Pakistan Squad for T20 World Cup 2026 Announced: Babar Azam Returns, Salman Ali Agha to Lead; Two Players Left Out

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Pakistan have announced their squad for the T20 World Cup 2026 on Sunday (January 25). The PCB announced the squad for the tournament, which starts from February 7 in India and Sri Lanka.

Salman Ali Agha has been appointed captain while Babar Azam makes a return to the side. Mohammad Rizwan has been left out while injured Shaheen Shah Afridi is tipped to recover as he has been named in the team.

At a press conference in Lahore's Gaddafi Stadium this Sunday morning, PCB High Performance Director and national selector Aqib Javed, alongside T20I captain Salman Ali Agha and white-ball coach Michael James Hesson, announced Pakistan's squad for the upcoming mega-event.

Among the selections, captain Salman Ali Agha leads a group of fresh faces earning their first major tournament call-ups: Faheem Ashraf, Khawaja Mohammad Nafay, Mohammad Salman Mirza, Sahibzada Farhan, and Usman Tariq.

Haris Rauf, as expected, has been left out of the squad after his underwhelming outings with the national team, most recently in the Asia Cup last year.

As PCB have announced the team, Pakistan's participation in the T20 World Cup remains a subject of interest. After Bangladesh's recent removal, PCB chief Mohsin Naqvi raised questions over their participation as well. But the squad announcement on Sunday may denote that Pakistan will participate in the tournament.

They are slated to play all their matches in Sri Lanka and are placed in Group A along with India, Namibia, USA and the Netherlands. They will play their arch rivals on February 14, while they open their campaign against the Netherlands on February 7.

Pakistan T20 World Cup 2026 Squad

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, Usman Tariq.