Shan Masood welcomes back key pacers ahead of Boxing Day Test against South Africa

Pakistan captain Shan Masood expressed his optimism about the upcoming Boxing Day Test against South Africa at SuperSport Park. He highlighted the positive impact of having pacers Khurram Shahzad and Mohammad Abbas back in the squad. The match is scheduled for Thursday.
Shahzad's return follows a rib injury that sidelined him since Pakistan's 2-0 series loss to Bangladesh in August. Abbas rejoins the Test team after his last appearance in the format in August 2021.
"The return of pacer Khurram Shahzad, who did really well on his debut in Australia and the seasoned campaigner Mohammad Abbas is a welcome development for Pakistan's Test side looking to bag wins in one of the toughest conditions for overseas teams," said Masood in a PCB statement on Wednesday.
This two-match Test series marks Aqib Javed's first assignment as red-ball coach. He previously took charge of the white-ball series against Zimbabwe last month. Pakistan experienced mixed results in their South Africa tour, losing the T20I series 2-0 before achieving a historic 3-0 victory in the ODI series.
The upcoming Test series holds significant weight for both teams. Pakistan aim to secure their first Test win in South Africa in 18 years. A win for South Africa at Centurion would guarantee them a spot in next year's World Test Championship Final at Lord's.
"We are eagerly looking forward to measure ourselves against South Africa, who have always been one of the top sides in the world. We have got some momentum from the recently concluded home Test series against England and the ODI series, which featured a number of our Test squad members.
"We know South Africa have done well in this iteration of the ICC World Test Championship but we have prepared for this series in the best possible manner as well after having arrived in the country at least two weeks ago," added Masood.
Pakistan squad: Shan Masood (captain), Saud Shakeel (vice-captain), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Babar Azam, Haseebullah (wk), Kamran Ghulam, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Naseem Shah, Noman Ali, Saim Ayub and Salman Ali Agha
South Africa squad: Temba Bavuma (captain), David Bedingham, Corbin Bosch, Matthew Breetzke, Tony de Zorzi, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Kwena Maphaka, Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder, Senuran Muthusamy, Dane Paterson, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tristan Stubbs, Kyle Verreynne (wk)