Sahibzada Farhan to Lead Pakistan at Asian Games 2026, Squad Announced
LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has unveiled its 15-player men’s squad for the 2026 Asian Games, with seasoned top-order batter Sahibzada Farhan entrusted with the captaincy for the multi-sport event in Japan.
Cricket at the Asian Games will be staged in Aichi-Nagoya between 17 September and 3 October. The men’s T20 competition is set to get underway on 24 September at Korogi Athletic Park, while the gold and bronze medal matches are scheduled for 3 October.
Farhan, one of the most experienced players in the squad, has featured in 46 T20 Internationals for Pakistan. The right-handed batter has accumulated 1,305 runs in the format, highlighted by two centuries and 10 fifties. Abdul Samad has been appointed as the team’s deputy captain after representing Pakistan in five T20Is.
The squad combines international experience with promising young talent. Fast bowlers Akif Javed and Ali Raza, batter Maaz Sadaqat, and Saad Masood are among those still awaiting their T20I debuts for Pakistan.
A notable aspect of the selection is that 14 members of the squad have also been included in the National Cricket Academy’s white-ball training camp, which begins in Lahore on 15 June.
The men’s tournament will feature 10 teams. India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and hosts Japan qualified automatically, while Nepal, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Oman booked their spots through the qualifying pathway.
Pakistan squad: Sahibzada Farhan (captain), Abdul Samad (vice-captain), Abrar Ahmed, Ahmed Daniyal, Akif Javed, Ali Raza, Arafat Minhas, Haider Ali, Hasan Nawaz, Maaz Sadaqat, Mohammad Salman Mirza, Saad Masood, Saim Ayub, Sufyan Moqim and Usman Khan (wicketkeeper).
Support staff: Mike Hesson (head coach), Ashley Noffke (bowling coach), Shane McDermott (fielding coach), Muhammad Tahir (physiotherapist), Imran Ullah (trainer) and Usman Hashmi (analyst and team operations coordinator).
