LAHORE (Kashmir English): The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has announced a 16-member panel for the upcoming three-match T20I series against Australia, with senior stars Babar Azam and Shaheen Shah Afridi returning to the squad.
The duo rejoins the national squad after missing the team’s recent away series against Sri Lanka.
The team will be captained by Salman Ali Agha. All-rounder Shadab Khan continues his comeback and leads a strong spin department alongside Abrar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz, and Usman Tariq.
The Pakistan squad is scheduled to assemble in Lahore on January 24, 2026, with training beginning the following day.
All matches will be hosted at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium and are scheduled to begin at 4:00 PM PKT due to the cold weather. This series serves as final preparation for both teams before the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 begins in February.
Australia is expected to arrive in Lahore on January 28, 2026 (Wednesday). This marks their first T20I series on Pakistani soil since April 2022, when they played a solitary match at the same venue.
On Thursday, Babar Azam announced that he would miss the remainder of the Big Bash League (BBL) in Australia since he had been recalled to Pakistan for a national team camp ahead of the T20I series.
Australia also announced their 17-player squad earlier this week and have rested five top players, including Pat Cummins, Glenn Maxwell, Josh Hazlewood, Tim David and Nathan Ellis.
Pakistan T20I squad
Salman Ali Agha (captain), Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Khawaja Mohammad Nafay (wk), Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Salman Mirza, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan (wk), Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan, Usman Khan (wk) and Usman Tariq
Series schedule: (All matches at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore)
1st T20I: Thursday, January 29
2nd T20I: Saturday, January 31
3rd T20I: Sunday, February 1
