Sahibzada Farhan to lead Pakistan Shaheens in Australia

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced Sahibzada Farhan as the captain of Pakistan Shaheens for their upcoming tour of Australia.

He will lead the team in the Red Ball series, which includes two four-day matches against Bangladesh A also scheduled to be held in Australia.

The PCB confirmed that Sahibzada Farhan’s appointment comes ahead of the tour, where Pakistan Shaheens will depart for Australia via Dubai early Saturday morning. In a change to the squad, Haneen Shah has been sidelined due to injury, with Qasim Akram selected as his replacement.

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Sahibzada Farhan made his debut in first-class cricket for Peshawar during the 2016–2017 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy season. Farhan has also been a key player for Islamabad United in the Pakistan Super League.

Farhan’s domestic career highlights include being the leading run-scorer for Balochistan in the 2017 Pakistan Cup, amassing 331 runs in five matches. His performance earned him a place in Punjab’s squad for the 2018 Pakistan Cup. He scored a match-winning innings of 155 runs against Balochistan.

Over the years, he has continued to feature prominently in domestic tournaments, representing teams like Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in various editions of the Pakistan Cup and Quaid-e-Azam Trophy.

In his T20 International career spanning from 2018 to 2024, the Pakistan player has played 5 matches, scoring a total of 60 runs at an average of 12.00. His highest score is 39, achieved against Australia with a strike rate of 96.77.

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Farhan scored 39 runs against Australia at an average of 19.50 and 21 runs against New Zealand at an average of 7.00. His performances in host countries show adaptability, scoring 20 runs each in New Zealand with notable strike rates of 125.00. In neutral venues, he accumulated 40 runs with a strike rate of 86.95.

Internationally, Sahibzada Farhan made his mark when he was selected in Pakistan’s T20I squad for the 2018 Zimbabwe tri-nation series. Later he earned a spot in Pakistan’s team for the 2018 ACC Emerging Teams Asia Cup.