Farhat gatecrashes into Pak team party

Among those who’ve been trying to cope with health-related problems ahead of the first Test, all-rounder Abdul Razzaq has returned much to the delight of Pakistan, while opener Yasir Hameed has been pushed to the corner after being diagnosed with typhoid. Hasan Raza, despite his impressive half-century against India, and Asim Kamal — who were in the team against England — have also been ignored.

In a list of 15 players released by the PCB on Monday, the hosts have not kept any surprises in store, which in chief selector Wasim Bari’s opinion is the best that Pakistan can field in the given scenario. Except for Farhat’s inclusion, the rest of the squad has automatically selected itself after their recent triumph against England.

Another selector, Iqbal Qasim, was full of praise for Farhat, who ‘‘has forced the selectors, coach and captain to sit up and take notice.’’ Given the opportunity, Farhat did all that was required from him to make the selection possible.

After being dropped from the Pakistan Test team in 2004, there were rumours of Farhat continuously failing to assure Bob Woolmer of his utilities, both on and off the field. The day he scored his century in the warm-up match, one of the local journalists at the ground pointed out to the scoreboard from which Farhat’s name had been wiped off. ‘‘Whatever he does, he’ll still be lucky if he makes it to the team,’’ the scribe noted.

The opener is now more confident after having taken on the Indian attack and is hoping to make the most of the opportunity given to him.

The biggest disappointment has come for Asim Kamal, who after being in the team against England, finds himself dropped for the first time since his debut. Bari, though, is convinced that Kamal could definitely be a prospect for the team in near future once again.

With Hameed out, Farhat, Shoaib Malik and Salman Butt will fight for the opening slot, though the team management looks like pitching for the Butt-Malik combination.

The last roll of dice turned out to be a contest between Umar Gul and Mohammad Asif, both in contention to join the teeming pace attack. Gul, clearly a favourite owing to his previous performances against India, lost out to Asif because of his poor showing in the warm-up match. Asif, meanwhile, was also a part of the Tests against England but did not get to play in any of the matches.

THE TEAM (from):
Shoaib Malik, Salman Butt, Inzamam-ul Haq, Mohd Yousuf, Kamran Akmal, Shoaib Akhtar, Md Sami, Abdul Razzaq, Danish Kaneria, Imran Farhat, Rana Naved, Mohd Asif, Younis Khan, Arshad Khan, Shahid Afridi.