Pakistan have named Sahibzada Farhan as their T20I captain for the upcoming three-match series against Sri Lanka, replacing Salman Ali Agha in the leadership role. The Pakistan Cricket Board announced the 15-member squad on October 5, 2026, with Agha not included in the T20I group at all.
The three T20Is will be played at Rawalpindi on October 9, 11 and 13, 2026. A separate 16-member ODI squad, led by Shaheen Shah Afridi, has also been named for an ODI tri-series involving Sri Lanka and England, which begins October 18 and concludes with a final at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on October 31. Farhan is not part of that ODI squad.
Why has Farhan been given the T20I captaincy?
Farhan arrives in the role on the back of a strong run of form in the shortest format. He was the top run-scorer at the T20 World Cup 2026, accumulating 383 runs across the tournament. He also led Pakistan to a silver medal at the Asian Games 2026, giving him recent captaincy experience at international level.
Agha had captained Pakistan at the T20 World Cup 2026 but has now been left out of the T20I squad entirely for this series. His inclusion in the ODI squad under Afridi suggests the selectors have separated the two formats and opted for a change in T20I leadership.
What is Hasan Nawaz’s standing in the squad?
Hasan Nawaz is among the retained Asian Games players in the T20I squad and comes into the series with notable recent form. He scored 96 in the Asian Games final against India, making him one of the more prominent batting contributors from that campaign.
Nawaz is also named in the ODI squad for the tri-series, giving him the opportunity to feature across both formats during what is a busy home schedule for Pakistan in October 2026.
Pakistan full squad for T20I series vs Sri Lanka
Sahibzada Farhan (c), Abdul Samad, Abrar Ahmed, Arafat Minhas, Fakhar Zaman, Hasan Nawaz, Khawaja Nafay (wk), Maaz Sadaqat, Mohammad Salman Mirza, Muhammad Imran Randhawa, Naseem Shah, Razaullah, Saim Ayub, Shadab Khan, Sufiyan Moqim.
Pakistan Full Squad for ODI Series vs Sri Lanka
Shaheen Shah Afridi (c), Abrar Ahmed, Arafat Minhas, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Nawaz, Muhammad Ghazi Ghori (wk), Naseem Shah, Razaullah, Saad Baig (wk), Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shadab Khan, Sufiyan Moqim
