Pakistan drop Babar and Rizwan for Asia Cup

Former Pakistan captains Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan could not make the cut for the Asia Cup Twenty20 tournament in the United Arab Emirates next month.

The 17-member team, led by Salman Agha, will play a T20 tri-series in the UAE featuring the hosts as well as Afghanistan in their buildup to the Asia Cup, the Pakistan Cricket Board said in a statement on Sunday.

Babar and Rizwan were not picked for the T20 leg of Pakistan's West Indies tour this month, where they were beaten 2-1 by the hosts.

Pacer Shaheen Afridi has been retained while opener Fakhar Zaman, who suffered a hamstring injury in the West Indies, has been included for the Sept 9-28 tournament.

Pakistan will begin their Group A campaign against Oman in Dubai on September 12 before meeting arch-rivals India at the same venue two days later.

Pakistan squad: Salman Agha (captain), Abrar Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Hasan Nawaz, Hussain Talat, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Haris (wicketkeeper), Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Waseem Jr, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Salman Mirza, Shaheen Afridi and Sufyan Moqim.