PAK vs NAM, T20 World Cup 2026: In a must-win game to qualify for the 'Super Eight' stage for the T20 World Cup 2026, Pakistan captain Salman Agha won the toss and elected to bat first against Namibia at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo on Wednesday. Namibia, who have been eliminated from the tournament already, will enjoy a rousing support from the United States of America, who are on four points along with a better run-rate than Pakistan.
It is worth noting that if the Gerard Erasmus-led side wins the game, the USA will go through to the Super Eight stage.
Why are Shaheen Afridi and Abrar Ahmed not playing today's game?
Pacer Shaheen Afridi and spinner Abrar Ahmed, who looked off colour during the India vs Pakistan game, have been ruled out of today's game in Colombo. Captain Salman Agha informed of two changes in the XI - Khawaja Nafay and Salman Mirza come in to replace Shaheen and Abrar. Agha did not explain the reason behind the changes; however, he stressed upon scoring an above-par score while batting first.
"We are going to bat first. We have played two games here. It is a good pitch. We just want to score above par and put them under pressure with the scoreboard pressure. (little bit of pressure on you?) Not really, we have been here like previously as well. And when you come to the World Cup like this, you have fixtures like that. You pretty much have to win every single game and we are ready for the game. (batting needs a lift) Yeah, yeah, the batting has just been a concern for us. We need to bat well. We have batted well against USA. We need to do the similar kind of performance today as well. We've got two changes. Salman and Nafay are playing. Shaheen and Abrar are missing out," Agha said.
Pakistan (Playing XI): Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Salman Agha(c), Babar Azam, Usman Khan(w), Khawaja Nafay, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Salman Mirza, Usman Tariq
Namibia captain Gerard Erasmus informed of two changes in the XI:
Gerhard Erasmus said, "Yeah, I really like it around here. It's kind of warm, which is a custom. We're accustomed to that in Namibia and really enjoying a little bit of sweat. (what can we expect from Namibia?) I guess we want to, you know, live up to our reputation as a good T20 side. We haven't quite hit our straps in all facets. I think we've competed for large amounts of the games, but you really need to do that against good teams for 40 overs, don't you? We have two changes. Alexander Volschenk and Jack Brassell come in. Dylan Leicher and Max Heingo miss out.
Namibia (Playing XI): Louren Steenkamp, Jan Frylinck, Jan Nicol Loftie-Eaton, Gerhard Erasmus(c), Alexander Volschenk, JJ Smit, Zane Green(w), Ruben Trumpelmann, Willem Myburgh, Bernard Scholtz, Jack Brassell
