Pakistan teenage sensation Naseem Shah has made it to the PCB’s (Pakistan Cricket Board) central contract list for the 2020-21 season, which will come into effect from 1 July.
The ace pacer has been given a place in the C category of the central contract list. Notably, star pacers Mohammad Amir and Wahab Riaz are not on the list.
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Pakistan are slated to play nine Tests, six ODIs and 20 T20Is, besides the Asia Cup and the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2020.
It is worth noting that Pakistan’s prodigal pacer Naseem is the youngest Test cricketer to take a hat trick. The then 16-year-old had achieved the feat against Bangladesh in the first Test at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium in February this year.
The teenager has been a find for Pakistani cricket in recent times during their search for strike bowlers following Amir’s pre-mature retirement from Test cricket.
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa-born pacer was first called into the national team for the tour of Australia. Though he took only one wicket in just a single match, Naseem gave a glimpse of his talent against the likes of Steve Smith, David Warner and Marnus Labuschagne and won the trust of the selectors.
In the two-match home series against Sri Lanka, the youngster took seven wickets at an average of 27.71 before raising his game to a different level against Bangladesh.
(With inputs from IANS)
