Pakistan squad for T20 World Cup 2026 revealed, fate of Babar Azam and Shaheen Afridi sealed

Pakistan have revealed their provisional squad for the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, with the deadline for submission of provisional squads being January 1 as per ICC norms. Pakistan have named Shaheen Afridi and Babar Azam in the provisional squad, after they were snubbed from the Sri Lanka T20I series.

Pakistan failed to perform satisfactorily in the previous edition of the World Cup, where after repeated defeats in the group stage matches of the ICC T20 World Cup 2024, they were kicked out before qualifying for the Super-8 stages. Instead, the United States had qualified in the same group alongside India.

Pakistan, like several other teams, have also revealed their provisional squad for the ICC T20 World Cup, with the expected date for the squad announcement being January 1. According to reports, Pakistan completed the process within the time frame set by the ICC.

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Pakistan unveils provisional squad for ICC T20 World Cup 2026

The International Cricket Council had set January 1 as the deadline for participating teams to submit their provisional squads for the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, which is scheduled to be played in India and Sri Lanka.

According to the latest PTI report, Pakistan has submitted its 15-member provisional team to the ICC; however, they have not revealed it to the public yet. The report also mentioned that they had submitted the report within the deadline set by the ICC.

Each team is allowed to make changes to its squad until January 31 without seeking permission from the ICC. However, subsequent modifications can only be made after authorization from the ICC.

Pakistan include Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi in provisional squad

Some sources revealed to PTI that Pakistan’s provisional squad includes injured fast bowler Shaheen Afridi and veteran Pakistan batter Babar Azam. Babar Azam, who is currently playing in the BBL, has not been picked for the upcoming T20I series in Sri Lanka.

However, following Azam’s good run in the Big Bash League, he was included in the provisional squad for the World Cup. Shaheen was also included in the provisional squad after his injury ruled him out of the series against Sri Lanka.

Shadab Khan, the all-rounder who returned to cricket with the Big Bash League and has not played a single international match since May due to injury, has also been named in the provisional squad. The selectors have shown a preference for players selected for the Sri Lanka tour, with Azam and Shaheen being the only exceptions.

Haris Rauf has not even been included in the provisional squad, while Salman Ali Agha continues to lead the team in the shortest format. Mohammad Rizwan continues to be snubbed from the format.

Pakistan will play all their matches in Sri Lanka

The tournament, bringing together 20 teams, will be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka at a total of 8 venues in India and Sri Lanka. Pakistan’s venues would be R. Premadasa Stadium (Colombo), Sinhala Sports Club Cricket Ground (Colombo) and Pallekele International Cricket Stadium (Kandy) as they will play all their matches in Sri Lanka.

Pakistan was placed in the same group alongside Namibia, Netherlands, India and the United States of America. They begin their campaign against the Netherlands on February 7, followed by matches against the United States, India and Namibia.

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