Shoaib, who is still fighting his 18 month ban in the Pakistani courts that was reduced from five years, is trying to prove his fitness to the selectors before they whittle their 30-man provisional squad down to 15.

They know the veteran paceman would give them experience at a time when Umar Gul is having injury troubles and Mohammad Asif is struggling with disciplinary issues.

Shoaib, 33 this month, bowled three sepells of three overs and was seen to gain pace in each spell, while he battled against the 39 degree heat in the land of the mango – Multan.

“I felt bad early on but once I got accustomed to the heat, my rhythm was back and I bowled two better spells,” Shoaib told cricketnirvana. “It was very hot and humid in the middle,” he added.