After an extremely disappointing campaign in the T20 World Cup 2026, Pakistan have dropped Babar Azam from the upcoming three-match ODI series against Bangladesh, starting March 11. The star batter played 17 ODIs in 2025, scoring 544 runs at a strike rate of 77.16. He scored a century in Pakistanโs last ODI series against Sri Lanka, but based on his current form, the selectors were forced to drop the former captain.
After Pakistan were knocked out of the T20 World Cup, multiple former cricketers and pundits called for his removal, with Shahid Afridi even asking the selectors to keep him out of the equation for at least two years.ย
Meanwhile, itโs not just Babar, Pakistan have made several changes to the squad. They have also dropped Fakhar Zaman from the squad, who scored a half-century in the last ODI and had a decent campaign in the ICC event. Despite so, the team management axed him, indicating a fresh start in white-ball cricket.
Saim Ayub, Naseem Shah dropped too
Among other major absentees, the list includes Saim Ayub and Naseem Shah. Like Babar, Saim failed to establish his authority with the bat, leading to the team dropping him from the crucial World Cup fixture against New Zealand. In his absence, Sahibzada Farhan has been called up, who had a stunning tournament, hitting two centuries, breaking Virat Kohliโs record for most runs by a batter in a single edition of the T20 World Cup.
In the meantime, Shaheen Shah Afridi will continue to lead the team, despite calls for his removal after the World Cup. However, to maintain some stability, he has been handed another opportunity and so is Mohammad Rizwan, who wasnโt a part of the World Cup squad. To note, Pakistan will certainly test their bench strength against Bangladesh, having called up six uncapped cricketers.
Pakistanโs 15-member squad for Bangladesh ODIs
Shaheen Shah Afridi (captain), Abdul Samad, Abrar Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Faisal Akram, Haris Rauf, Hussain Talat, Maaz Sadaqat, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Muhammad Ghazi Ghori (wk), Saad Masood, Sahibzada Farhan, Salman Ali Agha and Shamyl Hussain
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