Pakistan's cricket selectors on Friday omitted all the Akmal brothers -- Kamran, Umar and Adnan -- for the forthcoming Test series against South Africa while recalling wicketkeeper Sarfaraz Ahmed to the 16-member squad.
Left-arm spinner, Abdul Rehman, who has just completed a three-month ban for a positive dope test in English county cricket and middle-order batsman, Faisal Iqbal, were also recalled to the squad which leaves on January 20.
The selectors also called up rookie pacer Ehsan Adil for the tour while naming only four pacers.
The selection of pacers Umar Gul, Mohammad Irfan and Junaid Khan was a foregone conclusion after their brilliant bowling on the tour of India.
The decision to retain none of the Akmal brothers came as a surprise as the experienced Kamran and his younger brother Adnan were top contenders for the wicketkeeper's job.
The selectors have picked three specialist openers, including Nasir Jamshed -- who scored back-to-back centuries in the ODI series against India -- and Taufiq Umar and Mohammad Hafeez.
As expected, Misbah-ul-Haq, has been retained as captain.
Pakistan squad: Misbah-ul-Haq, Mohammad Hafeez, Nasir Jamshed, Younis Khan, Asad Shafiq, Azhar Ali, Faisal Iqbal, Haris Sohail, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Umar Gul, Muhammad Irfan, Junaid Khan, Saeed Ajmal, Abdul Rehman, Ehsan Adil and Taufiq Umar.
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