Pakistan pick three uncapped players for Zimbabwe series

Pakistani cricket selectors Friday named three uncapped players in a 15-man squad for the start of their one-day series against Zimbabwe, saying they wanted to build for the future.

Left-handed opener Nasir Jamshed, pacer Samiullah Niazi and all-rounder Kamran Hussain were picked for the first two games of the five-match home series which starts here on Monday.

"We have rewarded them for their good performance at the domestic level because these youngsters are our future," chief selector Salahuddin Ahmed told AFP.

In a warm-up match which Zimbabwe lost by an innings and 34 runs on Thursday, the 18-year-old Jamshed scored a brilliant 182 while Niazi took five wickets.

Hussain finished as one of the leading all-rounders at the domestic level.

"We have to lift our youngsters so that we have replacements available and then will also include more players in the coming matches," said Ahmed.

Captain Shoaib Malik will lead the new-look side now that he has regained fitness after missing two Tests on Pakistan's tour to India last month.

Pakistan will be without pace spearhead Shoaib Akhtar (dropped for fitness and discipline charges), Mohammad Asif (recovering from an elbow operation) and Umar Gul (back trouble).

Squad: Shoaib Malik (capt), Salman Butt, Younis Khan, Mohammad Yousuf, Misbah-ul Haq, Shahid Afridi, Kamran Akmal, Yasir Arafat, Sohail Tanvir, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Nasir Jamshed, Fawad Alam, Rao Iftikhar, Samiullah Niazi, Kamran Hussain.