Pakistan have sprung a surprise by including 23-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman Azam Khan in their 15-member squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup, reports cricbuzz.

Azam, who is currently plying his trade in the Caribbean Premier League, made his debut for the national side against England this year and has played just three games.

However, a career strike-rate of almost 150 in T20 cricket has appeared to have worked in his favour with the selectors picking him as the backup wicketkeeper. As a result, former skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed, who was in the squad against West Indies recently, has been axed.

The 15-member squad also sees the return of Asif Ali and Khushdil Shah to the T20 setup with the selectors opting for more firepower in a line-up that has had issues in the middle order. Khushdil last played in February earlier this year for Pakistan and Asif featured for the national side in April this year against Zimbabwe. Sharjeel Khan and Fakhar Zaman haven’t been picked for the showpiece event but the latter is part of the traveling reserves that also includes Usman Qadir and Shahnawaz Dahani.

PCB also confirmed that the same squad will take on England and New Zealand in the home T20Is ahead of the World Cup. Pakistan’s opening game in the tournament will be against arch-rivals India on October 24 in Dubai.