- By Gurmeet Batra
- Sat, 03 Jan 2026 11:25 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
- Pakistan names 20-player preliminary T20 World Cup squad.
- Mohammad Rizwan omitted; Usman Khan preferred as keeper.
- Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi, Shadab Khan included.
T20 World Cup: Pakistan's senior national selectors have unveiled a preliminary 20-player squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup, featuring former skipper Babar Azam, pace spearhead Shaheen Shah Afridi, and spinner Shadab Khan, while notably omitting former captain and wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan.
As per news agency IANS, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has submitted the preliminary squad of 20 to the International Cricket Council (ICC), which will be cut to 15 by head coach Mike Hesson in a few days, a news report claimed on Saturday.
"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 participating nations have publicly disclosed their T20 World Cup squads, the tournament – jointly hosted by India and Sri Lanka – is still open to changes. The marquee event starts on February 7, but teams have until January 31 to modify their line-ups.
The tenth edition of the T20 international will be held in India and Sri Lanka from February 7 to March 8.
Pakistan will play all its games in Sri Lanka under a formula backed last year after the BCCI declined to send the team to Pakistan for the 2025 Champions Trophy.
Sources told www.telecomasia.net that former skipper Babar Azam, pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi, and Shadab Khan are in the squad, but there is no spot for former captain and wicketkeeper Rizwan.
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"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.
The statement said that Pakistan have five spinners in the squad with Shadab, Mohammad Nawaz, Abrar Ahmed, Usman Tariq, and Maaz Sadaqat.