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Shadab Khan returns as Pakistan name T20I squad for Sri Lanka series

Are you satisfied with the selection of the squad for Pakistan?

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BouncerGuy

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All-rounder Shadab Khan has returned to the T20I side as the Men’s National Selection Committee named a 15-member squad for the three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka, scheduled to take place later next month. Salman Ali Agha, who featured in a record 34 T20I matches — the most by a Pakistan player in this year will continue to lead the side in the forthcoming series.

The 27-year-old Shadab, who last represented Pakistan in June this year, underwent shoulder surgery earlier in the year. Following a successful rehabilitation programme at the National Cricket Academy, he is currently featuring in the Big Bash League (BBL) in Australia.

The other addition to the squad is uncapped wicketkeeper-batter Khawaja Nafay. The 23-year-old right-handed batter has recently been part of the Pakistan Shaheens squad. He has featured in 32 T20 matches and has scored at a strike rate of 132.81.

Pakistan side will depart for Sri Lanka in the first week of January, with all three T20Is scheduled to be played at the Rangiri Dambulla International Cricket Stadium (RDICS) in Dambulla on 7, 9 and 11 January.

The series will provide Pakistan an opportunity to finalise their squad for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, set to take place in India and Sri Lanka from 7 February to 8 March. Pakistan are scheduled to play all their matches in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

15-member squad:

Salman Ali Agha (captain), Abdul Samad, Abrar Ahmad, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Khawaja Nafay (wk), Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Salman Mirza, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan (wk), Saim Ayub, Shadab Khan, Usman Khan (wk), Usman Tariq

Team management:

Naveed Akram Cheema (manager), Mike Hesson (head coach), Ashley Noffke (bowling coach), Hanif Malik (batting Coach), Shane McDermott (fielding coach), Cliffe Deacon (physiotherapist), Grant Luden (strength and conditioning coach), Talha Ejaz (analyst), Syed Naeem Ahmad (media manager), Col. Usman Anwari (security manager), Dr Wajid Ali Rafai (team doctor) and Muhammad Ehsan (masseur)

Series schedule:

7 January – First T20I

9 January – Second T20I

11 January – Third T20I

www.pcb.com.pk

Shadab Khan returns as Pakistan name T20I squad for Sri Lanka series

Series schedule is available here Lahore , 28 December 2025 : All-rounder Shadab Khan has returned to the T20I side as the Men’s National Selection Committee named a...
www.pcb.com.pk www.pcb.com.pk
 
Maaz Sadaqat won't get to debut I guess until after WC. What happened to Abbas Afridi?
 
BouncerGuy said:
@Major Nafay is talented... Haris was a blind slogger but Nafay is not similar.. Nafay should do better job than him.
Click to expand...
Naa, any player that is good would have domestic stats to back him. He doenst.

Plus, he is being bought in as a keeper. He has never stumped anyone in his domestic career, and we have 5 spinners in our squad.
 
Was expecting Maaz and Danyal to be given a chance and Sufyan to be back but nah, its Pakistan after all. The damad aka Shadab is back, while we will take Babar to the t20 WC. Clear as daylight.
 
Theres a reason players like Maaz are not selected because if they end up performing, it becomes really hard to justify selecting the likes of Babar.

Pakistan’s senior team selection and management sucks and are corrupt. Selections are not on merit.
 
Teams like India drop Gill because even they realize that even with manufactured backing he does not make the team on merit and here on our side shadab gets a free pass as if its his God given right. Thats why i am so done with Pakistan cricket. Frustrating.
 
The last second selection and trying of Nafay is absolutely insane and comical. He has barely played in domestic and proven himself. He hasn't even been a keeper on the regular. PCB system is so dumb he wasn't even playing in List A tournament that just happened.

Mohammad Haris somehow completely discarded from the setup. It's not like has been given such extended chances to be dropped and replaced with someone with worse domestic numbers and hardly proven himself. Somehow, Haris wasn't playing in the list A tournament either.

Abbas Afridi whereabouts remain unknown as well and he didn't play in the List A tournament either.

I think Maaz earned a look but my guess is they feel they have so many opening options that they don't want to add another one into the mix to make it even more confusing.

Great to see Shadab back but not much positives outside of that.
 
So Pakistan has decided to move past Hassan Nawaz.... Samad takes his place..

I wonder what the playing 11 will be like??

Farhan
Saim
Salman agha
Fakhar
NAfay
Usman
Shadab
Nawaz
Salman mirza
Naseem
Abrar
 
Can Sahibzada bat at #6 as finisher ? Might have been worth picking Maaz to open with Saim to see what's possible.

But I guess it's too close to T20 WC
 
BouncerGuy said:
So Pakistan has decided to move past Hassan Nawaz.... Samad takes his place..

I wonder what the playing 11 will be like??

Farhan
Saim
Salman agha
Fakhar
NAfay
Usman
Shadab
Nawaz
Salman mirza
Naseem
Abrar
Click to expand...
Playing both nafay and Usman doesn’t make any sense . Only one can
 
Asif321 said:
Playing both nafay and Usman doesn’t make any sense . Only one can
Click to expand...

Presumably they want to try both and see which one they want to decide for the WC. Laughable they are trying three wicketkeepers and none of them are keepers on the regular.

They do have a proper WK in Haris who can play at a high SR but has been completely discarded for desperate part time keeper attempts.
 
Nasty Naz said:
Presumably they want to try both and see which one they want to decide for the WC. Laughable they are trying three wicketkeepers and none of them are keepers on the regular.

They do have a proper WK in Haris who can play at a high SR but has been completely discarded for desperate part time keeper attempts.
Click to expand...
Haris was given an extended run and showed zero returns. He has done nothing of note to stay in the squad. But since i saw you are happy at Shadab being back. Doubt merit or performance matters to you.
 
Nasty Naz said:
Presumably they want to try both and see which one they want to decide for the WC. Laughable they are trying three wicketkeepers and none of them are keepers on the regular.

They do have a proper WK in Haris who can play at a high SR but has been completely discarded for desperate part time keeper attempts.
Click to expand...
Haris will be a big disaster in Srilanka like he was in UAE . Given too many chances . No excuses anymore . He can only do good cameos here and there on Pakistan flat tracks and on tracks which offer some bounce
 
Slim said:
Haris was given an extended run and showed zero returns. He has done nothing of note to stay in the squad. But since i saw you are happy at Shadab being back. Doubt merit or performance matters to you.
Click to expand...

I don't see any other leg spinning all rounder option, do you? It's not like this is the WC squad. Shadab was one our best players in 21' & 22' when Pakistan made deep runs into the tournament. If he is healthy, he at least warrants a look to prove himself and in his early returns with the BBL, he has been good. If he does great in this series and the upcoming series vs Australia, there's no reason he shouldn't be in the WC squad.

If the conditions prove to be very spin friendly in SL, he makes more sense in the lineup over Faheem and you can utilize a spin attack of Abrar/Nawaz/Shadab + Saim all together and utilize them based on best matchup scenario.
 
Once again very timid selections from Hesson. Looks like he’s scared to try new players that’s why he is stuck with Fakhar who is useless in T20
 
Nasty Naz said:
I don't see any other leg spinning all rounder option, do you? It's not like this is the WC squad. Shadab was one our best players in 21' & 22' when Pakistan made deep runs into the tournament. If he is healthy, he at least warrants a look to prove himself and in his early returns with the BBL, he has been good. If he does great in this series and the upcoming series vs Australia, there's no reason he shouldn't be in the WC squad.

If the conditions prove to be very spin friendly in SL, he makes more sense in the lineup over Faheem and you can utilize a spin attack of Abrar/Nawaz/Shadab + Saim all together and utilize them based on best matchup scenario.
Click to expand...
LOL he has been found out and he’s a useless spin bowler who would get smashed most of the times. I wouldn’t take BBL performances seriously where frankly even some Australian grade cricketers are playing.
 
Raja Ishtiaq said:
Babar dropped? No recall for Rizwan?

If these two aren't in the WC squad then we are pretty screwed.
Click to expand...
both are playing BBL maybe that is why babar was not selected. also shaheen and Haris....

Rizwan was never in contention for a spot anyway....
 
Naseem shah doesn't make the t20 team on merit.

Abbas Afridi continues to get sidelined. Huge injustice with this guy.
 
Missing
HNawaz
Maaz
Abbas

Rest is fine. I'm pleased at Shadab comeback but worried where he will slot into the side.

Ideal place would be the skippers position.....
 
Khwaja Nafay has sarfaraz written all over it.

Sick inclusion. This guy is a gun!
 
BouncerGuy said:
both are playing BBL maybe that is why babar was not selected. also shaheen and Haris....

Rizwan was never in contention for a spot anyway....
Click to expand...

Isnt Shadab's recall is a bit of out the blue too? I'm sure he wasnt performing for Pakistan before he was dropped.

I don't see why Rizwan can't return to the T20 setup
 
Raja Ishtiaq said:
Isnt Shadab's recall is a bit of out the blue too? I'm sure he wasnt performing for Pakistan before he was dropped.

I don't see why Rizwan can't return to the T20 setup
Click to expand...
Why don’t you see why Rizwan can’t return to our T29 set up? What’s your basis?
 
BouncerGuy said:
@Major Nafay is talented... Haris was a blind slogger but Nafay is not similar.. Nafay should do better job than him.
Click to expand...
I think you watch videos uploaded on his youtube channel. Other than that don't think there's is any evidence that he's talented 😃.
Not yet.
 
Ahmed216 said:
I think you watch videos uploaded on his youtube channel. Other than that don't think there's is any evidence that he's talented 😃.
Not yet.
Click to expand...
If your world is restricted to watching YouTube and tik tok reels of Babar and Rizwan, you really ought to shut up before questioning the talent of others :shhh
 
Best XI from this squad

1. Saim
2. Farhan
3. Nafay (wk)
4. Fakhar
5. Shadab
6. Samad
7. Nawaz
8. Faheem
9. Abrar
10. Mirza
11. Naseem
 
So Shadab gets a parachute landing into t20 side, will be a threat to Agha , let's see what happens
 
BouncerGuy said:
He is not a blind slogger bro as Haris was.... Simple fact
Click to expand...
What’s a blind slogger versus what isn’t? The one who connects his big hits versus the one who doesn’t?

I think your expertise in Batting is accumulative, ground shot assessment of conditions batting. That’s where you can offer us good insights (y)
 
Omer2002 said:
Maaz is struggling in BPL he is no where ready then again all Pak players have struggled in BBL and BPL
Click to expand...
Yeah already have saim, farhan and fakhar in squad so not needed....hasan nawaz should have been in over usman khan with khawajay nafay as keeper and also draft in abdul samad in playing eleven
 
A few points on this squad:

1) Sufyan Muqeem will feel pretty hard done by, but we are in a really good place w/ our spin options

2) Absolutely delighted that Maaz hasn’t been picked. Delighted. This means that we can integrate him properly post WC, whilst he gets the reps necessary to play in the middle order in the PSL. Don’t need the stink of any WC failures on him either.

3) Very happy w/ Shadab’s inclusion. He went through significant groin and shoulder injuries that badly compromised his bowling consistency and we are now seeing the positive effects of his rehabilitation in the BBL. He’s also a very useful option at 4-5 for us, in our non-existent middle order

4) Nafay has been brought in to play at no.3 (I.e. the Babar replacement). Will be interesting to see how he does.

5) Find the Hassan Nawaz non-selection weird, but I suspect that he’s another project that will be reintegrated slowly post WC (and post PSL)

6) I think Naseem Shah and Mo Wasim are competing for the same spot (death overs plus first change in PP). Am hoping that Wasim inshAllah does his thing. Abbas Afridi can feel hard done by, but I liked what I saw from Wasim in the last few games. Naseem Shah needs to show something though.

7) Abdul Samad will get all three games. InshAllah he comes good.

Not a perfect squad but it’s been picked to answer a final few qs before the WC squad is fixed, mainly:

a) Can we settle on a stable nos 4-5-6 to sort out our middle order? (It’ll be any combo of Agha plus Fakhar/Usman/Shadab/Samad)

b) Who’ll be our reserve fast bowler (Naseem or Wasim)

c) Can the no.3 options (Fakhar/Nafay) clearly take the position away from Babar.
 
KingOfPakBreakfast said:
A few points on this squad:

1) Sufyan Muqeem will feel pretty hard done by, but we are in a really good place w/ our spin options

2) Absolutely delighted that Maaz hasn’t been picked. Delighted. This means that we can integrate him properly post WC, whilst he gets the reps necessary to play in the middle order in the PSL. Don’t need the stink of any WC failures on him either.

3) Very happy w/ Shadab’s inclusion. He went through significant groin and shoulder injuries that badly compromised his bowling consistency and we are now seeing the positive effects of his rehabilitation in the BBL. He’s also a very useful option at 4-5 for us, in our non-existent middle order

4) Nafay has been brought in to play at no.3 (I.e. the Babar replacement). Will be interesting to see how he does.

5) Find the Hassan Nawaz non-selection weird, but I suspect that he’s another project that will be reintegrated slowly post WC (and post PSL)

6) I think Naseem Shah and Mo Wasim are competing for the same spot (death overs plus first change in PP). Am hoping that Wasim inshAllah does his thing. Abbas Afridi can feel hard done by, but I liked what I saw from Wasim in the last few games. Naseem Shah needs to show something though.

7) Abdul Samad will get all three games. InshAllah he comes good.

Not a perfect squad but it’s been picked to answer a final few qs before the WC squad is fixed, mainly:

a) Can we settle on a stable nos 4-5-6 to sort out our middle order? (It’ll be any combo of Agha plus Fakhar/Usman/Shadab/Samad)

b) Who’ll be our reserve fast bowler (Naseem or Wasim)

c) Can the no.3 options (Fakhar/Nafay) clearly take the position away from Babar.
Click to expand...
Agree on almost all points however Nafay isn't brought in just as a Babar replacement, it is a further sign that Hesson has no interest in playing Rizwan.

Haris pretty much failed and Usman has been up and down. Haseebullah not worth trying after his ODI poor show.

Hesson is doing everything but going back to Rizwan.

Babar still has an outside shot for the WC.
 
DeadlyVenom said:
Agree on almost all points however Nafay isn't brought in just as a Babar replacement, it is a further sign that Hesson has no interest in playing Rizwan.

Haris pretty much failed and Usman has been up and down. Haseebullah not worth trying after his ODI poor show.

Hesson is doing everything but going back to Rizwan.

Babar still has an outside shot for the WC.
Click to expand...
And I don’t blame Hesson, Aqib and Sarfaraz for this.

This will be a monumental achievement by them if they successfully keep out Rizwan from the T20i squad for the World Cup! Extreme pressure on them.

Usman averaged 70 odd in the tri series that too batting in the middle order but people want him out.

Just imagine the amount of pressure these keepers are under?
 
DeadlyVenom said:
Agree on almost all points however Nafay isn't brought in just as a Babar replacement, it is a further sign that Hesson has no interest in playing Rizwan.

Haris pretty much failed and Usman has been up and down. Haseebullah not worth trying after his ODI poor show.

Hesson is doing everything but going back to Rizwan.

Babar still has an outside shot for the WC.
Click to expand...
Yes, agree on the Rizwan point.

I thought the side had conclusively moved on from Rizwan some time ago. He’s still the best actual keeper we have (and thus makes the test side on that basis), but just cannot be included in T20s because of his batting position inflexibility. Having him as opener (regardless of his own s/r issues) messes w/ the balance of the side.

W/ Babar, I believe the selectors have wanted to move on from him for a while. He was then brought back to show an extra gear, but he’s actually regressed in his shot making.

Thus if anybody truly makes an impact at 3 in this series, I think that’s Babar removed from the T20 WC squad.
 
RidiculousMan said:
It'll be beneficial for Pakistan if he replaces Salman directly. Otherwise he'll be eating up the place of a deserving spinner or batter
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I’m torn on Agha because I do believe he’s a promising captain, but ultimately he needs to provide more ballast in the middle order, which he struggles to.
 
BouncerGuy said:
So Pakistan has decided to move past Hassan Nawaz.... Samad takes his place..

I wonder what the playing 11 will be like??

Farhan
Saim
Salman agha
Fakhar
NAfay
Usman
Shadab
Nawaz
Salman mirza
Naseem
Abrar
Click to expand...
Agha really messes up the line up, but if he has to play he can replace either Nafay or Fakhar, ideal would be to replace Fakhar so we can see what Nafay can do. From 5 to 7 down i,e from Shadab to Nawaz, are all interchangeable depending on the situation. Would also like Usman Tariq to have a chance or two in place of Abrar. Same with Naseem and Md Waseem Jr.

Farhan
Saim
Nafay/Agha
Fakhar/Agha
Shadab
Usman
Nawaz
Samad
Salman mirza
Naseem/ Md Waseem Jr
Abrar/Tariq
 
G0rmintAunty said:
Agha really messes up the line up, but if he has to play he can replace either Nafay or Fakhar, ideal would be to replace Fakhar so we can see what Nafay can do. From 5 to 7 down i,e from Shadab to Nawaz, are all interchangeable depending on the situation. Would also like Usman Tariq to have a chance or two in place of Abrar. Same with Naseem and Md Waseem Jr.

Farhan
Saim
Nafay/Agha
Fakhar/Agha
Shadab
Usman
Nawaz
Samad
Salman mirza
Naseem/ Md Waseem Jr
Abrar/Tariq
Click to expand...
I agree w/ you on that lineup except theyll play Faheem over Usman Khan (thereby playing Shadab as a middle order bat). It’s what he’s done at ISLU. It also allows another leftie in the line up
 
DeadlyVenom said:
Agree on almost all points however Nafay isn't brought in just as a Babar replacement, it is a further sign that Hesson has no interest in playing Rizwan.

Haris pretty much failed and Usman has been up and down. Haseebullah not worth trying after his ODI poor show.

Hesson is doing everything but going back to Rizwan.

Babar still has an outside shot for the WC.
Click to expand...

Personal vendetta perhaps?

Do we need a coach who has personal issues against players? I don't think I do
 
KingOfPakBreakfast said:
I agree w/ you on that lineup except theyll play Faheem over Usman Khan (thereby playing Shadab as a middle order bat). It’s what he’s done at ISLU. It also allows another leftie in the line up
Click to expand...
Yeah I was talking about this squad in particular. For the WC squad in SL one main fast bowler and one genuine pace all rounder will be optimal, where we could include an extra spinner then. SSA, Naseem, AA can all tonk a few but I wouldn't consider them all rounders. Rana Sahab has done well of late but then again you never know with him.
 
Hadn't realised Rana Saheb was also in the squad. He can be interchangeable with one of the genuine pace bowlers then

Farhan
Saim
Nafay/Agha
Fakhar/Agha
Shadab
Usman
Nawaz
Samad
Salman mirza/Faheem
Naseem/ Md Waseem Jr/Faheem
Abrar/Tariq

On paper we have batting till 10.
 
disappointed to not see maaz and hassan nawaz in the squad, but they havnt exactly lit up their respective leagues at the moment, and given they were unlikely to play all three games, i reckon a full league season would pbly be better for their development at this point.

if shadab is properly fit, and getting spin again, then i dont mind his inclusion, along with nawaz and abrar that makes a strong spin attack. also nawaz and shadab can both bat a bit, and a fit shadab is still the best fielder in pak. along with fahim they give pakistan a decent lower order.

decent ish selection.
 
G0rmintAunty said:
Hadn't realised Rana Saheb was also in the squad. He can be interchangeable with one of the genuine pace bowlers then

Farhan
Saim
Nafay/Agha
Fakhar/Agha
Shadab
Usman
Nawaz
Samad
Salman mirza/Faheem
Naseem/ Md Waseem Jr/Faheem
Abrar/Tariq

On paper we have batting till 10.
Click to expand...
To add to your post, I think the strategy w/ that batting line up is clear as well.

If you assume a bowling side will go w/ pace up top and at the death, with spinners bowling in the middle, that batting line up works.

Saim, Farhan and Nafay/Fakhar prefer to start playing pace.

Agha and Shadab are better at spin bashing

Nawaz and Faheem are better at hitting the quicks at the death.

You then adjust your batting line up as bowling side adjustment their own plans.
 
I will take shadab to lead pakistan over agha anytime in t20 I am disappointed that they have not picked hasan nawaz and maybe likes of maaz sadakat and ahmed danyal not got a look in i think we are going in the world cup with all dead woods intact apart from rizwan
 
By overlooking players such as Sufiyan Muqeem and the consistently outstanding Maaz Sadaqat, Pakistan cricket once again highlights serious gaps in its selection process. There appears to be a recurring tendency to rely on established names and past reputations, with players returning from leagues like the BBL will seemingly be walking back into World Cup contention without being judged on recent, impactful performances.

At the same time, those who continue to work hard and deliver consistent results on the domestic circuit often remain on the fringes or are ignored altogether. This imbalance not only risks demotivating emerging talent but also raises concerns about the long-term sustainability of Pakistan cricket. If this pattern continues, it would not be surprising to see a growing number of talented players seek opportunities abroad due to a lack of recognition and support at home.
 
Deewana Mastana said:
By overlooking players such as Sufiyan Muqeem and the consistently outstanding Maaz Sadaqat, Pakistan cricket once again highlights serious gaps in its selection process. There appears to be a recurring tendency to rely on established names and past reputations, with players returning from leagues like the BBL will seemingly be walking back into World Cup contention without being judged on recent, impactful performances.

At the same time, those who continue to work hard and deliver consistent results on the domestic circuit often remain on the fringes or are ignored altogether. This imbalance not only risks demotivating emerging talent but also raises concerns about the long-term sustainability of Pakistan cricket. If this pattern continues, it would not be surprising to see a growing number of talented players seek opportunities abroad due to a lack of recognition and support at home.
Click to expand...
No team adds a new player nvm new players so close to a WC. In the WC experience is more important than new flair, Maaz, Nafay etc may all be exciting prospects but it is unfair to suddenly include them in a WC squad just a month or two prior to the event. To us everyone who is new or not playing is better than the playing ones, when given the chance they flop more often than not, are side-lined, oldies come back and the cycle continues. Maaz has only performed in local setups and the rising stars and flopped in the BPL so far, so I doubt he will be able to do much against the best of all international teams. Let him organically learn and grow.

I think the new players being tried who if perform exceptionally will only be taken as back up to the team that they have been playing for the past few months and settled apart from Shady who is a purana khiladi.
 
G0rmintAunty said:
Hadn't realised Rana Saheb was also in the squad. He can be interchangeable with one of the genuine pace bowlers then

Farhan
Saim
Nafay/Agha
Fakhar/Agha
Shadab
Usman
Nawaz
Samad
Salman mirza/Faheem
Naseem/ Md Waseem Jr/Faheem
Abrar/Tariq

On paper we have batting till 10.
Click to expand...
It seems like Hesson is doubling down on bits and pieces strategy. Problem is who will do the batting against big teams?

We saw how badly our batting struggled against India three times. Aside from Farhan and Fakhar. Who have proper experience as batters.
 
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