Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi has finally broken his silence on the senior batters Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan getting dropped from the T20I side and not being picked in the 17-member squad for the Asia Cup 2025.

Amid all the backlash, Naqvi ended up saying that he doesn't have a say in the matter as the final call remains with the selection committee. Recently, Pakistan selectors stunned everyone by leaving Babar and Rizwan out of the team despite losing the three-match T20I series against Bangladesh.

During the squad announcement, head coach Mike Hesson and chief selector Aqib Javed stated that the duo have been asked to work on their game and improve their strike rate.

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"First of all, I don’t have even 1 per cent role in putting players into the team or taking them out. We have a selection committee and then an advisory body; they all sit together. The process goes through a lot — discussions that last 8–10 hours, sometimes for 2–3 days," Naqvi said.

"Definitely, if a team is being selected, it’s in good hands; all professionals are there. I’ve only told them one thing — whatever decision they take, it should be on merit, and I will support that," he added.

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Pakistan will be captained by Salman Ali Agha in the Asia Cup 2025, which is scheduled to be played in the UAE from September 9 to 28. They are placed in Group A alongside India, the United Arab Emirates and Oman.

Notably, Babar and Rizwan were first dropped from the T20I side after the Champions Trophy, and both the star batters continue to be in exile. While announcing the Pakistan squad for the continental event, selector Aqib Javed mentioned that the management has sent Babar and Rizwan guidelines on how they can get back into the scheme of things.

Indirectly, Javed stated that the team currently have better players than Babar and Rizwan in the shortest format and hence they have looked past them.

Pakistan's squad for Asia Cup: Salman Ali Agha (captain), Abrar Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Hasan Nawaz, Hussain Talat, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Haris (wicket-keeper), Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Waseem Jnr, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Salman Mirza, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Sufyan Moqim.