Naseem Shah back in red-ball cricket after 13 months as Pakistan names squad for Bangladesh tests

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan fast bowler Naseem Shah will return to red-ball cricket following a 13-month absence after the selectors named a 17-member squad on Wednesday for this month’s home test series against Bangladesh.

Shah missed the series against Australia earlier this year after he injured his right shoulder during the 2023 Asia Cup and required surgery.

Rawalpindi will host the first test from Aug. 21-25 while the second test will be played in Karachi from Aug. 30-Sept. 3.

The Pakistan Cricket Board said Bangladesh will arrive on Aug. 17 for the two-match series which is part of ICC’s World Test Championship.

Shan Masood is to captain Pakistan while middle-order batter Saud Shakeel was named vice-captain in place of Shaheen Shah Afridi.

The selectors recalled fast bowler Mohammad Ali, who last played against England in 2022, while uncapped batters Muhammad Hurraira and Kamran Ghulam were rewarded for their outstanding performances in domestic cricket.

Opening batter Imam-ul-Haq, all-rounder Faheem Ashraf, left-arm spinners Mohammad Nawaz and Noman Ali and off-spinner Sajid Khan, who toured Australia earlier this year, were dropped while fast bowlers Mohammad Wasim and Hasan Ali were not considered due to injuries.

Meanwhile, political unrest in Bangladesh has delayed the departure of its 'A' team to Pakistan. The side was due to arrive in Islamabad on Wednesday for two four-day games and three 50-over matches against Pakistan Shaheens.

The PCB has confirmed that Bangladesh 'A' will now arrive on Saturday and will wrap up the tour with the third and final 50-over game on Aug. 30. Islamabad will be hosting all the matches.

Pakistan squad for test series: Shan Masood (captain), Saud Shakeel, Aamir Jamal (subject to fitness), Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Kamran Ghulam, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Ali, Muhammad Hurraira, Mohammad Rizwan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Agha Salman, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Shaheen Shah Afridi.

AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s Constitutional Court removed impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol from office on Friday, ending his tumultuous presidency four months after he threw South Korean politics into turmoil with an ill-fated declaration of martial law and setting up an election to replace him.

The unanimous verdict capped a dramatic fall for Yoon, a former star prosecutor who went from political novice to president in just a year.

In a nationally televised verdict, the court’s acting chief Moon Hyung-bae said the eight-member bench upheld Yoon’s impeachment because his martial law decree seriously violated the constitution and other laws.

“The defendant not only declared martial law, but also violated the constitution and laws by mobilizing military and police forces to obstruct the exercise of legislative authority,” Moon said, “Ultimately, the declaration of martial law in this case violated the substantive requirements for emergency martial law.”

“Given the grave negative impact on constitutional order and the significant ripple effects of the defendant’s violations, we find that the benefits of upholding the constitution by removing the defendant from office far outweigh the national losses from the removal of a president,” the justice concluded.

At an anti-Yoon rally near the old royal palace that dominates downtown Seoul, People erupted into jubilant tears and dancing when the verdict was announced. Two women wept as they hugged and an old man near them leapt to his feet and screamed with joy.

But a festering national divide over Yoon’s impeachment will likely continue. It will also complicate South Korea’s efforts to deal with President Donald Trump’s “America First” policies and North Korea’s expanding ties with Russia.

One of Yoon’s lawyers, Yoon Kap-keun, called the ruling “completely incomprehensible” and a “pure political decision,” but the former president did not immediately issue a statement. Yoon’s ruling People Power Party said it would accept the decision.

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, the country’s acting leader, in a televised speech vowed to ensure “there are no gaps in national security and diplomacy” and maintain public safety and order.

“Respecting the will of our sovereign people, I will do my utmost to manage the next presidential election in accordance with the constitution and the law, ensuring a smooth transition to the next administration,” Han said.

A national election must be held within two months to select a new president. Surveys show Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main opposition Democratic Party, is the early favorite, although he is facing trials for corruption and other charges.

Martial law lasted only six hours, but left behind a political crisis, rattling financial markets and unsettling the country’s diplomatic partners. In January, Yoon was separately arrested and indicted by prosecutors on alleged rebellion in connection with his decree, a charge that carries the death penalty or a life sentence if convicted.

Under Yoon’s decree, the first of its kind in more than 40 years, hundreds of soldiers were dispatched to the assembly, election offices and other sites. Special operations soldiers smashed windows at the National Assembly and scuffled with citizens gathered to protest, shocking South Koreans and evoking traumatic memories of military rule.

Enough lawmakers, including some from his own ruling People Power Party, managed to enter the assembly and vote down his decree unanimously.

No major violence occurred during the brief period of martial law, but some senior military and police officers sent to the assembly have testified that Yoon ordered them to drag out lawmakers to block a vote on his decree or to detain his political rivals. Yoon says the troops were deployed to the assembly simply to maintain order.

Yoon, 64, a conservative, was impeached by the liberal opposition-controlled National Assembly on Dec. 14. The assembly accused him of violating the constitution and other laws by suppressing assembly activities, attempting to detain politicians, and undermining peace across the country.

In his final testimony at the Constitutional Court hearing, Yoon said his decree was a desperate attempt to draw public support of his fight against the “wickedness” of the main liberal opposition Democratic Party, which had obstructed his agenda, impeached top officials and slashed the government’s budget bill. He earlier called the National Assembly “a den of criminals” and “anti-state forces.”

Some experts say Yoon may have imposed military rule to head off a possible independent investigation into scandals involving his wife, Kim Keon Hee.

In the past few months, millions of people have taken to the streets to rally for or against Yoon, deepening the country’s already serious conservative-liberal divide. The Constitutional Court ruling that removed Yoon from office will likely intensify pro-Yoon demonstrations, experts say.

Without presidential immunity, Yoon could face other criminal charges, such as abuse of power. He’s the first South Korean president to be arrested or indicted while in office.

Yoon served as prosecutor-general under his predecessor, liberal President Moon Jae-in, before joining the now-ruling party in 2021 following disputes with Moon allies. A public image as strong-minded and uncompromising helped him defeat Lee in the close-fought 2022 presidential election. But after becoming president, Yoon has faced criticism that he refused to replace officials implicated in scandals and vetoed many bills passed by the assembly.

On foreign policy, Yoon pushed hard to bolster South Korea’s military alliance with the United States and overcome long-running disputes with Japan over historical traumas. He said that a greater Seoul-Washington-Tokyo security partnership is essential to coping with North Korea’s growing nuclear threats. Critics of Yoon accused him of unnecessarily provoking North Korea and neglecting relations with China, South Korea’s biggest trading partner.