On Sunday, August 17, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) unveiled a 17-member squad for the upcoming tri-series in Sharjah and the Asia Cup 2025. All-rounder Salman Ali Agha will continue as captain after successfully leading the Men in Green to a 2-1 T20I series win against the West Indies earlier this month in the Caribbean.
No Place for Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan
In a surprising yet consistent call, the experienced duo of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan once again missed out on selection. Neither has featured for Pakistan in T20 internationals since December 2024, when they played a series against South Africa.
A PCB source explained the selectors’ stance:
“𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒂𝒈𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒄𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒂𝒄𝒌 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒖𝒓𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒃𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒅𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒈𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑾𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝑰𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒆𝒔. 𝑩𝒂𝒃𝒂𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑹𝒊𝒛𝒘𝒂𝒏 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒂𝒊𝒏 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒏𝒂𝒎𝒆𝒔, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒄𝒖𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒐𝒏 𝒃𝒖𝒊𝒍𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂 𝒔𝒒𝒖𝒂𝒅 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒖𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆.”
A Blend of Youth and Experience
Pakistan’s squad reflects a balance of emerging talent and proven performers. Young openers Saim Ayub and Sahibzada Farhan are set to provide an aggressive start, while Hasan Nawaz has been identified as a player to watch in the middle-order.
The bowling department looks formidable with pace spearheads Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, and Hasan Ali, bringing experience and firepower. On UAE pitches expected to aid spin, Mohammad Nawaz, Sufyan Moqim, and Abrar Ahmed will be crucial in controlling the middle overs.
“𝑾𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒑𝒊𝒄𝒌𝒆𝒅 𝒂 𝒔𝒒𝒖𝒂𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒃𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒔 𝒇𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒈 𝒃𝒂𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒅 𝒃𝒐𝒘𝒍𝒆𝒓𝒔, 𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒖𝒔 𝒃𝒂𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒅𝒆𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒔,” 𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒆𝒇 𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒐𝒓’𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒕𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒅.
Pakistan’s Upcoming Fixtures
Before the Asia Cup, Pakistan will participate in a tri-series in Sharjah from August 29 to September 7, featuring matches against Afghanistan and the UAE at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium.
The Asia Cup 2025, to be played in the T20 format, will see Pakistan start their campaign against Oman on September 12 in Dubai. Their second group-stage fixture will be a high-voltage clash against India on September 14, followed by their final group match against the UAE on September 17.
Pakistan Squad for Tri-Series and Asia Cup 2025:
Salman Ali Agha (C), Abrar Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Hasan Nawaz, Hussain Talat, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Haris (WK), Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Waseem Jnr, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Salman Mirza, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufyan Moqim.
Also Read: Asia Cup 2025: Mohammad Kaif Names Shubman Gill as India’s Backup Opener
