The national selectors, according to sources, will be announcing the team on Monday but without the consent of Salim Altaf, chairman of selectors, who is in Toronto and is unlikely to return before Oct 3. Aamir Sohail, who was dropped for the Sahara Cup after a brief return to the Asia Cup, is, instead, expected to be selected for the Hong Kong sixes tournament to be played on Sept 27 and 28.
The team for the sixes event is also expected to be named on Monday. India, Australia and England are one of the likely teams to take part in the modified brand of cricket. Although Aamir Sohail could still have been considered for the three-dayer as the sixes team returns on Sept 29, the selectors may keep the stylish and useful player out of commission.
In the background that Pakistan is struggling for a good opening start as is evident from the two matches played in Toronto, Sohail's ouster would be unjustified, considering that Pakistan face a tough home season against South Africa and the West Indies. Aamir Sohail, in 34 Tests, has scored 2,103 runs at 35.64 while in 125 one-dayers, he has collected 3,926 runs at 32.5.
Zaheer Abbas, a member of the selection committee, said his panel was in an awkward situation as it had to select two teams besides the one which will be playing against India at home on Sept 28, 30 and Oct 2. ``The cricket board has the list of players who have confirmed their availability. But it has also to be considered which players had the prospects of playing for Pakistan,'' Zaheer Abbas, a master batsman of yore, said.
Zaheer Abbas, also a former captain, said he will be discussing the team with his fellow selector, Shafiq Ahmad, on Monday before reaching a conclusive decision on both the teams.
Not only Aamir Sohail may miss selection for the three-dayer, Shoaib Akhtar is also unlikely to win a place for the Karachi match as the cricket board has not received Justice Ijaz Yousuf's report on the Pakistan A team's tour of England.
Akhtar, a budding pacer from Islamabad, was accused of gross indiscipline on the England tour and was dropped from the Canadian trip on the recommendation of Justice Yousuf who was the manager. Mohammad Wasim and Shahid Nazir are all set to win places which would provide them excellent opportunity to not only prove their fitness but also show form for the first Test to be played at Rawalpindi between Oct 6 and 10.
Salim Elahi, Basit Ali and Mohammad Ramazan also have equal chance of making to South Africa's warm-up match, chiefly on their 1996-97 season performance