Saim Ayub Released, Farhan In: Pakistan Squad Change

Pakistan's perfect tri-series has produced its first big selection headline. On Monday, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) confirmed that opening batter Saim Ayub has been released from the men's ODI squad for the remainder of the ongoing tri-series against England and Sri Lanka, with T20I captain Sahibzada Farhan named as his replacement.

The timing is striking. Pakistan have won all three of their matches so far and have already booked a place in the October 31 final at Lahore's Gaddafi Stadium. Yet the team management has still moved to change the top of the order, one day before Tuesday's group match against Sri Lanka at the same venue. It is a decision driven by the player himself, and it says as much about Saim's honesty as it does about his form.

What the PCB announced

According to the PCB, Saim spoke to head coach Mike Hesson about his current form and asked to return to domestic cricket to work on his batting and rebuild his confidence. The board accepted the request, with the team management and the national selection committee agreeing together.

"Respecting Saim's decision and appreciating his honest assessment of his current form, the team management and national selection committee have mutually agreed to accept this request," the PCB said in its statement. "The national selection committee has subsequently named Sahibzada Farhan as Saim's replacement for the remainder of the tri-series."

That wording matters. This was not framed as a dropping. Saim asked for the break, and the board publicly backed his judgement. In a squad environment where players often cling to their place through a bad run, a 24-year-old opener volunteering to step away to fix his game is a rare and mature call, and the PCB clearly wanted it recognised as such.

Saim's tri-series numbers tell the story

There is no dressing up the figures from this tournament. Saim managed just 21 runs across his three innings in the tri-series: 7 against Sri Lanka in the opening match, then 8 and 6 in the two matches against England, including 6 in Sunday's dramatic one-wicket win at Gaddafi Stadium.

Match	Saim Ayub's score
vs Sri Lanka, Rawalpindi	7
vs England, Rawalpindi	8
vs England, Lahore	6
Tri-series total	21 runs in 3 innings

The slump is not confined to this series either. Saim has scored 257 runs at an average of 23.36 across his last 11 ODI innings, with two half-centuries in that stretch. News agency ANI reported that he has averaged only 16.55 in 19 appearances for Pakistan across all three formats in 2026, with just one fifty-plus score, against Australia in February.

That recent record stands in sharp contrast to his overall ODI career. Since his international debut, Saim has scored 772 runs in 20 ODIs at an average of 40.63, including three centuries and three half-centuries. The talent is not in question; the rhythm is. A short spell in domestic cricket, facing a high volume of balls away from the glare of a home tri-series, is exactly the kind of reset that has worked for young openers before him.

Who is Sahibzada Farhan, the replacement?

Sahibzada Farhan arrives in red-hot white-ball form but with a point to prove in the 50-over format. The 30-year-old right-hander was not part of Pakistan's original tri-series squad, yet he is currently one of the most in-form batters in the country.

Farhan recently took over as Pakistan's T20I captain and led the side in the three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka earlier this month, where he scored 238 runs in three innings, reported as a world record for a three-match bilateral series. He also led Pakistan at the Asian Games. His T20 World Cup 2026 campaign earlier this year saw him finish as the tournament's leading run-scorer with 383 runs in six matches, including two centuries.

The ODI numbers, though, are modest: 101 runs in six matches at an average of 16.83. Farhan has never nailed down an ODI place, and the remaining tri-series fixtures are a genuine audition with the ODI World Cup less than a year away. If he gets a game against Sri Lanka or in the final, he will be batting not just for runs but for a long-term spot.

One wrinkle is logistics. Farhan recently signed for Karnali Yaks in the Nepal Premier League, whose third season began on Monday in Kirtipur, and one report said he was in Kathmandu and would return to Pakistan on the first available flight. Pakistan fans will be watching team announcements closely to see whether he is in Lahore in time for Tuesday's match or whether his first involvement comes in the final.

What it means for Pakistan's XI against Sri Lanka

Tuesday's match is, in table terms, a dead rubber for Pakistan. They are already through to the final on six points, while Sri Lanka sit on two and England on none. But selection-wise it is anything but meaningless.

With Saim gone, Pakistan must settle their opening combination for the final. Fakhar Zaman is the experienced option at the top, and the management may use the Sri Lanka game to test a new partner, whether that is Farhan straight away or another combination from within the squad. The final on October 31 will be played on the same Lahore pitches, so whatever Pakistan learn on Tuesday will feed directly into the biggest match of the series.

There is also a second squad change to factor in. A day before the Saim announcement, left-arm wrist-spinner Sufiyan Muqeem was released from the squad, with the PCB pointing to the nature of the Lahore pitches, while 21-year-old left-handed batter Maaz Sadaqat was added as cover for players carrying minor niggles. Two changes in two days, in a winning team, is a sign of a management group that is planning for the final rather than simply enjoying the winning streak.

For Sri Lanka, Tuesday is a cup final in all but name. A win would seal their place in the October 31 final and knock England out. A defeat would leave England alive, needing to beat Sri Lanka themselves on October 29 and overturn a net run-rate gap. Pakistan, already qualified, could therefore end up shaping the final field with their team selection and intensity on Tuesday, which is why this game will be watched far more closely than most dead rubbers.

Also today: Pakistan's U-15s finally get off the mark

While the Saim news dominated the evening headlines, there was better news from Baku, where Pakistan's young footballers earned their first points at the FIFA U-15 World Cup and Festival. After three straight defeats, the Shaheens drew 1-1 with Jordan, Kaleem Ullah opening the scoring in the 27th minute, and then drew 1-1 with Nigeria later the same day, Kaleem scoring again early in the match before Timothy Ijach equalised. Two points from a double-header is a small but real step forward for a team playing its first-ever FIFA tournament, and the side now rests before the next stage begins on October 28.

What happens next

Date	Match	Venue
Tuesday, October 27	Pakistan vs Sri Lanka	Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore
Thursday, October 29	Sri Lanka vs England	Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore
Saturday, October 31	Tri-series final	Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore

The big question now is whether Saim's break proves to be a short reset or a longer exile. His ODI record says he is far too good to be written off on the back of three single-figure scores, and the PCB's supportive tone suggests the door is wide open for a return once the runs flow again in domestic cricket. For now, though, the spotlight moves to Farhan: a batter in the form of his life in T20 cricket, with two matches to show he belongs in the ODI side too.

Pakistan's tri-series campaign has already delivered a record chase, a last-wicket thriller and a place in the final. The Saim-Farhan swap adds a fascinating new chapter, and Tuesday's match against Sri Lanka is suddenly about much more than two points.

Images: Gaddafi Stadium photos via Wikimedia Commons (Gaddafi Stadium at Night, CC BY-SA 4.0; Gaddafi Stadium during PSL 2026, CC0), plus a Pakistan home-match batting photo, all used illustratively. Sources: PCB statement via Cricbuzz, Latestly/ANI, PK SportsLink, The Asian Mirror, CREX, CricTracker and Daily The Destination.