Pakistan have left out several key players for their T20I series against Sri Lanka next month, just weeks away from the start of the 2026 Men's T20 World Cup.
Pakistan leave out key players for Sri Lanka series
The PCB named their squad for Pakistan's upcoming men's T20I series against Sri Lanka today (December 28). Several high profile names were left out of the squad, with Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi, Mohammed Rizwan and Haris Rauf all set to miss the series.
Pakistan will travel to Sri Lanka to play a three-match T20I series next month, with the series set to start on January 7 and conclude on January 11. The series will act as a warm-up tour ahead of the T20 World Cup, with Pakistan's campaign set to get underway against Netherlands on February 10.
While their star names have been left out of the squad, Pakistan have called up uncapped batter Khawaja Nafay, who had a successful stint in the most recent edition of the Abu Dhabi T10, in which he scored 178 runs at a strike rate of 243.83.
Pakistan squad for Sri Lanka T20Is: Salman Agha (c), 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.
Why have Pakistan left out Babar Azam & Shaheen Afridi ahead of T20 World Cup?
The big names left out of Pakistan's squad all have contracts in the ongoing Big Bash League. There was some uncertainty over whether the PCB would grant its players No Objection Certificates in order to play in the league, but it was confirmed in October that Pakistan players would be able to play as scheduled. Babar Azam, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Hasan Ali, Mohammed Rizwan, Haris Rauf and Shadab Khan all have contracts with BBL teams.
The league began on December 14 and is scheduled to run until January 25, well after Pakistan's series against Sri Lanka will be over. The only Pakistan player involved in the BBL who has been named in their T20I squad for the Sri Lanka series is Shadab Khan, who is coming off a period of injury rehab. Fakhar Zaman, Naseem Shah and Hasan Nawaz have all been playing in ILT20, which will end on January 4, three days before the first T20I against Sri Lanka.
While the series against Sri Lanka will act as preparation for the T20 World Cup, Pakistan have another T20I series scheduled in late January against Australia. It's likely that the players involved in the BBL will be recalled for that series in order for the side to complete its fine-tuning before the tournament. Thus, the PCB have allowed their key players to prioritise franchise cricket for the Sri Lanka series before rejoining the squad closer to the World Cup.
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