salman Butt and Imran Farhat, who recently resigned from the Indian Cricket League, are in the running for a comeback to the team for the series against New Zealand.

"We want to test the form and fitness of every player in the first two rounds of the Quaid Trophy," Qasim said.