T20 World Cup 2026 | 'Needs to up his game': Pak skipper Salman on Babar Azam's place in Playing XI
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "T20 World Cup 2026 | 'Needs to up his game': Pak skipper Salman on Babar Azam's place in Playing XI")
Pak skipper Agha on Babar's place in Playing XI Photograph: (AFP)
Pak skipper Salman has not confirmed outright if former skipper Babar Azam and veteran batter Fakhar Zaman will be part of Playing XI in their T20 World Cup 2026 opening match against Netherland on Feb 7. Salman said that the selection will be based on 'what's best for the team.'
Pakistan, after much drama about their participation, start their T20 World Cup 2026 campaign against Netherlands on Saturday (Feb 7) at SSC in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Pakistan skipper Salman Agha, however, has not confirmed outright if former skipper Babar Azam and veteran batter Fakhar Zaman will be part of Playing XI in the opening match. Babar was recalled in October last year after being dropped for 10 months from the squad. Fakhar, on the other hand, has not been able to cross 10 runs in the last five innings. Salman said that the selection will be based on 'what's best for the team.'
Salman declines to confirm spot for Babar and Fakhar
"We'll only play who [is] the best for the team. Fakhar in the last ten years has done amazingly well, same [with] Babar, and I support them fully. But what's best for the team is what we'll play," said Salman on the eve of the T20 World Cup 2026 opening match.
Speaking about Babar's form, Salman: "He has been working on his game, because he knows he needs to up his game. Which is good. If the batter knows and he's trying, that's all you can do. And he's a very, very key player for us in these conditions. Because he's someone who will give us stability, that's what his role is going to be… If he's in form and scoring runs, Pakistan will mostly win games."
Pakistan squad and match schedule in T20 World Cup 2026
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Pakistan are in Group A along with India, Netherlands, Namibia and USA. After their campaign opener vs Netherlands on Feb 7, they next play USA on Feb 10. Pakistan are scheduled to play India on Feb 15 but have the boycott of the match. They end the group stage fixtures against Namibia on Feb 18. Pakistan play all their matches in Sri Lanka.
Pak squad for T20 WC: Salman Ali Agha (c), Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Khawaja Nafay, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Salman Mirza, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan, Usman Khan and Usman Tariq
