Return of the big three: Pakistan's predicted XI for first Test vs South Africa

What is Pakistan's squad for the South Africa series?

Shan Masood (c), Abdullah Shafique, Babar Azam, Imam-ul-Haq, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan, Rohail Nazir, Aamir Jamal, Salman Ali Agha, Asif Afridi, Kamran Ghulam, Sajid Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Faisal Akram, Hasan Ali, Khurram Shahzad, Noman Ali, Shaheen Shah Afridi.

Pakistan announced an 18-member squad to begin with which included a footnote saying the size would be trimmed ahead of the first match. No official update has come from the Pakistan Cricket Board yet on any reductions to the squad size, but some reports suggest fast bowler Aamir Jamal and uncapped left-arm wrist spinner Faisal Akram have been released.

Shan Masood will continue as Test captain, and will have the company of heavyweights Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, and Shaheen Afridi. The first match - which will also mark the beginning of both teams' campaigns in the 2025-27 World Test Championship cycle - will be played at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore, which last hosted a Test in 2022 against Australia.

Here's what Pakistan's playing XI could look like.

Top order

Shan Masood (c), Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam

Muhammad Hurraira opened the batting in Pakistan's last Test series, against the West Indies. He has not been picked in the squad this time around. Instead, Imam-ul-Haq's prolific run in the One-Day Cup in UK and a triple hundred in the Hanif Mohammad Trophy at home has earned him a recall. The left-hander has been out of the Test side since December 2023, when he was dropped after the Boxing Day Test at MCG. With Shan Masood set to continue at the top of the order, the choice for the second opener will come down to either Imam or Abdullah Shafique.

Following his hundred against England in Multan where the visitors piled up 800-plus, Shafique had two poor Tests and was dropped. Imam's excellent form, albeit in a different format, could see him get the nod ahead of Shafique, even though he's a left-hander like Masood. Unlike some other teams around the world, Pakistan have not shown signs of hyper-fixation over left-right batting combinations in long-form cricket so far.

Babar Azam, meanwhile, should reprise his role at No.3.

Middle order

Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan (wk)

Ghulam had a brilliant start to his Test career, scoring a hundred on debut after replacing Babar. Since then, he has made only one 50-plus score in 10 innings, but should still start at four against South Africa. There's a chance that Pakistan might opt to play both Shafique and Imam at the top, and push Masood and Babar down to three and four, but that might happen only if Ghulam fails in this series.

Shakeel, whose Test average is upwards of 50 after 19 games, and Rizwan, should slot in at five and six.

All-rounders and bowlers

Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Afridi, Sajid Khan, Noman Ali, Abrar Ahmed

Pakistan's T20I captain has been a pivotal player for them in Tests, providing balance with his all-round skills at No.7. He will continue in that role.

Pakistan have tasted success at home ever since they started preparing raging turners. South Africa are not known as the best batting team against spin, which means there's no reason why Pakistan should change their strategy of using three frontline spinners with Agha as the fourth.

With Sajid Khan, Noman Ali, and Abrar Ahmed locked in as the three spinners, the only decision to make would be who the lone quick will be. Khurram Shahzad and Kashif Ali shared that responsibility across the two West Indies Tests earlier this year. Ali is not in the squad this time around, and with the return of Shaheen Afridi, you'd expect the left-arm quick to play ahead of Shahzad.

Pakistan's predicted playing XI for first South Africa Test

Shan Masood (c)
Imam-ul-Haq
Babar Azam
Kamran Ghulam
Saud Shakeel
Mohammad Rizwan (wk)
Salman Agha
Shaheen Afridi
Sajid Khan
Noman Ali
Abrar Ahmed