'T20 players included for Tests': Shahid Afridi, Shoaib Malik slam Pakistan selectors over squad selection amid chaos in England tour

Shahid Afridi criticised PCB for including T20 specialists in Pakistan's Test squad ahead of the Edgbaston decider.

Afridi also questioned the decision to sack head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed after just five Test matches in charge.

Seven players were released overall, with only two experienced additions among the new faces brought into the squad.

Shoaib Malik labelled PCB's decision 'ridiculous'.

Shahid Afridi tears into Pakistan selectors for picking T20 players to resolve England test crisis

Shahid Afridi has added his voice to the growing backlash against the Pakistan Cricket Board, questioning why T20 specialists were suddenly drafted into a Test squad and why the head coach lost his job just five matches into the role.

The Pakistan think tank acted indecisively after a 194-run defeat at Lord's, which handed England an unassailable 2-0 series lead and effectively turned the final Test at Edgbaston into a dead rubber.

In the aftermath of the defeat, the PCB tore up both the playing squad and the coaching staff ahead of that last match. Seven players were released in total, five of whom had featured in the series: Mohammad Rizwan, Imam-ul-Haq, Salman Ali Agha, Ali Usman and Khurram Shahzad, whereas Aamir Jamal and Muhammad Awais Zafar were the casualties despite not making an appearance on the tour.

The coaching shake-up matched the scale of the playing changes. Head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed and bowling coach Umar Gul were both relieved of their duties, with white-ball head coach Mike Hesson and former Australia seamer Ashley Noffke stepping in.

Among the replacements, only Saim Ayub and Abdullah Fazal carry any real Test experience, having played eight and two Tests respectively. The rest of the new additions are uncapped.

Spin-bowling all-rounder Arafat Minhas, left-arm seamer Mohammad Imran Jnr, wicketkeeper Saad Baig, and pace-bowling all-rounders Mohammad Imran and Razaullah round out the group.

What did Shahid Afridi say about the squad changes?

Afridi took to X to voice his confusion over the entire decision-making process, particularly the choice to bring in players better known for their T20 background into a red-ball fixture.

"Not sure what is the logic or reasoning behind this decision! Even the replacements make no sense - T20 players have been included for a Test match in England? What is this thinking and approach?" Afridi wrote.

He was equally critical of sacking Sarfaraz Ahmed so early into his tenure as head coach, calling it one of the most baffling calls he'd ever seen from a selection panel. "Why has the coach been axed after 5 Test matches? This is the most shocking decision ever by a selection committee which includes so many experienced selectors."

Sarfaraz was appointed as Pakistan's red-ball head coach on April 18, taking charge just before a two-match Test tour of Bangladesh.

It was his very first assignment in the role, which ended in a 2-0 whitewash. Pakistan then travelled to the West Indies for a two-match series that finished 1-1, before arriving in England, where they now trail 2-0 with just the Edgbaston Test remaining.

Shoaib Malik calls out PCB for disrespectful gesture

Another former Pakistan all-rounder, Shoaib Malik, joined Shahid Afridi in calling out PCB's ridiculous decision of sending back seven players back to the country in the middle of a tour, as he termed it a disrespectful gesture.

On X, Malik wrote, "The players dropped from the squad are still our national cricketers who have served Pakistan. Phrases like 'sent on the first flight back' are disrespectful. Accountability should start with those who broke the system, not with players, especially those who were on the bench or have played 2-3 test matches. Plus accountability starts once a tour is done, not in the middle of it."

He added, "Players should not be going through such mental stress and social media after every bad game or the fear of failure will settle in the minds of our players."

Afridi's criticism cuts right to the heart of the problem

Afridi's frustration isn't just noise; it reflects a valid concern about squad-building logic. Selecting T20 specialists for a Test match, especially one played in English conditions that typically demand patience and technical solidity, suggests a decision driven by panic rather than any coherent red-ball strategy.

It's hard to see how players developed for short-format explosiveness are meant to suddenly adapt to five-day discipline overnight. The coaching decision is arguably even harder to defend. Five Test matches, spanning three different series and vastly different conditions, aren't nearly enough time to fairly judge whether a head coach's methods are working.

Sacking Sarfaraz this quickly sends a troubling signal to future candidates about job security within Pakistan's setup, and it does little to build any long-term coherence in how the team approaches Test cricket.

Afridi's blunt criticism might ruffle feathers within the board, but it echoes what plenty of former players and analysts have already flagged: Pakistan's Test cricket problems run far deeper than personnel, they're rooted in an approach that keeps mistaking constant change for genuine progress. Until that mindset shifts, results like this dead-rubber chaos will likely keep repeating.

For all the latest cricket news, opinion, and commentary and to share your voice, head to our Facebook , Instagram, and X (Twitter) pages