Pakistan have overhauled nearly half their squad and dismissed head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed and bowling coach Umar Gul ahead of the third and final Test against England at Edgbaston. The sweeping changes follow a crushing 194-run defeat at Headingley that sealed the series 2-0 in England’s favour.In a drastic move, the selectors have summoned five uncapped players alongside Saim Ayub and Abdullah Fazal, who possess a combined experience of just ten Tests. Mike Hesson and Ashley Noffke, the head coach and bowling coach of the white-ball setup, have been drafted into the Test coaching staff for the match beginning September 9.Mohammad Rizwan, Imam-ul-Haq, Salman Agha, Ali Usman, Aamer Jamal, Awais Zafar, and Khurram Shahzad are the seven players released from the squad. The five uncapped additions are Arafat Minhas, Mohammad Imran Jnr, Saad Baig, Mohammad Imran Randhawa, and Razaullah.
While Pakistan have undergone frequent personnel changes in recent years, a restructuring of this magnitude during an ongoing series for a dead rubber is unprecedented.
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? Why has the coach been axed after 5 Test matches? This is the most shocking decision…
— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) August 31, 2026
The decision to send Ali Usman home is particularly striking. The spinner claimed a maiden five-wicket haul in the second innings at Headingley, becoming the first visiting slow bowler to achieve the feat at the traditionally seam-friendly venue since 1972. Jamal and Zafar featured only in the first Test against West Indies in Tarouba, while Jamal had been recalled just last month for the Caribbean and UK tours.
Rizwan’s omission follows diminishing returns with the bat. Despite exceptional wicketkeeping — notably standing up to the stumps against Mohammad Abbas’s medium pace — he managed scores of 7, 1, 12, and 41 across the two Tests in England, adding just 41 runs in three innings during the West Indies leg.
Imam-ul-Haq was diagnosed with a grade-one left calf tear after the opening day at Lord’s and did not take the field for either Pakistan innings. His appearance on the outfield before the fourth day, heavily strapped and facing gentle throwdowns, drew sharp criticism. Sky Sports commentator Stuart Broad suggested the display was staged for optics.
Agha, Pakistan’s T20I captain, missed the Lord’s Test after being dropped for the Headingley match amid a slump in batting form.
Fazal was initially named for both tours but was withdrawn on the eve of the Tarouba Test after being declared unfit. His replacement, Abdullah Shafique, scored a match-winning century in the second Test, securing Pakistan’s first away Test victory since July 2023.
Ayub has not featured for Pakistan since the T20 World Cup earlier this year, sidelined by fitness concerns and an ankle fracture sustained in his last Test in January 2025. He recently hit a century for Jamaica Kingsmen in the CPL but has played only two first-class matches since his injury.
Among the uncapped players, left-arm orthodox spinner Arafat Minhas is the sole international debutant, having earned player-of-the-match honours in an ODI against Australia in May on a heavily spin-friendly pitch.
Karachi-born wicketkeeper-batter Saad Baig was player of the tournament in the last Quaid-e-Azam Trophy as the leading run-scorer. He joins the squad as a second gloveman alongside Ghazi Ghori, who has toured with the Test side since the Bangladesh series.
Of the three uncapped seamers, Mohammad Imran Randhawa is the most seasoned with 58 first-class appearances. Razaullah debuted last season with eight matches, while Mohammad Imran Jnr has managed just eight first-class games since his November 2022 debut.
The outgoing coaching duo of Sarfaraz and Gul were appointed only in April ahead of the Bangladesh tour; this series was just their third assignment. Pakistan also replaced batting coach Asad Shafiq with Mike Smith prior to the England tour.
The Lord’s defeat marked Pakistan’s 15th loss in their last 20 Tests. They sit rooted to the bottom of the World Test Championship standings, mirroring their position at the conclusion of the previous cycle.
Pakistan Test squad for Birmingham Test: Babar Azam (capt), Abdullah Fazal, Arafat Minhas, Azan Awais, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Ali, Muhammad Imran, Mohammad Imran Jnr, Muhammad Ghazi Ghori (wk), Razaullah, Saad Baig (wk), Saim Ayub, Sajid Khan, Saud Shakeel, Shan Masood, Abdullah Shafique, Ubaid Shah
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