New Delhi: Babar Azam, pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi and all-rounder Shadab Khan in a 20-member provisonal squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup, while former skipper and wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan has been excluded. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has submitted a 20-member provisional list to the International Cricket Council (ICC), which will be trimmed to 15 players by head coach Mike Hesson in the coming days, as per report.
“The PCB has submitted the preliminary squad of 20 before the January 7 deadline, and as per Hesson’s contract, he will cut it to 20,” sources told Telecom Asia Sport (www.telecomasia.net).
While most of the participating teams have already announced their squads for the T20 World Cup, which will be jointly hosted by India and Sri Lanka from February 7, all 20 teams are allowed to make changes to their squads until January 31. Any replacements after that date will require approval from the designated committee.
T20 World Cup 2026 will be jointly hosted by India and Sri Lanka
The 10th edition of the T20 World Cup is scheduled to start from February 7 to March 8, it will be hosted by both India and Sri Lanka. Pakistan will play all its matches in Sri Lanka under an arrangement finalised last year, after the BCCI declined to send its team to Pakistan for the 2025 Champions Trophy.
According to sources Babar Azam, Shaheen Shah Afridi and all-rounder Shadab Khan have been included in the squad, while former captain and wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan has been left out, “Hesson feels Usman Khan will be the right choice as keeper and hence there is no place for Rizwan, while Shaheen is expected to recover from a knee injury within the next two weeks,” the report quoted sources as saying.
Pakistan have included five spinners in the squad
One factor working in Babar Azam’s favour has been his strong recent form. He scored two half-centuries for Sydney Thunder in the Big Bash League (BBL), which reportedly convinced selectors to include him in the squad. Meanwhile, Shaheen Shah Afridi has also been included despite picking up an injury during his BBL stint.
The report added that Pakistan have included five spinners in the squad Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Abrar Ahmed, Usman Tariq and Maaz Sadaqat. However, spinner Sufiyan Muqeem and pacer Ahmed Danyal have been left out, despite both impressing at the international level with the senior side and Pakistan Shaheens.
The PCB’s selection committee was trimmed to three members following Azhar Ali’s resignation from all his roles. The panel now consists Aqib Javed, Aameen Dar and Asad, with all three members holding equal authority and no chief selector to intervene.