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Pakistan axe Sarfaraz Ahmed and send home seven players after England defeats

Pakistan have replaced head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed with Mike Hesson and sent seven squad members home after back-to-back Test losses to England. The Pakistan Cricket Board announced the changes ahead of the third Test in Birmingham, with several experienced players dropped and uncapped replacements named.

By Tertius News AI Desk 3 distinct · 5 mastheads · 5 articles Version 2 Coverage Aug 31, 2026 Published 54m ago

Pakistan overhaul squad and coaching staff after England losses

Pakistan have made sweeping changes to their Test squad and coaching staff after suffering heavy defeats to England in the first two matches of the series. Head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed has been replaced by Mike Hesson, and seven players have been sent home, according to reports from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).

The PCB announced the changes on Monday, following Pakistan's loss in the second Test at Lord's by 194 runs. England took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series, having earlier won the opening Test at Headingley by an innings and 103 runs.

Coaching shake-up

Sarfaraz Ahmed, who was appointed head coach of Pakistan's Test team in April, has been replaced by Mike Hesson. Hesson had been serving as Pakistan's white-ball coach, and he is now taking charge of the Test side ahead of the third Test, which begins in Birmingham on September 9.

Bowling coach Umar Gul was also stood down, with former Australian international Ashley Noffke stepping in to work alongside Hesson, as reported by The Canberra Times.

The changes come amid debate over the team's performance, with The Canberra Times noting that the PCB's response to the losses has been dramatic and immediate.

Players sent home

The PCB said in a statement that seven players have been sent home, including former captains Mohammad Rizwan and Salman Ali Agha. Opener Imam-ul-Haq has also been replaced after suffering a left calf tear, with reports indicating he declined to bat in either innings at Lord's due to a low-grade calf strain.

Other players sent home include seamer Khurram Shahzad, spinner Ali Usman, and unused squad members Aamir Jamal and Muhammad Awais Zafar, according to The Canberra Times. The Straits Times reported that Ali Usman, Aamer Jamal, Awais Zafar, and Khurram Shahzad were also sent home.

Replacements named

The PCB announced a number of replacements, including batters Saim Ayub and Abdullah Fazal. The Canberra Times reported that Ayub, who played all three Tests against England on home soil in 2024, comes in as a batting replacement, while opener Abdullah Fazal returns after featuring against Bangladesh in May.

The PCB confirmed that Ayub and Fazal have played eight and two Tests, respectively. Left-arm spin-bowling all-rounder Arafat Minhas, who has represented Pakistan in three ODIs and four T20Is, was also named in the squad.

Uncapped players Arafat Minhas, Mohammad Imran Junior, Saad Baig, Mohammad Imran Randhawa, and Razaullah are included and will hope to make their debuts in the third Test.

Batting struggles

The visitors' batting collapsed in both Tests, with The Straits Times reporting that none of Pakistan's innings reached the 200-run mark. Saud Shakeel, who scored a defiant 97 as they fought to avoid defeat at Lord's, was the only Pakistani player to come close to a century.

Updated squad

The PCB released an updated squad for the third Test, led by captain Babar Azam. The full squad includes Abdullah Fazal, Abdullah Shafique, Arafat Minhas, Azan Awais, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Ali, Muhammad Imran, Mohammad Imran Junior, Muhammad Ghazi Ghori (wicket-keeper), Razaullah, Saad Baig (wicket-keeper), Saim Ayub, Sajid Khan, Saud Shakeel, Shan Masood, and Ubaid Shah.

The third Test is scheduled to take place in Birmingham from September 9.

How each outlet told it

A framing line is our reading of that outlet's own text — an interpretation, not a quotation and not a fact we assert. Check it against what the outlet published.

The Canberra Times

Framing: Headline frames Pakistan as 'struggling' and centres on their 'axe' of coach and seven players. — The tone is dramatic and critical, using words like 'thrashings', 'radically changing', and 'axed' to describe Pakistan's struggles.

as of Aug 31, 2026, 6:45 PM UTC

Facts Included:

Mohammad Rizwan is one of seven players sent home after Pakistan's Lord's Test defeat.
Pakistan have taken instant and dramatic action after back-to-back thrashings by England, ousting head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed and sending seven squad members home.
The tourists lost by an innings in the series opener at Headingley before going down by 194 runs at Lord's as England took an unassailable 2-0 lead.
Amid debates over whether it is one of the country's worst ever sides, the Pakistan Cricket Board has provided its own answer ahead of the third Test at Edgbaston – parachuting white-ball coach Mike Hesson to replace Sarfaraz and radically changing the playing group.
The chaotic developments also see bowling coach Umar Gul stood down, with former Australian international Ashley Noffke stepping in alongside New Zealander Hesson.
The axed players include Salman Ali Agha – who captained the first Test in Leeds – experienced wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan and opener Imam-ul-Haq who declined to bat in either innings at Lord's due to a low grade calf strain.
Seamer Khurram Shahzad and spinner Ali Usman, who have both taken six wickets across two appearances, have also been deemed expendable alongside unused squad members Aamir Jamal and Mohammad Abbas.
Saim Ayub, who played all three Tests against England on home soil last year, comes in as a batting replacement and opener Abdullah Fazal is back after featuring against Bangladesh in May

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The Straits Times

Framing: Announces the replacement of coach Sarfaraz and seven players ahead of the third England test

as of Aug 31, 2026, 7:15 PM UTC

Facts Included:

Pakistan replaced seven players and their head coach on Monday after two heavy losses to England.
The players sent back include former captains Mohammad Rizwan and Salman Ali Agha.
Opener Imam ul-Haq was replaced due to a left calf tear, per the PCB statement.
Sarfaraz Ahmed, appointed head coach in April, was replaced by Mike Hesson.
Pakistan lost the first test by an innings and 103 runs.
Pakistan lost the second test by 194 runs on Sunday at Lord's.
None of Pakistan's innings reached the 200-run mark in either test.
Saud Shakeel scored a defiant 97 in the second test.
Ali Usman, Aamer Jamal, Awais Zafar, and Khurram Shahzad were also sent home.
The PCB listed replacements including Saim Ayub, Abdullah Fazal, and Arafat Minhas.
Uncapped players Arafat Minhas, Mohammad Imran Junior, Saad Baig, Mohammad Imran Randhawa, Razaullah could debut in the third test starting September 9.
The updated Pakistan squad was listed, captained by Babar Azam.

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Times Now

Framing: Headline frames Pakistan's release of head coach and seven players as a 'circus' and ongoing chaos. — Alarmed and critical, using terms like 'chaos' and 'circus' to convey dysfunction.

as of Aug 31, 2026, 7:16 PM UTC

Facts Included:

Pakistan released 7 players as well as head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed mid-series
Release occurred before third match against England on September 9 in Edgbaston
Babar Azam-led team is 2-0 down in the three-match series and last in 2025-27 WTC standings
Lost first match by innings and 104 runs in Leeds
Lost second Test by 194 runs at Lord's
Salman Ali Agha led team in first match when Babar was injured and was dropped for second Test
Mike Hesson will take charge as white-ball head coach
Released players: Mohammad Rizwan, Imam-ul-Haq, Salman Ali Agha, Ali Usman, Aamir Jamal, Muhammad Awais Zafar, Khurram Shah Khurram Shahzad
Seven replacements named, five uncapped and two capped
Replacements include Saim Ayub (8 Tests), Abdullah Fazal (2 Tests), Arafat Minhas (3 ODIs, 4 T20Is), Mohammad Imran Jnr, Saad Baig, Mohammad Imran (Imran Randhawa), Razaullah
Sarfaraz Ahmed and Umar Gul released; replaced by Ashley Noffke in backroom staff
Full squad for third Test listed

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The Times of India

Framing: Highlights a major overhaul of Pakistan cricket, announcing the release of seven players and coaches Sarfaraz and Gul following the Lord's defeat.

as of Aug 31, 2026, 6:46 PM UTC

Facts Included:

Pakistan released seven players and made changes to red-ball coaching staff after a 194-run defeat to England at Lord's.
The Pakistan Cricket Board announced changes on Monday after Pakistan slipped to a 0-2 deficit in the three-match series.
The defeat at Lord's followed an innings-and-103-run loss in Leeds, leaving Pakistan with five defeats in their last six Tests.
Seven players released: Salman Ali Agha, Mohammad Rizwan, Imam-ul-Haq, Ali Usman, Aamir Jamal, Muhammad Awais Zafar, Khurram Shahzad.
The PCB said replacements include five uncapped players and two capped players.
Replacements include Test-capped batters Saim Ayub and Abdullah Fazal, and left-arm spin-bowling all-rounder Arafat Minhas.
Saim Ayub has played eight Tests, Abdullah Fazal two.
Arafat Minhas has represented Pakistan in three ODIs and four T20Is.
Four uncapped players added: Mohammad Imran Jnr, Saad Baig, Mohammad Imran (Imran Randhawa), and Razaullah.
Sarfaraz Ahmed and Umar Gul were relieved of their duties.
Mike Hesson and Ashley Noffke will take over backroom responsibilities for the remainder of the England tour.
Imam-ul-Haq came under criticism for missing both innings due to a calf injury and for appearing on the outfield for warm-ups.
Rizwan's position came under pressure after another failure.
Pakistan have five defeats in their last six Tests.
Pakistan trail 0-2 in the three-match series.

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WTOP

Framing: Emphasizes the scale of the reaction to the defeats: summoning home coaches and seven players. — matter-of-fact with a hint of judgment (e.g., 'pushed the panic button', 'dismal run', 'overambitious').

as of Aug 31, 2026, 7:46 PM UTC

Facts Included:

Pakistan replaced seven players and two coaches after heavy defeats in two cricket tests in England.
Head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed and bowling coach Umar Gul were summoned home by the Pakistan Cricket Board.
Mike Hesson and Ashley Noffke will replace them for the third and final test in Birmingham starting on Sept. 9.
Wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan, injured opening batter Imam-ul-Haq, first test captain Salman Ali Agha, spinner Ali Usman, and pacer Khurram Shahzad were returning home.
Allrounder Aamir Jamal and batter Awais Zafar were also returning home without getting a game in England.
Imam's torn calf drew criticism from former chief selector Mohammad Wasim.
Imam suffered the low grade injury on the first day at Lord's and didn't play in the rest of the match.
Rizwan's overambitious shot selections, including his attempted slog against Ollie Robinson on Sunday, led to his axing.
Pakistan lost five of its six away matches under Sarfaraz Ahmed's tenure.
Babar Azam's second stint as test captain did not turn around test results after Shan Masood was sacked in May.
England has an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.
Pakistan has lost 10 of its last 11 away tests.
Babar was ruled out of the first test due to a finger injury, and Agha led the side but was dropped for the second test.
Pakistan has not crossed the 200-run mark in four innings of the series.
The selectors recalled opening batter Saim Ayub and Abdullah Fazal.
Five uncapped players were traveling to England: Arafat Minhas, Mohammad Imran, Saad Baig, and Razaullah.

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What was claimed, and who backed it

AI-extracted; can misattribute a claim — see Methodology.

Each row is one claim, attributed to the outlet whose wording states it most clearly. Confidence rates how directly the source text states the claim — explicit and unhedged rates high; hedged, pieced-together, or internally inconsistent statements rate lower. It does not measure whether the claim is true. Status is Contested when two claims on this page negate each other; otherwise it counts the distinct outlets we found asserting that specific claim — so a single-source claim can still show high confidence, and a multi-source claim can show medium. Every one of those outlets is named beside the status, so you can check the count against the list. For claims extracted before we began storing that list, the row says so: it names the outlet the claim is quoted from and states that we have not recorded which outlets backed it. Outlets wrote at different times, so a figure that evolves — a casualty count, for example — can legitimately differ between rows; check the "as of" time next to each claim's source.

Claim	Confidence	Status
ClaimPakistan sent seven squad members home after their Lord's Test defeat.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via The Canberra Times as of Aug 31, 2026, 6:45 PM UTC
ClaimPakistan ousted head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed after back-to-back defeats by England.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via The Canberra Times as of Aug 31, 2026, 6:45 PM UTC
ClaimPakistan lost the second Test at Lord's by 194 runs.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via The Canberra Times as of Aug 31, 2026, 6:45 PM UTC
ClaimMohammad Rizwan was one of the seven players sent home.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via The Canberra Times as of Aug 31, 2026, 6:45 PM UTC
ClaimSalman Ali Agha was one of the seven players sent home.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via The Canberra Times as of Aug 31, 2026, 6:45 PM UTC
ClaimImam-ul-Haq was one of the seven players sent home after declining to bat at Lord's due to a calf strain.	ConfidenceMedium	StatusSingle-source via The Canberra Times as of Aug 31, 2026, 6:45 PM UTC
ClaimMike Hesson replaced Sarfaraz Ahmed as head coach.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via The Canberra Times as of Aug 31, 2026, 6:45 PM UTC
ClaimAshley Noffke joined the coaching staff, replacing Umar Gul.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via The Canberra Times as of Aug 31, 2026, 6:45 PM UTC
ClaimImam-ul-Haq declined to bat in either innings at Lord's due to a calf strain.	ConfidenceMedium	StatusSingle-source via The Canberra Times as of Aug 31, 2026, 6:45 PM UTC

Transparency & Audit Trail

3 distinct · 5 mastheads · 5 articles consulted: The Canberra Times, The Straits Times, Times Now, The Times of India, WTOP 9 claims extracted Version 2 Written 2026-08-31