Pakistan have announced their 15-member squad for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, which gets underway on February 7 in India. However, the Pakistan team will play all their matches in Sri Lanka, one of the tournament’s co-hosts.

The selection has raised eyebrows, with the selectors leaving out established names such as Haris Rauf and Mohammad Rizwan, while continuing to back former captain Babar Azam. The trio have been central to Pakistan’s campaigns in past ICC events, but this time the selectors opted to retain only Babar.

Head coach Mike Hesson explained the rationale behind both the inclusions and omissions. Clarifying Babar’s role, Hesson said the batter will not open at the World Cup.

“We don’t see him opening the batting. The ability to attack in the powerplay is very important,” Hesson said. “Babar has the skill to control the middle overs and manage a chase, especially when the target is modest. The conditions in Sri Lanka are very different from Australia, and those factors played a big role in our planning.”

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Pakistan have opted for Mohammad Nafay and Usman Khan as their wicketkeeping options, with Rizwan once again overlooked in the format. Hesson stressed that the team requirements dictated the call.

“Usman Khan has been exceptional since returning. His experience has shown, and his wicketkeeping in Sri Lanka was of very high quality,” Hesson said. “Our keeper is expected to bat at five or six. That role is different from Rizwan’s, who is a top-order batter, and there simply isn’t a spot for a wicketkeeper in that position.”

Hesson also revealed that Haris Rauf was considered before being left out in favour of a more versatile pace attack.

“We looked at Haris Rauf, Wasim Jr and Ahmed Daniyal, but the selected bowlers, Shaheen, Salman and Naseem, give us options in all three phases of the innings,” he explained.

Pakistan’s T20 World Cup 2026 squad

Salman Ali Agha (captain), Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Khawaja Nafay (wk), Mohammad Nawaz, Salman Mirza, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan, Usman Khan (wk), Usman Tariq.