LAHORE: An experienced 15-member Pakistan squad was announced on Sunday for the T20 World Cup to be held in India and Sri Lanka from Feb 7 to March 8, with former captain Babar Azam recalled while pacemen Haris Rauf and Mohammad Wasim Jr were left out.

Salman Ali Agha, who will be playing his first T20 World Cup, has been named captain of the side that has struggled in recent ICC events, failing to progress beyond the first round in the 2023 World Cup, the 2024 T20 World Cup in the USA and West Indies, and the 2025 Champions Trophy.

The squad was announced at the Gaddafi Stadium by national selector Aaqib Javed alongside Salman and head coach Mike Hesson.

Nine players in the squad have previous World Cup experience: Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan, Naseem Shah, Mohammad Nawaz, Abrar Ahmed, Saim Ayub and Usman Khan. The remaining six — including the captain — will be appearing in their first World Cup.

Those making their tournament debut are Salman, Faheem Ashraf, Khawaja Mohammad Nafay, Mohammad Salman Mirza, Sahibzada Farhan and Usman Tariq.

Defending Babar’s inclusion, Aaqib said the former captain’s experience would be vital in Sri Lankan conditions.

“Babar is included because the team needs an experienced, solid batter on Sri Lankan pitches. The batting conditions there are challenging and we need a player like him to perform a specific role,” he said.

Babar recently returned to the T20I side and broke Rohit Sharma’s record for most runs in the format during the home series against South Africa in October 2025. Pakistan went on to win that series 2-1. Babar is currently the leading run-scorer in T20 internationals with 4,429 runs in 136 matches.

Both Hesson and Salman backed Babar’s selection, with the coach describing him as a mature and experienced batter who would strengthen the middle order.

Salman said he could not understand the criticism directed at Babar despite his recent performances.

Explaining the omission of Haris Rauf, Aaqib and Hesson said the selectors opted for a three-man pace attack — Shaheen, Naseem and Salman Mirza — keeping Sri Lankan conditions in mind.

“Haris has served Pakistan for a long time, but we have developed a new combination,” Aaqib said, adding that Mohammad Wasim Jr, who is part of the squad for the home series against Australia starting Jan 29, was also left out after considering conditions.

Aaqib admitted Pakistan’s rece­nt failures in ICC tournaments but said the current squad had performed well over the past year.

Salman said Pakistan would benefit from playing all their matches in Sri Lanka and avoiding extensive travel, but stressed that performance would still be key.

“Yes, India took full advantage of playing all their matches in one country during the Champions Trophy, but they also played good cricket. We will have to do the same,” he said, adding that low-scoring matches were expected in Sri Lanka.

Asked about PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi’s recent remarks hinting at a possible boycott of the tournament, Aaqib said the selectors’ job was to pick the squad and that decision had been taken.

Pakistan will begin their campaign against the Netherlands on Feb 7, followed by matches against the USA on Feb 10, India on Feb 15 and Namibia on Feb 18.

The squad includes several all-round options in Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz and Faheem Ashraf. The pace attack will be led by Shaheen alongside Naseem and Salman Mirza, while Shadab, Abrar Ahmed and Usman Tariq form the spin contingent.

As many as 20 teams are competing in the tournament, divided into four groups of five. Pakistan are placed in Group ‘A’, where India and the USA are expected to be their toughest rivals. In the previous edition, the USA had upset Pakistan, contributing to their early exit.

The top two teams from each group will qualify for the Super Eight stage.

Pakistan squad:

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

Published in Dawn, January 26th, 2026