Ace Pakistan batter Babar Azam and star pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi found a mention in the T20 World Cup squad, but Mohammad Rizwan missed out, as Pakistan embark on their journey towards an elusive glory
in ICC tournaments.
The Pakistan Cricket Board announced a 15-member team for the T20 World Cup on Sunday, January 25. Drawn in Group A, Pakistan will start their campaign against the Netherlands on Saturday, February 7, in Colombo.
The team was unveiled at a press conference on Sunday morning at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore, addressed by PCB Director of High Performance and men’s national selection committee member Aqib Javed, Pakistan’s T20I skipper Salman Ali Agha and white-ball head coach Michael James Hesson.
Notably, Babar wasn’t a part of Pakistan’s T20I squad that faced Sri Lanka in a three-match series earlier this month, as he was playing in the Big Bash League.
Shaheen, who had sustained an injury during the BBL, was also not a part of the squad and although there were rumours over him being touch-and-go for the T20 World Cup, he seems to have recovered in time.
Rizwan, who last played a T20I in December 2024, continues to face the axe. His BBL performance hasn’t been great either.
Skipper Salman Ali Agha, along with Faheem Ashraf, Khawaja Mohammad Nafay, Mohammad Salman Mirza, Sahibzada Farhan and Usman Tariq, have earned their maiden call-ups to Pakistan’s team for the T20 World Cup.
Meanwhile, Abrar Ahmed, Babar, Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Shaheen, Shadab Khan and Usman Khan have featured in one or more editions of the tournament since 2021.
In the 20-team tournament, each team will play four group-stage games before progressing to the Super Eight and Knockouts, with all matches scheduled between February 7 and Sunday, March 8.
Pakistan will play arch-rivals India on Sunday, February 15 in Colombo.
Pakistan will also take on Australia in a three-match T20I series at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore, scheduled for January 29, Saturday, January 31 and Sunday, February 1, with the team’s preparation camp kicking off on Sunday.
Pakistan Squad For T20 World Cup
Salman Ali Agha (captain), Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Khawaja Mohammad Nafay (wk), Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Salman Mirza, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan (wk), Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan, Usman Khan (wk) and Usman Tariq
