Mohsin Naqvi Overhauls Pakistan Test Squad After England Defeats
Pakistan’s Test tour of England has already felt brutal on the field. Off it, Mohsin Naqvi has now made it just as ruthless.
With England 2-0 up and Pakistan twice beaten heavily — an innings defeat in the first Test, 194 runs in the second — the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman has overseen a dramatic overhaul of the squad and backroom staff ahead of the third and final Test starting September 9.
The backlash has been fierce. Naqvi is unmoved.
“Essential” surgery, not panic
Former Pakistan players, pundits and fans have lined up to question the timing and scale of the changes. Seven players have been released mid-series, five uncapped men drafted in, and the coaching staff reshuffled. For many, it looks like chaos.
Naqvi insists it is clarity.
He described the moves as “essential”, dismissing claims that his tenure has “destroyed” Pakistan cricket. Pointing to the team’s improved white-ball rankings under his watch, he argued that the wider picture tells a different story to the grim Test scoreline.
“I have never been afraid of criticism, and I never will be. Those who say cricket has been destroyed since I came – look at what the rankings were before,” he said, as quoted by Geo News.
He admitted the Test results in England have been “disappointing”, but stressed that he is also probing deeper issues around the setup. Those, he added, are not for public debate in the middle of a high-profile tour.
Seven out, raw talent in
The numbers underline just how radical this reset is.
After the second Test defeat, the PCB cut loose Mohammad Rizwan, Imam-ul-Haq, Salman Agha, Ali Usman, Aamer Jamal, Awais Zafar and Khurram Shahzad from the Test squad.
In their place come a group long on potential, short on experience.
Five uncapped players — Arafat Minhas, Mohammad Imran Jnr, Saad Baig, Mohammad Imran Randhawa and Razaullah — join up, alongside Saim Ayub and Abdullah Fazal. Between Ayub and Fazal, there are only 10 international matches of experience.
It is a gamble. A bold one. England away is rarely a gentle introduction to Test cricket, yet Pakistan are choosing this exact moment to throw fresh faces into the fire.
Naqvi’s stance suggests this is not about the dead rubber in isolation. It looks more like a line in the sand.
Coaching shake-up completes the overhaul
The PCB has not stopped at the playing group.
Mike Hesson, already part of Pakistan’s white-ball structure, steps in as head coach for the Test side. Ashley Noffke takes over as bowling coach, also extending his white-ball role into the red-ball arena.
Sarfaraz Ahmed and Umar Gul, who had been serving in coaching capacities, have been released from their positions as part of the same reset.
The message is unmistakable: this is a full-system reboot, not a minor tune-up.
Naqvi has chosen to act while the criticism is loudest and the results at their worst. The third Test at least offers a glimpse of where this new direction might lead — whether it exposes Pakistan further, or marks the first step towards a different kind of team.
